At the Westford town meeting on Saturday, March 25 at Westford Academy, 24 articles were voted on to determine how Westford’s money will be spent by the town over the course of the next year. Of these 24 articles, there are three main takeaways that impact the Town of Westford as a whole, but especially the Westford Public Schools (WPS).

• Teachers present outside WA prior to the meeting starting

Prior to the town meeting, teachers in the Westford Public Schools gathered outside WA to protest for higher pay. According to a speech delivered by WA English teacher Russell Coward, years ago, it was agreed upon by the town that teachers would be paid what was considered to be an average salary, but since this agreement, teacher salaries have diminished. For this reason, teachers stood outside WA holding signs to inform those entering the building for the town meeting about the unfair salaries that teachers in our town receive.

Led by Kristine Jussaume, Day School fourth grade teacher and Westford Education Association (WEA) president, teachers looked to teach town residents about the limited salaries that they receive.

“Today we are trying to inform the community that the money the town is spending per person is much less than our competing towns, and our teachers and staff are paid 5% below the average,” Jussaume said. “So while we have an above-average school system, we need more money spent on our students and we need to make sure that everyone working here [in WPS] is properly compensated.”

Several other teachers were in attendance, including WA history teacher Michael Martell, who aimed to show his support for his fellow teachers in the town.

“I am here to support our teachers and hopefully we are able to get a budget, more than just a contract, that reflects the good work of the Westford Public Schools,” Martell said. 

Similarly, theater arts teacher Michael Towers was present on behalf of the teachers in the WPS, emphasizing that teaching assistants do not get properly paid for the work that they do. 

“We are here to support each other and especially those working professionals who are not earning what they deserve,” Towers said. “Our teaching assistants in this town are incredibly diligent, and they are key to the success of our students, but they are working for a less-than-living wage, which is unacceptable. They are a critical member of our community, and we are here to stand behind them.”

Most notably, Coward spoke both outside WA prior to the town meeting, as well as inside during the meeting, on behalf of the teachers’ salaries properly representing the work that they put in every day. He directly addressed Town Manager Kristen Las and Chair of the Select Board Andrea Peraner-Sweet during his speech.

“As we talk again about spending millions of dollars elsewhere, including on expenses that the taxpayers have already said they do not support but have in some instances already voted against, what steps are you planning to take to be able to support the philosophy of the override and pay our educators average salaries?” Coward said. “Why are you not listening to the taxpayers?”

• The proposal for the construction of a new municipal building on 51 Main St is not passed

One of the major topics of the town meeting was Article 6, where those in attendance voted on the funding for the construction of a new municipal building at 51 Main Street, which is the location of the town hall. The motion was for the town to appropriate $12,400,000 for the demolition of the current town hall, and the construction of a new municipal building in that location on 51 Main Street.

The two main reasons behind the desire for a new municipal building were for there to be additional office space for town employees, as well as improved meeting space for government meetings. Many of the office and meeting spaces are found in various places around town, such as the Millennium Building behind Abbot School, and town officials were hoping to bring these spaces to a general meeting building, which would be the new municipal building.

If voted for, this project would provide a median debt payment of $809,400 over 20 years, so the impact on a tax bill for a median single-family home assessed at $660,500 would be approximately $84.35 in Fiscal Year 2024.

However, the motion did not pass, with 241 Westford citizens voting against the article, and 162 Westford citizens voting for the article. This result received applause from many in the building, as this decision allows for more money to be allocated to alleviate other town needs, such as the aforementioned issue of teacher salaries.

• The proposal for the formation of a new Blanchard Middle School roof is passed

Article 7, another major decision voted on at the town meeting, was for the formation of a new roof at the Blanchard Middle School, which is in need of desperate repair due to leaking issues. 

The project totals a cost of $6,425,000, which leads to the median Westford home paying approximately $25.15 in Fiscal Year 2025. It is expected that this tax bill declines as the population of the town increases over time.

The roof is currently prone to leaking, causing potential safety issues for the students and teachers of the school. Additionally, the insurance deductible is up to $50,000 from where it is normally a $5,000 deductible, making the creation of a new roof a focus for Westford.

The article was voted in favor of with a final vote of 356-38, passing the required two-thirds majority to allow for its construction.