Longmeadow School Committee Approves $200,000 Chromebook Purchase and New Courses

LONGMEADOW -- January 27, 2026, Longmeadow School Committee approves $200,000 Chromebook buy and new high school courses at January 27 meeting. The five-member panel, meeting without members Zach and Adam, voted unanimously to authorize Chief Financial Officer Tom Mazza to spend up to $200,000 in current FY26 funds to replace roughly 1,250 to 1,300 aging devices, drawing on a projected year-end surplus Mazza put at a conservative $208,000. The committee also voted 5-0 to adopt five changes to the high school Program of Studies, including restructured foundations courses that will now award biology and geometry credits in a single year rather than two, a new combined applied exercise science elective, and a Latin 1 honors option. Superintendent Dr. Martin O'Shea flagged a tight state-aid outlook for FY27, saying Chapter 70 funding is expected to increase by only the hold-harmless amount of roughly $75 per student, likely below expenditure growth, with a full budget recommendation set for February 3. The committee also unanimously approved the 2026-27 academic calendar, setting the first student day on August 27, 2026, and the last day on June 14, 2027, and ratified a memorandum of agreement with Unit A dated January 20, 2026.