Chmiel, on school district budget: ‘We don’t know what we don’t know; we’re developing a backup plan, and a backup to the backup plan’

MANCHESTER, N.H. – As the Manchester School District’s leadership prepares its proposed budget for the 2026 Fiscal Year, Manchester School District Superintendent Dr. Jennifer Chmiel feels ready that plans are in place to help the district meet its financial needs, whatever may arise.

In recent weeks, district leaders say they’ve watched closely at uncertainty over future funding from both the state and federal level, preparing for alternatives if things like Title funding and money obtained from SAMHSA grants are no longer available to help the district meet its educational mission.

“We don’t know (what might happen), so we’re collecting as much information as we can possibly gather. Then, in realizing that we don’t know what we don’t know, we’re developing a backup plan, and a backup to the backup plan,” said Chmiel.

As opponents of the district’s ongoing facilities plan voice concerns about an unexpected future for state aid earmarked to repay bonding for a new Beech Elementary School, a similar approach seeking multiple contingency plans is also the goal as Chmiel hopes to keep the district’s goal of no property tax revenue ever being used for the school’s construction.

“Again, it’s plans, backup plans and backups to backups. We continually look critically at what’s going on in our budget and what that tells us,” she said. “What does our bond repayment cycle look like? What does bonding look like overall? We’re not looking to do anything that’s going to have a negative impact on the city, so we’re planning and we’re planning deep.”

One silver lining from the uncertainty in current grant sources is a renewed emphasis to discovering new avenues for grant funding such as the community schools program or ways to save money such as the recent creation of in-house transportation services.

Ultimately, Chmiel says the root of all budget decisions comes to their impact on what she sees as the three stool pillars all needed for student success: educational programming; attracting, training and retaining quality staff and maintaining positive learning environments.

“I’ve heard people talk a lot about the district needing to have a business mindset. We’re in the business of educating kids and part of the business is knowing the systems that support your work,” she said.