Hatfield School Committee Votes to Keep Two-Signature Warrant Rule

HATFIELD — September 20, 2022 — Hatfield School Committee hears enrollment at Smith Academy has fallen 22 percent in one year. Chair Christy Boudreau and the committee voted unanimously Tuesday to retain a two-signature requirement on financial warrants. Smith Academy Principal Conor reported that outreach to roughly 50 families identified three main reasons students leave: desire for a larger school, interest in vocational training, and limited elective and non-sport extracurricular options. School-choice students account for only about one-third of district enrollment but half of the overall decline, which totals 9.7 percent district-wide. The district has launched targeted Facebook, Instagram, and radio ads through the Northampton Radio Group and is accepting school-choice applications through September 30. A revised preschool admissions policy, reorganized into enrollment-priority tables after consultation with a specialist identified as Ms. Bremner, will return for a final vote at the October 18 meeting.