Danvers 6.41 Percent School Budget Increase Gains School Committee Approval

DANVERS, MA — A 6.41 percent increase in the Danvers Public School budget aimed at increasing special education investments and preserving some positions filled using expiring COVID-19-era federal funding gained Danvers School Committee approval Monday night with hopes that short-term investments help avoid longer-term fiscal pitfalls.

Superintendent Dan Bauer said some of the increase — which is about 50 percent higher or more than in most recent years with a 12-year average of 3.66 percent increase — is necessary to help absorb the special education costs that have doubled since 2018, as well as account for inflationary factors and help the town provide educational services in the district that cost more in the long term when students travel outside of the district for them.

"The feeling is that if we don't do something we're faced with some serious issues," Bauer said in defense of the increase — especially in special education funding — during the public comment section of the budget hearing. "This all ties back to all students. So one thing that I take offense with is that when we point out special education because they are all of our students. Not just a particular group. We're working for all of our students. What's good for one is good for all.

"I understand that we are in tight times. And I understand that the cost of doing nothing would be to sit back and take a look at it, and see what happens. But I don't want to be sitting in this chair as a superintendent, and not doing anything, and then next year be faced with substantial cuts that do impact all programming."

Bauer said one of his goals is academic and opportunity improvements district-wide, including creating the incentive for more Danvers students to stay in town through high school, but rejected that the budget is a case of pitting special education costs against the needs of the whole student population even though special education costs are the major budget-increase drivers in recent years.

"They're all students and they're our students," Bauer said. "That's one thing where I was trying to be careful of the cost offsetting (of in-district vs. out-of-district tuition). I understand that piece. But if the foundation is not there. Or if it's weak. We need to improve that piece. And be responsible. And do what we can at this point. So that we don't have to keep going and it runs out of control and we wind up making unnecessary cuts.

"We've seen the high school rebound. We've seen those applications. It's not a competition with Essex Tech. But (families) are seeing where we're providing programming that allows the wide variety that provides the performing arts, it allows for the pathways, it allows for (advance placement courses) and students to extend themselves. It's no coincidence that the high school has rebounded and it will happen at the middle schools as well."

The increase of about $3.1 million is less than had been proposed at earlier budget workshops.

Bauers said the budget includes keeping about one-third of the positions originally planned to be funded by the emergency federal ESSER funding granted during the pandemic.

"If you look at the increase historically it is a higher percentage," he said. "But we're in a critical situation with our ESSER-funded positions and stabilizing special education that is much needed in order to sustain where we're going into the future."

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. X/Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)