This four-part series details the causes and effects of the budget deficit facing Westford Public Schools this year, exploring its origins in terms of town revenue, state funding, and other major factors. This first installment summarizes the deficit and its immediate implications.  Westford Public...

On Saturday, Mar. 23, Westford will be holding its annual Spring Town Meeting from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., where it will be finalizing the budget for the upcoming fiscal year, FY20. The school system is taking a substantial hit, with $1.2 million of budget cuts that puts several school programs on the chopping...

Ever since I can remember, substitutes have been a part of my learning experience. Over my ten years of schooling, I have had countless substitutes. Some were nice. Some were mean. Some were boring. Some were a blast. No matter what they were like, all of them had one thing in common: they stepped up...

Superintendent of Schools Everett Olsen proposed budget cuts to the School Committee in January in order to meet a $1.2 million deficit between his requested 3.3% increase and Town Manager Jodi Ross' allocated 1.6% (not counting the money for teacher salary overrides). Due to decreasing enrollment at...

Recently the Westford School Committee has been discussing the budget for the next fiscal year. The town has proposed a budget for the schools that is 1.2 million dollars less than what the school committee has requested. The school committee had requested 2.7 million dollars in new funding over last...