What was first day of school like in Brockton amid deficit debacle and abrupt departures?

BROCKTON – Wednesday morning, 15,086 Brockton Public School students started their 2023-24 school year, said Brockton Public Schools Acting Superintendent James Cobbs. In his report at Wednesday night’s committee meeting, he said the day at BHS was calm.

“To say it was a regular school opening without any incidents is pretty much what happened,” Cobbs said.

In addition to the high school students, 7,205 elementary schoolers and 3,425 middle schoolers are enrolled in BPS as of the first day of school. Cobbs said the students were met by “sparkling and bright” school buildings and facilities.

“When I dropped my son off at school, it was a happy day for him,” Brockton Mayor and School Committee Chair Robert Sullivan said at Wednesday’s meeting.

But meanwhile, behind the scenes, city and school officials were grappling with the revelation that the district overspent last year's budget by $14.4 million, as well as the abrupt absence of Superintendent Mike Thomas and Chief Financial Officer Aldo Petronio.

“I really am confident that we’re going to get through this,” Sullivan said to the large crowd at the school committee meeting held just hours after the school day ended.

“[But] we have some dark days ahead.”

An uneasy start to the year

In the days leading up to the school year, the school committee discovered the $14.4 million deficit in last year’s budget, which is fiscal year 2023, which ended on June 30. That announcement came at a press conference after a four-hour emergency school committee special meeting that the public was shut out of, where the mayor also announced Thomas informed them he’d be taking medical leave.

The next day, on Sept. 1, the committee appointed Cobbs as Thomas’ replacement as they planned to hire an independent auditor to investigate the overspending.

“It was a challenging first day,” said Sharon Wolder, assistant superintendent in the district. “We have to keep moving.”

Wednesday’s meeting marked the first time Cobbs addressed the public in his new position.

TIMELINE: Who knew what when about Brockton Public Schools' $14.4 million deficit?

Not enough teachers to fill all classes

Wolder said the district did not have enough teachers to have every class covered, but each classroom at least had a staff member to greet the students as they entered.

"We do still have some classes that aren't covered because we're still hiring people," she said. "If you know someone who wants to teach in the Brockton Public Schools, yes we've had some challenges, but it's a great school system to continue to work in."

The district has many open positions for teachers and paraprofessionals on its website, despite the fact that in May, School officials laid off over 130 staff members due to an $18 million shortfall in this year's budget for the 2023-24 school year.

In an interview with The Enterprise, Thomas said one area the district overspent last year was in staffing.

'After exhausting all other options' Brockton lays off 130 teachers as enrollment plummets

BPS enrollment remains steady

Aldo Petronio, the school district's CFO who was recently placed on administrative leave, said to the Brockton school committee in May that enrollment numbers across the district had plummeted over the last several years, resulting in a major deficit to the school system's budget for this year.

With more families leaving BPS for charter schools, vocational schools or private schools, state education aid follows the students, reducing the amount of teaching staff they can have per student.

Families leaving BPS: 'Chaos-bomb': Hundreds of Brockton High teachers sign petition decrying layoffs

"As you reduce the number of students, you have to reduce your staff. There's no way to offset that," Petronio said. "It's an unfortunate fact."

But Cobbs announced at Wednesday night's meeting that the district, as of the first day of school, hadn't lost any students from the previous school year. An additional 300 students are currently in the process of registering with the district and will be added to the student body soon.

How many busses were on the road?

Thomas and the members of the school department confirmed that one area the district overspent was on transportation — in particular, its contract with the bussing company which is required to provide door-to-door service for BPS students.

For the first day of school, according to Cobbs, 61 school busses were in operation with an additional 65 microbuses and seven wheelchair vans. A total of 134 bus drivers were on the road, and six more are currently in training.

The school year continues despite the challenges the district is facing at this time, and Sullivan said the committee will be "transparent" as the audit is completed.

This article originally appeared on The Enterprise: First day of 2023-2024 school year in Brockton amid deficit debacle