Superintendent Anthony Soto and Executive Director of Finance Sean Mangano presented the proposed 2024-25 school budget of $117,456,973 to the School Committee on Tuesday, May 28, and to the City Council on Wednesday, May 29. The next step is a public hearing scheduled for 6 p.m. on Monday, June 10 in the Fifield Room at HHS Dean Campus, 1045 Main Street. Public comment can be submitted via email to Shaena Gubala no later than 3 p.m on Monday, June 10.
A copy of the budget has been posted on the district website. A printed copy will be available for inspection at the HPS Business Office, 57 Suffolk Street, Third Floor outside the Data Office, beginning at 8 a.m. on Thursday, June 6.
The proposed budget calls for a spending increase of $5,615,992 or 5% more than the district’s 2023-24 budget. The spending plan essentially maintains current staffing, programming, and class sizes, with no major layoffs or programmatic reductions required. Superintendent Soto is expected to adopt a final budget later in June.
“The budget planning process was led by our mission, vision, core beliefs, and equity commitments,” Superintendent Soto explained. When determining priorities, each spending decision was measured against one important yardstick: Is this investment good for our students? Chief among those, he said, is the core belief that students are at the center of everything we do. He also lifted a key equity commitment—we ensure that students, families, and staff get the support they need to be successful—as an important determinant of resource allocation.
“This budget places students first,” Superintendent Soto said. “It is designed to achieve our mission to ensure that all students develop the skills and access the opportunities to graduate high school ready for life, career, and college.”
Holyoke Public Schools has significantly invested over the past few years to ensure programming and systems are in place that support student success. The investments were first made possible with federal funding through Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) and are now being sustained through the Commonwealth’s Student Opportunity Act (SOA). HPS has invested in academic coaching, new curriculum, academic intervention, use of data and data systems, enrichment opportunities, out of school time programming, instructional leadership, and more. “I am confident that the district will continue to see the fruits of these investments reflected in student achievement, social emotional well being, and student experience for years to come,” Superintendent Soto said.
With gains in curriculum and instructional practices now in place, the focus for the coming year will be on strengthening school culture and supporting mental health.
“We are narrowing our focus to three key areas for next year,” he said, which include:
Delivering high-quality lessons to ensure all students develop grade-level skills and are supported to reach grade-level expectations;
Using instructional feedback and student data to identify what students know and what they need, and then adjusting accordingly; and
Executing school-wide systems and classroom strategies to promote student connection and positive learning behaviors.
“Thank you for taking the time to learn more about the Holyoke Public Schools budget,” Superintendent Soto said. “Former President Barack Obama said: ‘A budget is more than just a series of numbers on a page; it is an embodiment of our values.’ I hope that, in this budget and in our work, you see our core beliefs lived out.”