Dover-Sherborn Regional School Committee Approves Preliminary FY27 Budget With Assessment Increases

SHERBORN — December 2, 2025 — Dover-Sherborn Regional School Committee approves a preliminary FY27 budget projecting assessment increases of 5.12 percent for Dover and 6.22 percent for Sherborn. The four-member panel — Chair Angie Johnson, Co-Chair Jeff Landau, Mary Laufer, and Kevin Crotty — voted unanimously Tuesday to accept version 1.0 of the fiscal year 2027 spending plan, which carries a 15 percent health insurance premium increase assumption and an unresolved salary placeholder while contract negotiations continue toward a target March deadline. Finance Director Dawn Fattore introduced a new accounting structure for out-of-district special education that projects Sherborn's total out-of-district exposure rising to approximately $1.5 million from $1.1 million, driven by student placements rather than accounting changes. The committee also gave informal unanimous endorsements to a therapy dog pilot proposed by senior Elise Posada — estimated to require $7,000 to $15,000 in fundraising — and to a one-to-one Chromebook rollout for ninth graders at an estimated $26,000 annually, with the first year funded by repurposed middle school devices at no additional cost. A proposal to raise high school department chair stipend ratios from 5.5 to 7.0 — deadlocked 3-to-3 at the ACED advisory committee — was tabled to the January 13 joint meeting, where an instructional leadership restructuring proposal from consulting firm Athena K-12 is also expected.