Dear Friends and Colleagues,
The January 7th School Committee was unusual. The main agenda topic was the 2026 LPS budget, and for the first time in six years there were multiple rounds of questions, observations and clarifications. There will be two additional meetings wherein the LPS budget will be shared at the School Committee meetings in order to give people an opportunity to learn more and comment.
A school district budget is a many splendored thing.
At its heart it is a policy document because we fund what we value. LPS has been well supported by the town through the capital investments in its buildings, establishment of SPED funds, and steady flow of dependable annual funds. Lexington loves its children. Meanwhile, the School Committee has fiduciary duty for every tax dollar. We always need to waste less, hire smarter and manage better.
You may ask, especially in Lexington, is this an unseemly emphasis on finances?
Not really. A well financed, fiscally solvent school system, where salaries and vendors are paid on time, is the desired stable environment for students and the adults who care for them. Borrowing a term from the business world — LPS should always be ‘a going concern’: putting forward transparent balanced budgets, then spending within its means, and lastly providing the periodic reports that make visible all the hard work.
It’s dry work but necessary. The key rubric always — will the children be ok?
By law, public schools have complete autonomy over their budgets once appropriated. The School Committee is the only body who can question or guide the administration in any budgetary matter. The autonomy allows schools the flexibility to shift funds around to meet expenses and create savings too. LPS has always turned back funds to the town annually. These are possible because the natural turnover of staff reduces the salaries and compensation expenses. However, I view the turnbacks as another rubric. A turn back is evidence that LPS did an excellent job of predicting its expenses, then spending within its budget and managing to save as well. I call it our ‘safety margin’.
My 2025 wish is that we continue to educate our children in a stable, well supported LPS through the next decade and more. With gratitude to Lexington …
Best
Deepika Sawhney
(Vice Chair of School Committee till March 2025, Precinct 6 Town Meeting Member)
Resources:
Safety Margin/Turnbacks from 2007 to 2017, average $1.6 Million
From Ian Dailey (past Ast. Superintendent of Finance, before Mr. Rowe and Mr. Coelho)
Lexmedia recording of School Committee meeting on Jan 7th 2024 (will require search)