Medfield School Committee Advances Level-Service FY27 Budget at 5.02 Percent

MEDFIELD -- January 29, 2026, Medfield School Committee votes 4-1 to advance a level-service FY27 budget at 5.02 percent, triggering an override debate. The committee amended an initial motion to accept Superintendent Jeff Marsden's 3.9 percent recommended budget, a $1.7 million increase over FY26 driven by $1.2 million in personnel costs, replacing it with the higher level-service figure before submitting the budget to the town by its January 30 charter deadline. The gap between the 5.02 percent budget and the Warrant Committee's Proposition 2.5 guidance of 1.8 percent represents roughly $940,000, and reaching 1.8 percent would require eliminating approximately 14 full-time equivalent positions district-wide. Member Diana Frischella cast the lone dissenting vote. A $221,000 K-5 literacy curriculum, two years in development, remains unfunded in all scenarios presented. The school department is scheduled to present to the Warrant Committee on February 24, with Town Meeting set for May 4.