Committee Tables Letter Over Blocked Grants

School Committee · Meeting of October 13, 2026

East Bridgewater School Committee tabled a joint letter to Gov. Maura Healey protesting the loss of $335,210 in state education grants tied to the town's rejection of MBTA Communities zoning. Superintendent Gina Williams said the district discovered the ineligibility while reviewing routine grant paperwork, which now states outright that noncompliant towns cannot apply. Members voted unanimously to send the draft back for edits, with one saying the letter should "focus less on the vote and more on the grants being tied to the vote." The committee separately approved bringing on an interim special education director after Mr. Phelan's December retirement, with a full search set for spring 2027.

Business official Shea reported Plymouth County Retirement's newly released actuarial report raises the district's fiscal 2028 pension payment to $5,285,683, a 12.2 percent jump, calling it "devastating news to the town budget." The revised grant letter and a tabled slate of MASC Delegate Assembly resolutions both return for a vote October 26.

In the full story:

• Public Comment: Records Advocate Thanks Administration, Flags Ongoing Requests
• Superintendent's Report: Advisory Council, Technology Staffing, and an Interim SPED Director
• Central School Building Project: 90 Percent Submission Under Review
• Principal Reports: Central, Mitchell, and the Junior/Senior High School
• New Staff Introductions: IT Director and Athletic Director
• Community Coalition for Change Scholarship
• Joint Letter to Governor Healey on MBTA-Linked Grant Ineligibility
• MASC Delegate Assembly Resolutions
• Policy Updates: JJJB, JJJA and ECAB
• Finance Report: FY27 Budget and a Costly Plymouth County Retirement Increase
• License Plate Cameras and the New Town Bylaw
• Routine Approvals: Field Trips, Warrants, Minutes and Donations
• Who Was There
• Organizations And Documents Referenced
• The complete report: 3,565 words

Source: the School Committee meeting of October 13, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.

Checked against the record: before publication this article was automatically compared with the meeting transcript.