HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – The Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District school committee meeting on April 2 began with a public comment period that rehashed the recently-approved fiscal year 2021 (FY21) budget.

“I don't think those involved fulfilled their responsibilities as good as they could,” said Damian Konkoly of the Hampden-Wilbraham Education Association, the union that represents the district’s teachers. He called the budget vote “rushed and unnecessary.”

The budget, passed on March 26, included the loss of 15 full-time faculty and staff to make up for a $2.1 million shortfall.

Konkoly noted concerns voiced by School Committee member Sherrill Caruanna about vetting the cuts and asked that in the future there be better discussions of options to minimize staff reductions.

School Committee member Bill Bontempi responded, saying the teachers’ union representatives knew during negotiations in the fall that the district would have to cut positions in order to give the raises that were asked for. He said at the time the union “didn't care.”

Furthermore, Bontempi asserted that no union representative or teachers attended any of the budget subcommittee meetings.

“This budget was not passed in the dark of night without anybody looking. This budget was passed as transparently as possible,” Bontempi said. He described Konkoly's characterization of the budget process as “appalling.”

Superintendent Albert Ganem said “due diligence” had been done in making sure the March 31 deadline imposed by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) was the latest the vote could be conducted, despite proposed legislation that would have postponed the deadline.

Bontempi told Konkoly, “If the union wants to flex its muscles, I suggest it turns around and flexes them at the legislature,” to “create more money for education.”

School Committee member Heather Zanetti explained her sole vote against the budget.

“I didn't feel like we knew where the cuts were coming from,” Zanetti said.    

Caruanna agreed saying, “we spend very little time looking at where we can find those numbers besides direct teaching.”

Committee member Sean Kennedy said “no one is happy about the cuts” and that they weren’t the decision of any one person but instead came from principals under the financial guidelines from the towns.

“We have to look at new ways to teach our kids,” while stretching dollars, Kennedy said.

Konkoly admitted that the subcommittee members work “countless hours” on “thankless work.”

Barber told the school committee that the district was moving forward with a request for proposals (RFP) for custodial work in the high school and central office facility. The district is planning to see if money can be saved by using a third-party custodian vendor.

Bontempi said he was “vehemently opposed” to outsourcing the cleaning of those buildings. He said now is not the time to trust cleanliness to “the lowest bidder.”

Bontempi said he has concerns about drugs coming into the buildings and electronics disappearing by using a third-party service. He also noted it would hurt morale among the custodians.

School Committee Chair Patrick Kiernan reminded everyone that the RFP gives the district options but does not mean they will have to take any of them.

Ganem said the suggestion of a third-party custodial service had been brought up repeatedly over multiple years and, while he is not in favor of it, he needs to be able to justify his position.

Kennedy said, “I know there's other things we can be doing that are a lot less shots in the dark.” One example he mentioned is emailing routine correspondence instead of using the mail which he said would save the district thousands of dollars in supplies and postage.

Julie Keefe, director of elementary curriculum, said the teachers’ communication with students during the closure has been “outstanding.”

School Committee member Maura Ryan said screen time is a concern with parents and that parents are seeing inconsistencies between work from different classes and different schools. Kennedy remarked that parents were not being included in curriculum decisions.

“Give us a little bit of wiggle room,” Bontempi said and requested patience from families. “We’re still working out the kinks.”

Ganem added, “everyone just jumped into the really deep end of the pool and we're swimming like hell.” He said the district is doing its best to keep the learning consistent.

Ryan said parents can share concerns at hwrsdcares.com, at which point, Ganem said, they are addressed by principals in the different schools.

Keefe noted that much of the digital material provided by the district can be printed off at home. She also said that they are encouraging families to explore “organic learning” opportunities at home that connect to the students academic work,such as observing erosion in a student’s backyard.

Director of Secondary Curriculum John Derosia said the district is still in the process of finding out who has internet access and devices and getting everyone set up. Schools have a running list of families who need devices and he said a total of 152 devices had been handed out over the previous week.

Ryan suggested checking if the incoming students for the 2020-2021 school year have devices and internet access.

Derosia said of the adjustment to remote learning, "as much it can be a challenge for the kids, it can be a challenge for [teachers] too." He said grading mainly consists of “received” or “not received,” in keeping with the guidance from the state Commissioner of Education Jeffrey C. Riley.

Derosia said he is aware of concerns around grading for college-bound seniors but said no one has the answers to those questions right now and everyone is figuring it out together.

Kiernan said he has been “completely underwhelmed” with the leadership at the state level and praised the work done by the district in both education and in supporting the community.

The school committee voted to admit 22 school choice students into the incoming ninth grade class at Minnechaug Regional High School. The district usually takes 18 to 22 students per year, keeping the percentage of non-district students to between eight and nine percent of the student population. Ganem explained that school choice students are selected through a lottery to ensure equitable access for all applicants.

Ganem announced that an agreement had been reached on the paraprofessional contract and that both the union and the committee had voted to approve it.