Maynard School Committee Backs Mass Save Energy Manager Grant Unanimously

MAYNARD -- January 23, 2025, Maynard School Committee unanimously endorsed a Mass Save energy manager grant application and approved the 2025-26 school calendar at its January 23 meeting. The committee voted 5-0 to endorse the pursuit of the Mass Save Municipal Energy Manager Grant, which would fund a shared part-time energy manager based at the high school for three years, and authorized Superintendent Brian Haas to begin preliminary negotiations with Town Administrator Greg Johnson on structuring the shared-resource arrangement, the Select Board had already approved a letter of support. Sustainability committee member Zan Ker, who presented the opportunity, said Mass Save expects to fund 16 full or part-time positions statewide, and that an award decision is expected by early March. The committee also voted 5-0 to adopt a school calendar under which staff return August 25 for professional development, students begin August 27, and the anticipated last day is June 12, 2026. In a separate budget discussion, Haas confirmed the town administrator's recommended 2.5 percent school budget increase falls roughly $1.4 million short of the district's projected FY 2026 need, with the committee indicating majority support for pursuing a Proposition 2½ operational override ahead of a February 8 joint budget review.