School Committee, Oct 21, 2026

The Nashoba Regional School Committee meeting, titled Oct. 21, 2026 (meeting metadata is dated Oct. 22), approved its consent agenda, including an FY27 IDEA grant allocation of approximately $877,000; officials said about $823,000 is available for school-age operating costs. Administrators reported that the Whitsons food-service contract had completed legal review and received DESE approval. Two Whitsons hires are being onboarded, 20 district employees have been retained, and one or two positions remain open. The special-education update projected approximately $8.7 million in costs against identified funding of about $8.3 million, leaving an estimated $400,000 gap after planned use of operating funds, circuit-breaker funds and IDEA grant funding. The district expects to pursue extraordinary relief and provide monthly budget updates. The FY26 closeout was projected to return about $870,000 to E&D, subject to audit and certification.

The chair reported that the school building committee approved adding a cellular antenna to the building project scope, an approximately $500,000 change expected to be covered by existing allowances and contingency; the project was reported on schedule and on budget. The committee also heard a proposed Puerto Rico student trip costing $2,934 per student, with approval scheduled for the Nov. 4 meeting. No vote on the trip occurred at this meeting. Other discussion included MCAS results, strategic planning, and a community request to reconsider a school walk decision; no related procurement action was identified.