January 22, 2025 By Mary Power
The Salvator Dali Museum houses a painting titled “Lincoln in Dalivision”. Up close, it appears to depict a woman looking out at the sea, with a small picture of Abraham Lincoln in the bottom left-hand corner. But when you step back, the entire painting is transformed into a portrait of Lincoln. I’m reminded of that image now that it’s budget season. Understandably, there is a lot of discussion about specific line items and programs. But it’s also important to take a step back and see the whole picture, particularly the education budget given its size and complexity. Here’s what I see when I take a step back.
The proposed $70.4 million education budget represents a 30% (or $16.2 million) increase since fiscal year 2020 (when COVID hit). That’s an average increase of 5% per year – twice as high as the limits imposed by Proposition 2 1⁄2.
Major spending increases include Teaching and Instruction ($10.6 million), Central OYice and Building Administration ($1.2 million), Special Education Counseling and Psychological Services ($1.0 million), In-District Transportation ($0.7 million), Utilities and Heating ($0.7 million), and Special Education Supervision ($0.6 million).
Interestingly, proposed out-of-district tuitions and transportation expenses ($2.9 million) are actually $0.6 million less than actual fiscal year 2020 expenses ($3.5 million). One reason is the Memorandum of Understanding that accompanied the recent override. It caps the increase in out-of-district tuitions and specialized services funded by the school budget at 2%, with the Town picking up any excess. The proposed budget identifies $1.2 million in tuitions to be paid by the Town for the upcoming year.
Since COVID, student enrollment has declined by 15%. Enrollment grew steadily from 2000- 2015, then leveled oY. In the year immediately following COVID, enrollment decreased by 368 students. It has since decreased by an additional 276 students (an average of 70 students per year) – for a total decrease of 646 students.
Class sizes are currently well below the maximum class size limits as defined in Hingham Public Schools’ own policies. Hingham Public School class size policies state that Kindergarten and Grade 1 class sizes should not exceed 23 students and Grades 2-5 class sizes should not exceed 25 students. The chart below shows the current number of classes (also referred to as sections) for various class sizes. Of note, 59% of Grade K-1 classes, and 25% of Grades 2-5 classes, have fewer than 20 students.
At the secondary level, the class size policy sets maximum class size for core classes at 30 students and a maximum of 35 students for electives and physical education. The chart below shows current class sizes for Hingham Middle School and High School subjects and how they compare to the class size policy (%). Across the board, all current class sizes are less than 2/3 of the maximum class size defined by the policy.
School buildings, particularly at the elementary level, are underutilized. With the opening of the new Foster School, Hingham Public School capacity is about 4,500 students. Current enrollment is 3,616 students. The chart below shows building capacity (the entire bar), current enrollment (the blue portion of each bar), and the % utilization for each of Hingham’s six schools.
Combined, Hingham’s four elementary schools can accommodate 2,335 students. Current PreK-5 enrollment is 1,756 students (75% of capacity).
The School Committee recently approved plans to propose warrant articles for the full replacement of three school roofs (Hingham High School, Plymouth River School, South School). The high school roof alone is estimated to cost nearly $15 million. Capital projects of this size are unlikely to be absorbed in the operating budget. As a result, funding these projects may require one or more debt exclusions (i.e. tax increases).
Observations
In my 2021 Select Board Report to Town Meeting, I stated that the growth rate of the education budget (average yearly growth of 5.9% over the last 15 years) was not sustainable and that overrides are only successful as a budgetary “reset” if future revenue and expense growth rates are aligned with each other. I still believe that today.
The MOU reflects those principles. It provides for 3.5% annual budget growth, which is what revenues (including the use of unassigned fund balance to put oY another override until fiscal year 2028) can support. With the Town picking up the tab for out-of-district tuitions and specialized services that grow in excess of 2%, this eYectively means the rest of the education budget can grow by about 4% per year.
When the override was proposed in spring of 2023, the School Department said: “If the proposed override is passed, the Hingham Public Schools will be able to maintain the current level of programming, retain current faculty and sta= members, and continue progress toward the implementation of our strategic plan.” It concerns me that for the second year in a row, this isn’t happening despite continued decreases in enrollment. I don’t think it’s due to a lack of funding but is more a function of how the money is being spent.
Out of district tuitions and utility costs are not the big budget busters – it’s personnel costs which represent about 80% of the budget. It’s hard to tell how much of increase over the last six years is related to hiring additional staY vs. wage increases, but my sense is that it’s mostly the latter. Our school system is currently staYed and being operated to accommodate a much higher enrollment than we actually have. I question how much longer we can and should do that. To be clear, I’m not suggesting that every class size and building should be at the maximum. That’s neither desirable nor realistic. Rather, I question whether there are different alternatives to balancing the budget besides eliminating an entire worthwhile program such as elementary Spanish.
I also hope there will be discussion of a facility utilization plan during this year’s budget and warrant article hearings, particularly if taxpayers will be asked to fund capital projects requiring additional tax increases.
Mary Power has lived in Hingham for 25 years and has served the Town in many capacities including as a member of the Advisory Committee and the Hingham Select Board. She is the author of the “Inside Town Finances” series available on the Town of Hingham Website and Harbor Media.