School Committee Appoints Williams as New Superintendent, Approves Budget Cuts
Unanimous vote follows praise from teachers' union; revised budget reduces initial proposal by $617,000
EAST BRIDGEWATER - April 15 - The East Bridgewater School Committee votes unanimously to appoint Dr. Gina Williams as the district's new Superintendent, following her service as assistant superintendent for the past decade.
The committee first appointed Williams as interim superintendent before voting to enter into negotiations for the permanent position at their April 15 meeting.
"Watching Dr. Williams over the past couple months flawlessly and seamlessly slide into this role, and having spent time, myself, on the budget and negotiation subcommittee, the amount of time that this has taken is very well-deserving," said committee member Dan Picha.
The appointment follows strong endorsement from the East Bridgewater Education Association (EBEA), whose representatives addressed the committee during public comment.
"On behalf of the East Bridgewater Education Association leadership team, we strongly recommend the appointment of Dr. Gina Williams as the next superintendent of the East Bridgewater Public Schools," said Dr. Amanda Castle, EBEA vice president.
Castle highlighted Williams' decade of leadership as assistant superintendent, noting her commitment to open communication and collaboration with teachers.
"Her commitment to open communication is evident in her regular engagement with the East Bridgewater Education Association representatives to address concerns, fostering respectful dialogue, and effective solutions," Castle said.
The teachers' union cited several initiatives led by Williams, including the Professional Development Academy, formation of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion team, creation of a district-wide staff handbook, and collaborative work with the school committee on contract negotiations.
Committee Chair Gordon McKinnon expressed confidence that contract negotiations with Williams would be completed before the end of the school year.
Budget Cuts Address Town's Financial Challenges
The committee also approved a revised budget of $27,772,888 for fiscal year 2025, representing a reduction of $617,000 from the initially certified budget of $28,390,177.
School Business Administrator John Shea presented the revised figures, detailing specific cuts and reallocations that helped balance the budget while maintaining essential services.
"Based upon the numerous budget subcommittee meetings and a lot of analysis, we have been able to reduce that amount to $27,772,888, or a reduction of $617,000 from our original certified budget," Shea said.
Major reductions include:
- $105,000 from regular pupil transportation by eliminating one bus
- $286,685 from tuitions
- $10,000 from athletics
The district also allocated $250,000 from the school choice account to help with the salary budget.
Committee members praised the collaborative process between school officials and town finance leaders that led to the balanced budget.
"This was by far the most collaborative budget process between the town and the school committee, the budget subcommittee," Picha said. "The involvement from the town level, Charlie and Melanie, Dave Walsh, the finance committee chair attending every one of our budget subcommittee meetings and working with us to help with creative ways to lessen the financial burden on the town."
McKinnon noted that town officials, particularly Finance Committee Chair Dave Walsh, took time to understand the challenges facing the school district.
"He listened to what the challenges were. I mean, we can all look at a number and say that number is too high, but he listened to what we were contending with and understood that process and tried to help us with that," McKinnon said.
Transportation Fee Increases Approved
The committee also approved increases to transportation fees to help offset rising costs. While the individual student fee will remain at $250, the family cap will increase from $400 to $450.
Additionally, a $25 late fee will be implemented for payments made after June 30.
Shea presented data showing East Bridgewater's transportation fees compared to surrounding districts, noting that the current individual fee of $250 is close to the regional average of $243, while the family cap of $400 is below the regional average of $484.
The committee considered more drastic transportation changes to address budget challenges.
"One of the things I just want to share with people that we considered was that in order to keep things as close to normal as we could in the classrooms, one of the things we looked at was perhaps addressing the whole busing scenario and only busing the students that we were legally responsible to bus," McKinnon said. "Would have saved us a few hundred thousand dollars on our budget this year."
The committee also:
- Approved an international field trip to the Galapagos Islands for high school students in June 2026
- Approved two out-of-state field trips for Central School students to Rhode Island
- Heard an update on the Central Elementary School project, which is in the preferred schematic design phase
- Received a presentation on MBTA Communities zoning requirements
- Reviewed and approved the high school handbook with updates to chemical health and attendance policies
- Approved several policy updates related to Title IX and non-discrimination
- Recognized senior Emre Barbosa with the Mass Association of School Superintendents Academic Excellence Award
The next school committee meeting is scheduled for May 6, when Central School and Mitchell School will present their handbooks for approval.