Stoughton School Committee Approves Energy Contract, Playground Naming Amid Deep Budget Cuts

STOUGHTON -- May 12, 2026, Stoughton School Committee approves a $2.7 million energy contract and names Hanson playground as district faces a $3 million budget gap. The committee voted 4-1 at its May 12 meeting to approve a 20-year energy management service contract with Ameresco of Framingham, funded by a state Green School Works grant, to convert Wilkins Elementary School's heating and cooling systems to heat pumps by October 2026; projected 20-year energy savings across the district are 29.9 percent. The committee also voted unanimously to name the new $900,000 Hanson Elementary playground the Mary Beth Cancelleri Playground, honoring a retiring 26-year administrative assistant, the first Stoughton school facility named after an administrative employee, after organizers gathered 154 community signatures. Superintendent Dr. Joseph Baeta told the committee that 100 percent of the town's cherry sheet deficit falls on the school department, that $1.2 million less in Chapter 70 state aid is coming this year, and that a non-renewal process already underway could affect more than 48 positions, including elementary instructional coaches, paraprofessionals, and classroom teachers. Baeta disputed a Town Manager letter to the Finance Committee attributing 54 new positions to the district, saying the actual number of new positions he has recommended in three fiscal years is fewer than 12.