Duxbury Schools Face Deep Budget Cuts, Aging Infrastructure Challenges

District warns of significant reductions even with 2.5% increase, seeks capital funding for critical repairs

DUXBURY, MA - October 9 - The Duxbury School District is bracing for substantial budget cuts in the upcoming fiscal year, with officials warning that even a level-funded budget plus 2.5% will result in deep reductions to programs and staffing levels.

At a recent school committee meeting, district leaders painted a grim financial picture for fiscal year 2026, citing rising costs and the loss of previous funding sources.

"This is the first year we aren't charging our families full-day kindergarten tuition," Superintendent Danielle Klingaman explained. "Going into FY26, this is the first time we don't have that offset. And so that sets us up for a rollover number to be at a higher percentage than we've seen in the past."

The district is currently preparing multiple budget scenarios, including a level-funded plus 2.5% option and a "real needs" budget. However, officials stressed that even the 2.5% increase would require significant cuts.

"We are doing the actual needs conversations very conservatively," Klingaman said. "Our conversations with the principals and directors are really looking at your current enrollment. Do we have room, even in our real-needs budget, to reduce some FTEs of staffing because our class size doesn't warrant having an extra teacher in that content area?"

The budget crunch comes at a time when the district is also grappling with numerous infrastructure challenges across its aging school buildings. Officials presented a list of critical capital needs for FY26, including roof repairs, HVAC system upgrades, and accessibility improvements.

Katie St. Clair, Director of Facilities for the Town, highlighted the urgency of addressing these issues. "We have exhaust fans failing. We have univents, which are those cabinet heaters over there. The controllers are failing. The motors are failing. And the complex that we have is huge," she said.

St. Clair noted that from January to the present, the district has received 101 work orders related to HVAC issues alone, with only 65 addressed so far.

The district is seeking capital funding to tackle these problems systematically. "If we put aside money every year, eventually we could phase out and everything would be fine and we don't have to ask for that type of money anymore," St. Clair explained. "But I don't see that happening for at least 10 years to go through all the equipment."

Other critical infrastructure needs include repairing a deteriorating wheelchair ramp at Chandler School, addressing drainage issues, and installing bird netting to combat sanitation problems at building entrances.

The softball field at the Steele Athletic Complex also requires significant renovation. "It is a safety hazard for our players," said Lisa Freely, Director of Business and Finance. "We need to level the field, replace the dirt and the sand mixture, the sand and clay mixture that's there. We need to aerate the outfield and just do weed remediation and a number of other things."

Despite the financial challenges, district leaders emphasized the importance of maintaining recent progress in staffing and support services.

"This is the first year that we feel that we have the infrastructure that we need to be able to address the student learning needs in the district," Klingaman said. "And so that's why we finally reached this place. And I think ESSER funding and ARPA funding certainly has helped us along the way. And now we just have to find a way to keep the momentum going."