The undersigned parents, students, educators, staff, and community members of Gloucester Public Schools are calling on Mayor Verga and the Gloucester City Council to support Gloucester Public Schools by passing a fully funded budget. GPS parents have already petitioned and rallied against the harmful cuts and their impacts on the art programs. Any cuts will be dire, GPS needs additional resources to address 21st-century learning, student mental health, and staff needs.

Budgets are moral documents—they state what we value as a community. Superintendent Lummis’ proposed budget shows utter contempt for Gloucester Public Schools, with massive cuts to all of GPS’s resources, including its most essential resource: its educators. We insist that Gloucester should have the first-rate public schools it deserves. The School Committee and the Mayor make the final decision on the budget; they can still do the right thing and fully fund our schools.

Mayor Verga attended Gloucester Public Schools and knows how successful our schools can be when they have the right support. We need Mayor Verga to invest in our schools as we did in him. Mayor Verga: FULLY FUND OUR SCHOOLS!

UPDATE 5/8:

After weeks of advocacy from our members and families, the Gloucester School Committee voted decisively Wednesday night to fully fund Gloucester Public Schools and prevent layoffs. The Gloucester Teachers Association is calling on Mayor Greg Verga to support the budget now in the hands of the City Council.

The Gloucester Teachers Association (GTA) is grateful that the School Committee
listened to the demands of parents, students, educators, and the community tonight. The School Committee passed a budget that can reverse the detrimental cuts to student-facing positions in Gloucester Public Schools (GPS). This is an important first step in reversing the harm caused by proposed unnecessary cuts that would impact highly qualified educators who love the students they serve in GPS. We are deeply disappointed by Mayor Verga's comment last night. The Mayor
needs to be an ally to public education and advocate for the Gloucester Public Schools that he is elected to serve. We will continue our efforts to push the Mayor and City Council to pass the fully funded school budget our students and staff deserve.