School Committee Newsletter
March 25, 2025
Budget Planning for the 2025/2026 School Year Continues
The Ipswich School Committee has finalized the 2025/2026 school budget, totaling $40.9M, which represents a 2.76% increase over this year. Despite facing significant financial constraints, we worked diligently to develop a budget that prioritizes student needs while remaining fiscally responsible.
The School Committee met multiple times starting in January to refine the budget, including a public hearing on February 27th, and reviews with the Finance Committee on March 11th and 12th. Throughout this process, we received valuable feedback from the community, particularly regarding language instruction at the elementary level and the importance of maintaining cultural awareness in our schools. These discussions helped shape our approach as we balanced funding priorities. Next, the budget will be voted on at the Annual Town Meeting in May. You can review the complete budget on our district website.
The School Committee will continue to discuss long-term financial planning.
Ipswich Elementary School Building Update
This July, the School Committee will officially begin the Eligibility Phase of the school building process in partnership with the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA). This marks the first step in what will be a 5-7 year project to design and construct a new elementary school for Ipswich.
One of the next major milestones will be a vote at the Fall Town Meeting to fund the Feasibility Study which includes defining the education vision, assessing the current building, and developing recommendations for a new building. As part of our preparation, on March 17th, members of the school staff and administration, Select Board and Finance Committee toured the newly constructed Swampscott Elementary School to gain insights from a recent MSBA project. Seeing a completed school firsthand will help inform our planning and decision-making.
New Opportunity for Community Discussion with the School Committee
The School Committee will be offering a new dedicated time for residents to engage in open discussion with members of the School Committee. Community Discussions will be held outside the Middle/High School Ensemble Room from 6:30 to 6:50 on April 3rd and 17th, before the start of the School Committee meetings.
Our goal is to create more opportunities for engagement beyond Public Comment, which occurs at the start of each meeting. We hope this new setting will allow residents to share their thoughts and ask questions about important school-related topics. We will be trialing this in April and welcome your participation and feedback. We look forward to seeing you.
Goals Review
During the fall, the School Committee established the 2024-2025 Goals, which are available for view on the district website. While all goals are in progress, we are actively working towards the following:
Providing additional opportunities for community engagement, including conversations around the upcoming school building project.
Discussing long-term budgeting and planning.
Clarifying the Feoffee’s Policy so that it best upholds the intent of the trust, and supports educational enrichment and enhancement in the district.
We also reviewed the Superintendent goals, which are available on the district website. Our discussion with Dr. Blake included the following highlights:
Safety upgrades have been addressed, with plans for continued monitoring and maintenance.
The FY26 Budget was presented to and approved by the School Committee; long-term budgeting and planning discussions are in progress.
Educational equity audits are in progress, and the School Committee will receive a presentation of a plan to address the findings.
We will review our goals and the Superintendent goals towards the end of the school year.
Talking to Your Child About the Dangers of Vaping
Middle School Principal Peter Ginolfi and High School Principal Jonathan Mitchell provided an update on vaping amongst students. This year they are focusing on proactive measures like educating students about the safety risks, as well as deterrents, such as looking into the installation of additional vape detectors.
There are steps parents can take at home to help. Try talking openly with your child about the risks, or with a simple conversation starter like: "I heard that a lot of kids are being exposed to vaping at school. Have you seen this happening? What do you think about it?" This encourages your child to share their thoughts and experiences without fear of judgment. For more information and resources on how to talk to your child about vaping, visit https://www.tobaccofreekids.org/protectkids/resources-for-parents
Activities and Accomplishments
The School Committee approved High School overnight field trips including:
The New England Robotics Championship
The Racing Challenge in Charlotte, NC
The Model UN Team’s participation in the Boston College Model UN Conference in Boston
Yellowstone Field Trip
- Policy updates were made to 3 policies
- The School Committee supported Dr. Eric Oxford in changing the name of the department he leads from “Pupil Personnel Services” to “Student Services.”
Upcoming District Events
Thursday, April 3rd - School Committee Meeting. 7pm in the Middle/High School Ensemble Room and online.
Saturday, April 5th - Tri-Board Meeting (Bean Counting). 9AM in Town Hall Meeting Room A.
Thursday, April 17th - School Committee Meeting. 7pm in the Middle/High School Ensemble Room and online.
April 21-25 : School closed for spring vacation.