Winchester School Budget Cuts
The failed override and rising mandatory costs have left our schools with a significant funding gap. The School Committee and Finance Committee have agreed on a 4.4% FY27 budget, which still requires difficult reductions. We must urge Town Meeting to support the 4.4% budget so that deeper cuts aren't necessary.
While the charts below represent staff positions as impersonal dots, each one represents a valued member of our community. These absences will be felt in our classrooms and student lives.
Staff Positions at Risk
Each dot below represents one staff position. Red dots represent positions proposed for reduction in the proposed budget.
Teacher count from DESE (2025–26 school year). Other staff counts from NCES (2024–25 school year). Proposed reductions from the April 28 School Committee meeting and include ~2 currently unfilled positions. Dot positions within each section are illustrative.
Positions Proposed for Reduction
32.5 FTE proposed for reduction under the 4.4% budget. Click each group to expand.
Source: April 28 School Committee meeting.
Elementary Class Sizes
Projected average class size, FY26 → FY27, with the 4.4% budget. Cell color reflects FY27 class size: green = under 18, uncolored = 18–20, red = over 20.
Note that 13 of the 94 elementary classroom sections (~14%) are projected to exceed the School Committee's class size guidelines (18-20 for grades K-2, 20-22 for grades 3-5). In FY26, only two sections exceeded these guidelines.
| Grade | AmbroseAmbrose | LincolnLincoln | LynchLynch | MuracoMuraco | Vinson-OwenV-O |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| K | 17.3→18.317.3↓18.3 | 19.0→19.319.0↓19.3 | 15.5→16.015.5↓16.0 | 13.0→19.513.0↓19.5 | 17.3→18.717.3↓18.7 |
| 1 | 15.3→18.015.3↓18.0 | 18.3→19.318.3↓19.3 | 18.5→16.818.5↓16.8 | 16.3→20.516.3↓20.5 | 18.0→17.318.0↓17.3 |
| 2 | 18.0→20.718.0↓20.7 | 17.0→19.317.0↓19.3 | 18.3→19.518.3↓19.5 | 18.0→16.718.0↓16.7 | 19.8→19.019.8↓19.0 |
| 3 | 17.7→18.017.7↓18.0 | 21.7→16.721.7↓16.7 | 17.0→18.717.0↓18.7 | 19.0→18.319.0↓18.3 | 17.8→19.817.8↓19.8 |
| 4 | 20.3→18.020.3↓18.0 | 16.7→21.716.7↓21.7 | 19.0→23.719.0↓23.7 | 17.0→19.717.0↓19.7 | 16.5→24.316.5↓24.3 |
| 5 | 19.3→20.319.3↓20.3 | 20.0→16.720.0↓16.7 | 19.0→24.019.0↓24.0 | 23.0→17.723.0↓17.7 | 21.7→22.321.7↓22.3 |
Average class size per section. Source: WPS Budget Dashboard.
We must avoid even deeper cuts
These cuts are already deep and painful, and they will have real impact on class sizes and student experience. The School Committee and Finance Committee have agreed on a 4.4% budget, but Town Meeting has the final say. Dr. Hackett warned at the April 9 School Committee meeting that a lower budget would require "wholesale programmatic elimination," including cutting "world languages" and "AP sections." We must speak up to protect our remaining staff and ensure that the student experience is not degraded further. We can afford this budget; our students cannot afford further cuts.
Sources
Teacher count: DESE educator data (2025–26 school year)
Other staff counts: NCES Common Core of Data (2024–25 school year)
Proposed cuts (staff roles): April 28 School Committee meeting