School Officials Hoping to Collect $85,000 in Overdue Payments From Parents

School officials are seeking legal counsel on how to collect nearly $85,000 in overdue payments of fee-based programs at Arlington Public Schools.

The majority of debt comes from kindergarten programs, where tuition non-payment has amounted to more than $61,000. Other outstanding accounts include Menotomy Preschool at $14,265, the music program at about $3,100 and the athletics program at $5,875.

“If the children are unable to pay, that’s fine,” said Diane Johnson, chief financial officer at Arlington Public Schools. “These are parents who started to pay and quit paying, or are refusing to pay.”

Several parents have failed to present documentation proving financial need, Johnson said. The district’s policy is to not stop any child from attending schools programs if they are unable to pay. But some parents have taken “inability to pay” to mean “unwillingness to pay,” Johnson said.

Now, school officials are seeking the next step in debt collection. This week, Johnson asked the School Committee for a recommendation on how to proceed.

“Do we prevent children from programs if parents don’t pay?” Johnson asked the committee.

The School Committee’s next step is to seek legal counsel on what policies and procedures should be enacted to collect the debt.