North Middlesex School Committee extends Vanpool contract, accepts $20,000 health grant

School Committee · Meeting of March 2, 2026

TOWNSEND — North Middlesex Regional School District School Committee extends Vanpool transportation contract and accepts $20,000 behavioral health grant. The committee voted 6-1 Monday to extend its special-education transportation contract with Vanpool through fiscal years 2027 and 2028, securing a 4 percent annual rate increase — down from 5 percent in each of the two prior years — after Special Education Transportation Director Aaron Upton reported the vendor is now "communicative, responsive, and receptive to feedback." The panel also voted unanimously to accept a $20,000 FY26 Neshoba Valley Community Health Grant from the Community Foundation of North Central Massachusetts, funding a student telehealth access space, staff mental health first-aid training, and a fall 2026 community health fair. The committee froze preschool tuition for 2026-2027 on a 5-0-2 vote, with members Randy Rush and Carla Lima abstaining over a lack of comparative district data.

Community advocate Jennifer Fours urged members to promote a March 23 State House hearing on the state's Chapter 70 funding formula, noting the number of financially distressed Massachusetts school districts has grown from 211 to 272.

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Source: the School Committee meeting of March 2, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.