The Watertown school budget will be on tap Monday night for the School Committee, and y0u can have your voice heard.
The public hearing on the Fiscal 2015 school budget will be held Monday night at 7:15 p.m. in Town Hall.
The School Committee must decide how much to request from the Town Council and Town Manager Michael Driscoll. Last week, Superintendent Jean Fitzgerald said she believes the district needs to add $6 million to this year’s budget to “move the district forward the way we would like it to go.”
That would be an increase of more than 16 percent. Driscoll has recommended a 4 percent increase for all departments, both municipal and the schools.
The public can speak about the budget at the hearing. School Committee Chairwoman Eileen Hsu-Balzer said she will allow everyone who wants to speak to have their turn at the microphone.
School Renovation
Following the budget hearing the School Committee will hold its regular meeting. The agenda includes a request to be sent to the state for funding to renovate or rebuild Watertown High School.
A report from an architectural consultant presented last week recommended that the high school be the first school to be repaired. The School Committee’s Building and Grounds Subcommittee agreed and recommended that Fitzgerald send a statement of interest for the repairs to the Town Council.
If the council approves, the application can be sent to the Massachusetts School Building Authority.