Swampscott School Committee Approves New Governance Protocols, Four Labor Agreements

SWAMPSCOTT — May 14, 2026 — Swampscott School Committee unanimously adopted updated governance protocols and approved four labor agreements with the teachers union at its May 14 meeting. Chair Glenn Pastor led the full board through a line-by-line review of the committee's operating protocols for 2026-27, incorporating member-proposed edits including a new requirement that all information requests flow through both the superintendent and committee chair, before a unanimous vote to adopt the document. The committee then passed four memorandums of agreement with the Swampscott Education Association covering stipends, teacher coverage, tutor evaluation, and ESP evaluation — all stemming from last year's interest-based bargaining negotiations — with the stipend adjustment valued at approximately $28,000 already built into the district budget. High school guidance counselor Rachel Sturmer reported that 80 percent of AP exams scored a 3 or above in 2024-25, up in volume from 417 to 603 total exams, earning a College Board gold-medal ranking. Assistant Superintendent for Student Services Martha Raymond flagged the district's practice of using incoming circuit breaker reimbursement funds to offset current-year budget needs as a structural risk, warning that "at some point it's going to bite us" and require the town to provide emergency special education funding.