Middleton School Committee Votes to Eliminate Positions, Cut $638,000 in FY27 Budget

MIDDLETON — January 5, 2026 — Middleton School Committee votes $638,000 in preliminary FY27 cuts, leaving a $136,000 gap. The committee unanimously approved staffing reductions — including a library aide, two paraprofessionals, three classroom sections, and one education support position — plus $23,950 in line-item supply and stipend cuts, against a total budget gap of $774,313 atop a $17.1 million guideline budget. Superintendent Scott Morrison called the approach "right-sizing" enrollment after current K-6 enrollment of 633 students fell 200 short of projections made five years ago by NESDEC, which had forecast 847 students by fiscal year 2027. State Senator Bruce Tarr, invited to address the committee, confirmed Middleton's total Chapter 70 allocation runs approximately $1.9 million annually with yearly increases of only $40,000 to $50,000, and said roughly 250 Massachusetts school districts now receive only minimum per-pupil aid. Insurance rate negotiations with the Select Board, expected to resolve in mid-February, could close up to $108,000 more of the remaining gap.