Student DECA Wins, Rising Enrollment, and Solar Delays
The Hamilton-Wenham Regional School District School Committee hears from DECA students about new business classes and upcoming state and national competitions, reviews growing enrollment and looming elementary capacity concerns, and weighs a long-term solar canopy power purchase agreement. The committee also responds to an emergency sprinkler pump failure, debates how to use residual funds for curriculum materials and future budgets, and approves a motion on handling year-end balances. 21mins
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Original Meeting
In This Video
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Student DECA members, including Abby and Grace Logan, described how their new AP Business and Personal Finance class and upcoming state and national competitions in Boston and Anaheim built real-world skills and a strong sense of community for participants.
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District staff presented annual enrollment data showing steady growth across all schools—especially at the elementary level—and noted that upcoming housing developments could further increase student numbers and strain elementary capacity in the next few years.
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Eric outlined a proposed 25-year power purchase agreement with Select Energy for solar canopies at the middle/high school that would require no upfront cost, cover roughly a third of the facility’s electricity needs, send excess power back to the grid, and was projected to save the district about $63,000 in the first year and over $1 million long term.
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The committee discussed who should be authorized to sign the solar power purchase agreement, raised questions about a local tax exemption and annual filing requirements, and ultimately agreed to delay a decision until a future meeting so staff could gather more information.
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A speaker explained that a power surge had burned out the middle/high school sprinkler pump, detailed the emergency response and projected replacement costs, and requested a $150,000 transfer to cover the new pump and related emergency expenses.
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A speaker explained that residual funds from the FY27 budget would be used for one-time purchases and emphasized that the proposed CKLA curriculum was not a final selection, as a curriculum review committee would pilot multiple options and choose a program based on state approval and local fit.
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A speaker clarified that any year-end residual funds above the legal limit would automatically reduce the following year’s town assessments or could be used as one-time contributions to items like OPEB or capital stabilization, after which Chair Allara led a unanimous vote to approve the related motion.
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