On November 5th, the citizens of Winthrop will be able to vote on questions regarding the future of our federal government, state, and local governments.  The final question on the ballot regards the future of Winthrop Public Schools.  The question reads:

“Shall the Town of Winthrop be allowed to assess an additional $4,950,000 in real estate and personal property taxes for the purpose of funding the Winthrop Public Schools Operating Budget for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2025?”

Essentially, Winthrop Public Schools is asking for a 2.5% override – in other words, the district needs $4.95 million to keep the schools up and running.  Currently, the school is in a $3.5 million deficit (a deficit is when spending exceeds the amount of revenue money given) and it needs to be paid off for the 2025-26 school year to run properly.

Why does WPS need an override?

The district hasn’t had an override in 15 years; the average override occurrence for the state is anywhere between two and five years.  WPS was originally going to ask for an override for Fiscal Year 2020 (FY20) but then Covid-19 hit and the district was getting money from the state and federal governments.  Sadly, the Covid money had to be used before a certain date, as many people ask why the district can’t use the Covid funds (this topic was mentioned in the Winthrop School Committee Meeting on October 21, 2024 – it can be found around the 27 and 57-minute marks).  The district also receives money from Chapter 70, what Superintendent Lisa Howard calls a “formula.”  In an interview conducted between myself and her, Ms. Howard says that the formula for Chapter 70 “[determines] how much money a school will get.”  However, this formula is outdated.  Due to factors like an increase in working parents, mental health issues, children in special education programs, and more, Chapter 70 “doesn’t give nearly enough money,” says Ms. Howard.

What are the outcomes of the override, if it is passed or not?

If the override is passed, then the town will ask for all property taxes to be increased by $78/month to fulfill the district’s ask. Raising the taxes by that amount would amount to approximately $936/year (“Based on an assessed home value of $689,206“).  $3.5 of the $4.95 million will be used to cover the deficit.  The remaining $1.45 million will be”going into a stabilization fund that can only be used by the schools,” says Kaitlin Burroughs, Chair for the Yes! For Winthrop’s Kids Committee.  She also says that people have been asking about where the $4.95 million will go.  In response to that, she ensures that “3.5 million of [the 4.95] is to cover the short, the expected shortfall for the next fiscal year, and then the remainder is used to kind of stabilize and cover the next 2 years.”  If the budget continues to be “ethically managed,” as said by Winthrop School Committee Member Suzanne Leonard, Superintendent Howard hopes that WPS can make major progress as a whole.

Should the override not pass, the district will need to make $3.5 million in budget cuts.  According to the Winthrop Public Schools’ Budget for FY25, 61% of the budget goes to teacher salaries and 39% goes to other expenses.  The first thing to get cut would be the teachers’ salaries.  If salaries get cut, teachers will want to leave, because, let’s face it, no one likes their salary getting cut.  If teachers left, that would snowball into bigger class sizes (in the School Committee meeting link provided above, go to 58:40 to hear about the increase in class sizes from WHS’s own Mx. Heafey), a decrease in educational quality, and a decrease in the property value of Winthrop.

It’s clear to see Superintendent Lisa Howard’s dedication to educating the whole student.  She wants to make sure students are being given educational accommodations tailored to them; for example, special education programs, language dictionaries for students, and more.  An advocate for extra-curricular activities like band, she argues that those curricular activities should be co-curricular, rather than “extra.” In our interview, she said, “They’re part of [a student’s] full school experience.  They create the whole child.  So it’s not just English, math, science, and social studies.  Every other thing that we provide or offer to kids, whether it’s drama, whether it’s [physical education], whether it’s working in the preschool classroom, whether it’s AP, you know, all of those courses, they’re not mandatory, but they create the whole child.  So when you start removing some of those because you don’t have the funds to pay for a teacher to run those, you’re now diminishing all the opportunities for kids.”  With the passing of the override, Superintendent Howard hopes to attain a level service budget in the future.  A level service budget is where you base your budget on the same services you provided the year before and the only change would be the cost of those services.  And possibly, Ms. Howard wants to eventually establish a needs-based budget where the district budget will cover all the needs of all the departments of WPS.  

I asked Jennifer Powell, Chairperson on the Winthrop School Committee and the Winthrop Teachers Association, headed by The Viking Times‘s advisor Brian Donnelly, for statements concerning the override.  

Jennifer Powell: “This vote matters because it is a statement about the kind of community we want to have. A community is defined largely by its schools, and currently, we have great schools. The question we face now is what do we want for our future? We are at a crossroads. We have an opportunity now to continue to move forward and build on the hard work we’ve done to be in a place where we can support our students in reaching their best potential. That is what I hope the voters will do.”

Winthrop Teachers Association: “Without the 2.5% Override vote passing, we are afraid of the changes that our school system will be forced to undertake, making it unrecognizable from the current landscape. These changes would make it nearly impossible to continue to create a safe, rigorous, and welcoming classroom experience that so many of our students have benefited from in the past… The school system would be required to cut upwards of 30 staff members, representing a little less than 10% of our total staff… These are not scare tactics; these are actualities.  Winthrop is a community steeped in pride and tradition… We want to afford the same expansive and high quality education we have been providing our students to the next generation of students, continuing this tradition of the core values of Winthrop Public Schools: Pride, Respect, Integrity, Dedication, and Excellence… It is important that the town comes together and Votes YES on the 2.5% Override and supports the students of Winthrop Public School.”

I reached out to Massachusett State Senator, Lydia Edwards for a comment.  When she responded, Ms. Edwards has “decided no matter what to fight for as much state funding for the Winthrop Public Schools.”  It’s good to see support for this override not just from the Town of Winthrop.

When I picked up this article four weeks ago, I wasn’t planning on it being an opinion piece.  It wasn’t until I researched and spoke with Kaitlin and Ms. Howard about the topic when I realized how much this override is needed.  If the override is not passed, teachers will leave. There is a risk of the quality of WPS education going down.  Classes and programs would be cut and class sizes would increase. On top of all of that, property values may decrease.  Winthrop Public Schools is the epicenter of our community.  We, as a town, cannot fail it.  If we do, it will impact us more than we could ever know; the education of those within the Winthrop Public School District, those supporting the high school, and every person living in Winthrop.  My family and I moved to Winthrop in 2021 so I could have a better educational experience in high school.  I think my high school experience could not have been better, honestly.  My sister will be a freshman at Winthrop High School next year.  I want her to have the same high school experience as I did, if not better.

Unlike the other questions on the ballot, there is no explanation for what “Yes” and “No” would mean.  Here are “simple” explanations of your voting decision.  If you vote “Yes”, the town, as a whole, will provide the school with $4.95 million with a $78 increase in property taxes per month to help the schools run properly over the next three years.  If you vote “No”, as said before, the district will need to make $3.5 million in cuts, potentially damaging the educational future of thousands of kids in Winthrop.  $78 a month is a small price to pay*, considering what the consequences are.

“An investment in the schools is an investment in all of Winthrop.” – Winthrop Teachers Association

Here are links that may be useful to allow voters to make an informed decision:

• Town of Winthrop Budget for FY2025: https://www.winthropma.gov/DocumentCenter/View/1191/Town-of-Winthrop-FY2025-Annual-Budget
• Ray Leonardo’s Guest Op-Ed: https://winthroptranscript.com/2024/09/05/guest-op-ed-why-winthrop-needs-to-vote-yes-on-the-proposition-2-1-2-override/
• Yes! For Winthrop’s Kids website: https://yesforwinthropskids.com/
• Winthrop Teachers Association FaceBook page: https://www.facebook.com/p/Winthrop-Teachers-Association-100080632950997/
• A full Winthrop Teachers Association statement: file:///C:/Users/Shannon/Downloads/WTA%20Statement.pdf

*Of course, every income is different.  $78 can be a lot of money for some as nowadays it is harder to get by.