NORTHFIELD — For the first time in several years, the Pioneer Valley Regional School District School Committee voted to open new School Choice seats for the 2026-2027 school year, with a total of 30 new seats available at the two elementary schools and 45 new seats opening at the middle and high school.
Last week, School Committee members voted unanimously to accept Superintendent Patricia Kinsella’s recommendation to open new School Choice seats. The district hopes this decision will bring in more School Choice revenue to offset budget increases.
The committee approved adding nine seats at Bernardston Elementary School. The school currently has 10 School Choice students, so if all seats are filled, the total would be 19.
At Northfield Elementary School, the committee approved creating 21 new seats. The school currently has two School Choice students.
The committee also agreed to open an additional 45 seats at Pioneer Valley Regional School. There are currently 30 School Choice students at Pioneer.
Kinsella’s original proposal, presented in January, was revised after further discussion with principals and teachers at the schools. Kinsella said it was determined that her proposal to add 14 new seats might be too many for Bernardston Elementary, but teachers could probably accommodate nine more students there.
“We have continued speaking among administrators with staff,” Kinsella said, “so we have adjusted our recommended numbers slightly — actually not slightly — by 36% downward at BES. We reduced the proposed seats from 14 to nine.”
At Kinsella’s recommendation, the School Committee agreed to wait on creating School Choice seats at the kindergarten level until after kindergarten registration ends and the district knows how many new students will be enrolled.
Applications for the School Choice lottery are available at pvrsdk12.org. Families will be notified if their student has been accepted in early March.