PITTSFIELD, Mass. — An additional $459,000 in Chapter 70 funds added special education teachers and paraprofessionals to the district, among other items.
The School Committee has accepted $458,660 in additional funds, increasing minimum Chapter 70 funding per student from $75 to $160.
On Wednesday, they saw the breakdown of where those extra dollars were allocated: $160,000 for two additional special education teachers at Herberg Middle School, $108,660 for first grade paraprofessionals and career technical education support, $10,000 for a vocational content lead stipend, and $180,000 for instructional materials.
Chapter 70 funds are the primary source of state aid for public elementary and secondary schools in Massachusetts.
The monies were accepted in August, and the committee could appropriate at its discretion. Officials have reported that state Rep. Tricia Farley-Bouvier pushed for the extra per-pupil aid to restore some positions after another tight budget year.
The Pittsfield Public Schools’ original $86,855,061 budget included $68,886,061 in Chapter 70 funding. PPS faced a more than $4 million deficit during this process.
This school year brings the middle school restructuring, moving fifth grade to the middle school level, and the retirement of Morningside Community School. Superintendent Latifah Phillips returned as more than an interim superintendent, as the School Committee voted to hire her permanently in June.
PPS began the school year with 4,537 students.
“Similar to last year, this is a decrease. So, our trend is continuing in a similar manner as last year; however, our average daily attendance rate is slightly up to 94 percent compared with last year’s 93 percent,” Phillips said.
“We are now in the 20th day of school, which is our state reporting deadline. We will be monitoring our enrollment carefully because that’s the enrollment that is going to impact our funding for the following school year.”
The district would like the attendance percentage higher. According to the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education, the average statewide attendance rate was 93.6 percent last school year.
PPS also received a $50,000 donation from Malcolm B. Kane; $25,000 for 2026 and $25,000 for 2027. Meeting materials indicate that Kane was a graduate of the district and wanted to make a charitable donation out of appreciation.
He wrote that this is essentially a “thank you” for the 12 years of education PPS gave him between September 1938 and June 1950.
“Just because the government provided the education, and in fact required me to attend school, doesn’t relieve one of some sort of gratitude,” he wrote.
Crosby Elementary School also received a $6,734 donation from the estate of Ann Theresa Mottley.
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