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BPS unveils $1.5 billion budget with ‘historic’ investment from the city
“An incredible amount of thought went into how our budget aligns to our priorities and values,” Superintendent Mary Skipper said.
Boston Public Schools officials presented next year’s $1.5 billion budget on Wednesday night, highlighting an $81 million increase as federal pandemic relief ends in September.
Superintendent Mary Skipper called the $81 million investment from the city “historic.” Thirty million dollars of the funds are set as school-directed investments, including resources for students with disabilities and students learning English, as well as additional support staffing.
“An incredible amount of thought went into how our budget aligns to our priorities and values,” Skipper said. “It will be hard, and it will be messy at times, but when I think about 10 years in the future, if we stay the course and we make those hard decisions, keeping the students in the center, then I know we’ll look back at this year and the next few to follow as some of the pivotal moments in BPS history.”
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The rest of the investment will go to universal Pre-K, covering rising costs of facilities, transportation, extended learning time costs, and food. More than $23 million will fill gaps left from soon-to-be-gone pandemic-era relief, including the Boston Teachers Union collective bargaining agreement.
The Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund, or ESSER, is federal funding that covered $170 million in BPS’s budget last year. This year, only $13 million will come from ESSER funds.
Skipper also said about $27 million will be saved from “efficiencies” in the central office and by consolidating classrooms and reconfiguring grades. The budget proposal says they are closing 68 classrooms and opening 16 new classrooms, saving around $7 million.
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The School Committee will vote on the new budget in late March after three more budget hearings. The Boston City Council will vote on the budget in June.
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