The school committee is scheduled to meet Thursday night, March 26 to continue discussions and hold a possible vote on the 2026-27 school year budget.
The school district faces a $6.612 million budget shortfall and the elimination of dozens of positions, due in large part to declining school enrollment and increased costs, according to school administrators.
The meeting comes following a nearly four-hour public hearing on the budget that was held last Tuesday, March 17. During the meeting, school administrators highlighted the proposed cuts and budget challenges the district is facing.
In addition, dozens of students, staff, and parents spoke out against the cuts, often with great emotion, with stories about how important teachers and counselors were to them and their families and students. The public hearing had originally been scheduled for March 12, but had to be postponed because the city hall chambers were too crowded with those who wished to speak during the public hearing.
There was some positive news following the public hearing, as on Friday, March 18, City Manager Fidel Maltez committed an additional $2 million in the city’s free cash reserves to help restore a number of the positions that were initially proposed to be cut when the budget shortfall amount was slated at $8.612 million at the March 17 public hearing. At that hearing, there were more than 70 positions proposed to be cut, including classroom teachers in all the district schools, counselors and paraprofessionals, and administrative positions.
Superintendent of Schools Dr. Almi Abeyta said with the additional $2 million from the city, bringing the total to $4 million, the district was able to restore 18.5 teacher positions, five paraprofessionals, and the assistant principal at the Chelsea Opportunity Academy to the budget.
“We heard our community loud and clear and we are acting accordingly,” said Maltez. “In the FY27 budget, we are increasing our funding amount by $4 million over our FY26 amount. This puts our contribution above net school spending at 106.72%. The increase will be funded (entirely) from Free Cash.”
Maltez noted that the superintendent has been raising the alarm all year about the devastating impact on the budget due to the significant loss in student enrollment.
“The majority of funding for our school department comes from Chapter 70, and it is mainly tied to enrollment,” Maltez stated in a letter to the city council. “While our decline is drastic, communities like Chelsea are facing similar sharp drops. Revere lost 331 students, Everett lost 399, and Lynn lost 487 students. These are all compared to last year’s enrollment numbers.”
At last week’s public hearing, Abeyta said Chelsea’s enrollment has declined by 350 students compared to last year’s enrollment numbers. In addition, she said projections show the district could lose another 220 students in enrollment next year.
“For several months, we have been advocating to the Commonwealth for one-time enrollment grants similar to those created for the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Maltez.
Although Maltez said the city understands the state has difficult issues in other areas of the budget, it will continue advocating for additional funding for the schools.
“The budget shortfall that we are facing means that valued colleagues, people who care deeply about our students are losing their jobs,” Abeyta said. “That is painful and emotions across our community are understandably high.”
In addition to the increasing enrollment, Abeyta said the FY27 budget has also been affected by the expiration of ESSER Covid relief funds, as well as rising costs such as salaries, health insurance, transportation, and special education tuition costs.
“These factors are what is influencing our budget,” said Abeyta.
She also showed district enrollment numbers that have dropped from 6,100 students to 5,749 students this past October.
“This 2025 number is what the governor’s numbers are based on that we receive, and that is why we have a budget shortfall,” said Abeyta. “Looking at projections for next year, we can see that next year, for 2026, we are looking at another drop in enrollment numbers; so we have to be fiscally prudent.”
Assistant Superintendent of Schools Michelle Martinello pointed to the investments the district has made in staffing since 2020.
“Over the last five years, while enrollment has declined, staffing has increased,” she said. “These investments are intentional and necessary, but given where we are now, we need to reevaluate and prioritize to the reality we are now navigating. I think we can all agree that this is something we do not want to be doing.”
One of the topics that was brought up a number of times during the public speaking portion of the hearing revolved around cuts to teachers and classroom staff versus cuts to the administrative positions. Many students and others said they would have liked more administrative cuts while saving as many school-based positions as possible.
“We also looked at district-level staffing over the same time period,” said Martinello. “Overall, this reflects an increase of about 12 positions. These additions were primarily in areas like student services, mental health, curriculum and compliance to support the work we were doing in our schools.”
School administrators have also noted that last year, $1.3 million in administrative positions were cut to balance the budget while no school positions were cut. Additionally, they have pointed out that administrative positions comprise a significantly smaller percentage of the school salary budget than school-based positions.
Ultimately, Martinello said the district has a larger system serving fewer students than it did years ago.
Juliana Hassell, a junior at Chelsea High School, was among the many Chelsea High students who spoke in support of keeping classroom teachers and counselors in the schools.
“For students, not only do staff play a huge role in our lives, but also counselors,” said Hassell. “They help us achieve our academic success as Chelsea High students. This year, I grew closer to my counselor.
“She believes in my goals and my future and she tells me she sees my potential and my capabilities,” she continued. “Hearing someone say that and mean it stays with you and it did for me. It moves me to try my hardest when I’m at my lowest.”
Chelsea Teachers’ Union Vice President Vanessa Mendoza-Mercado said she was speaking out as a union member, educator, and parent.
“We love this community, we believe in our schools and we care about our students and families,” she said. “In my 10 years working in this district, I have worked with roughly 2,000 students; that is the impact that one educator can have in our schools. As this budget stands, we face a reduction of over 75 staff members – people who come to work every day trying to make a difference in a child’s life.”
By cutting so many positions, Mendoza-Mercado said the district is also destroying partnerships that the district and educators have worked hard to form.
“We may not agree on every single issue, but I can stand here tonight and say that we all want what’s best for our students,” she said. “You all have the ability to do what’s right; to keep the staff members that work directly with our students and families. When the dust settles and the budget is finalized, we may have a balanced budget, but not a balanced community.
“We have already lost so much this year for reasons out of our control, but we can control the stability our schools provide for the students who are here today and the students we can hope will return to us.”
One student spoke of her mental health struggles and the role her school counselor and social worker played in making sure she got treatment.
Xavier Guzman, a junior at Chelsea High, talked about how his 11 years in the Chelsea public schools have helped him grow into the person he is today.
“These are people who believe in me, push me to do better and helped guide me even when I didn’t know what was best for myself,” said Guzman. “As a student, we spend around six hours a day, 180 days a year in the schools. That means teachers are some of the most important influencers in our lives; they build real relationships with us and help shape who we become.”
In high school, Guzman said he has already seen many of the teachers he had as a freshman leave the system.
“Teachers today that I look up to, it would be heartbreaking to come back one day and find out that the mentors who helped shape me were let go,” said Guzman. “I understand that budgets can be difficult, but cutting teachers should not be the solution.”