Brockton School Finance Subcommittee Votes to Cut Six BEA Positions Amid Budget Dispute

BROCKTON -- May 14, 2026, Brockton Public Schools Finance Subcommittee voted 3-1 to issue six reduction-in-force notices to Brockton Education Association members and unanimously authorized spending $7,286,530.87 in net school spending carryover toward prepayment of next year's out-of-district special education tuition. The votes, taken just before midnight at the Arnone Theater, came after a failed 2-2 tie on an earlier, broader motion, Vice Chair Moises Rodriguez recusing himself on the RIF vote due to a family member in the BEA. Members Fatima Azak and Anna Oliver voted no, arguing the committee had too little time and no input from building principals; member Cynthia Santayo cited the 2023 Office of Inspector General report to justify acting early. City CFO Dr. Troy Clarkson, invited to address the panel, said the mayor's proposed FY27 appropriation of $251,570,800 exceeds the net school spending floor by roughly $10 million, but Superintendent Dr. Melinda Theriault said a mid-April revision from an earlier $254 million figure had upended the budget process: "Trust has even been broken for me." The committee's next session is May 19, when additional reductions affecting VESPA, IB, A&T, and non-union staff are expected to come to a vote.