Superintendent Urges Unity, Cooperation at Annual Omnibus Meeting

By Cynthia Drummond for BRVCA

January 23rd 2026

RICHMOND – State legislators and representatives from the three Chariho towns met with the School Committee on Jan. 21 for the annual Chariho Omnibus meeting.

State legislators present at the meeting were Sen. Elaine Morgan, R-Dist. 34, Sen. Victoria Gu, D-District 38, Rep. Megan Cotter, D-Dist. 39, and Rep. Tina Spears, D-District 36.

A requirement of the Chariho Act, the meeting provides a first look at the proposed Fiscal Year 2027 Chariho budget. As usual, the spending plan is being prepared and discussed before the state and town budgets are presented, creating the additional challenge of not knowing how much state aid the school district and the towns will receive.

School Committee Chair Louise Dinsmore introduced Superintendent of Schools, Gina Picard, who explained the challenges the regional school district is facing.

Picard pointed out that unlike private schools, public schools cannot limit enrollment.

“Schools are legally required to serve students with complex disabilities,” she said. “This includes specialized staff, specialized tools, specialized transportation and additional supports, again, regardless of cost.  These students are often not represented in parochial, private or charter schools anywhere the same numbers that we see in district public schools.”

Transportation, Picard said, continues to be one of the district’s biggest expenses, and in recent years, Chariho and other regional school districts have had to engage in intensive lobbying to make sure they received their transportation aid.

“As you’re all aware, Chariho is a rural school district, 128 square miles,” she said. “Unlike compact urban and suburban districts, our geography fundamentally shapes how we must provide transportation. Transportation costs of public education do not scale down simply because enrollment declines.”

Elaine Morgan said she believed that the transportation funding should be in the state budget.

“I would love to see the transportation fund be put into the budget,” she said. “That’s something we need to fight for at the state level. All of us need to be down at the State House fighting for this. And, I have a piece of legislation in right now that, if the state mandates our schools to do anything, they should pay for it, if they’re mandating it.”

Megan Cotter added a note of optimism to the transportation funding discussion.

“When we talk about regional schools, this could be the year that we pass additional regional school bonuses,” she said. “I’m not making any promises, but I have more hope this year than I have in the past – the last four years. This is my fourth year putting the bill in to get a 6% regional bonus.”

The Budget

The proposed Fiscal Year 2027 budget is $71,688,921, a spending increase of 2.76% and an overall increase of 5.1%.

The Chariho budget accounts for the greatest share of municipal budgets. The contributions of the towns are based on their enrollment in the school district, and they fluctuate accordingly.

This year, Richmond will face the biggest increase, 7.9%. The town’s contribution, including $6,075,433 in state education aid, is $17,644,141.

Hopkinton faces the second-highest increase, 5.1%, in its contribution, which will be $13,301,590, including $8,207,572 in state aid.

Charlestown will be contributing $16,532,916, a 2.4% increase. The town will receive $1,457,309 in state aid.

The state aid figures reflect what the towns expect to receive and may change.

The Process

Dinsmore explained the budget process, which will culminate in a referendum on April 7. The public is invited to attend all budget workshops and school committee meetings.

“The School Committee was presented with this budget last week at our monthly meeting,” she said. “The School Committee will meet again on Tuesday, January 27 for a budget workshop, and our February 10 meeting will include the [School Committee’s] approval of the budget. The annual regional school district public hearing on the budget is scheduled for Tuesday, March 3. That’s the night when we have to have 25 registered voters from each town to have that meeting. And then, the adoption of the budget will be on March 10. The school budget vote will take place on Tuesday, April 7.”

Picard said she felt the Omnibus meeting, which lasted for about an hour and a half, had gone well.

“I was extremely pleased with how the Omnibus went,” she said. “I believe we clearly showed that student needs drive out decisions. We’re committed to innovation and responsible stewardship, but we also need a funding formula that recognizes the real costs of educating today’s learners.”

School Committee member Jessica Purcell, of Richmond, acknowledged the difficulties inherent in the early stage of the budget process.

“The superintendent has presented the proposed budget while describing the educational accomplishments, needs, and goals of the District,” she said. “My role as a School Committee Member is to understand how that educational commitment is quantified in the budget. Everything is preliminary right now and I understand that can be a difficult aspect of the budget process every year but that is why the Omnibus and future meetings are important. There are many opportunities to learn more and work together to support our students and schools while also guiding a secure and realistic collective investment.”