MONTAGUE — Following the unveiling of the restructuring plan for Gill-Montague Regional School District staff, the Gill-Montague Education Association (GMEA) teachers union is sounding the alarm about the restructuring of 17 staff positions that have been “eliminated, adjusted or reassigned,” according to district administration.
According to a statement from the GMEA on Monday, the district-wide restructuring will impact staff and services in special education, music education, reading intervention, library services, math intervention, English learner support, health education and theater.
“We were taken by surprise by these devastating cuts to staff and programs,” a statement from the GMEA reads. “The district claimed it wanted to work collaboratively with educators, but these decisions were made without input from those of us working directly with students.”
In a statement on Thursday, interim Superintendent Tari Thomas detailed that the 17 staff changes in the 2026-2027 school year include the departure of eight teachers due to retirement, resignation or contract non-renewals; eight internal position transfers; and the elimination of one teaching position. She explained that the work on the restructuring has taken months to complete, and that the plan “is designed to optimize instructional leadership, target critical academic areas and navigate ongoing fiscal realities.”
According to Thomas, the announcements were made following Gill’s approval of the school district’s $25.8 million fiscal year 2027 budget during the second half of Annual Town Meeting on Monday, June 8.
Ramona LaTronica, speaking as a member of and spokesperson for the GMEA, confirmed that the union was made aware of the 17 impacted positions in a June 11 restructure announcement.
LaTronica shared that the three elementary school math interventionists and the Gill Elementary School reading interventionist positions; the high school English language learning position; the five elementary “related arts” positions for library, science, music, physical education and art; the high school drama position; and the middle school health education position have all been impacted by the restructuring. While all five of the “related arts” jobs have been restructured into new positions, the other seven roles — some of which were already vacant — will not be returning to the district in the fall.
As part of the FY27 budget, six positions are being added, described as “net-neutral transitions,” meaning these are transfers of existing staff. These include an inclusion coach (someone who works with staff to make sure students with diverse needs are successful), two instructional coaches/curriculum coordinators, the returning school resource officer, a secondary-level librarian and a human resources clerk.
Thomas added that a number of instructional assistants for students with Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) have been reassigned due to students moving between schools or adjustments within the IEP requirements.
“Change is inherently difficult, yet it is a necessary evolution,” Thomas said in a statement. “To effectively meet the diverse needs of our students, we must be willing to continuously pivot. We cannot continue to rely on the same approaches and expect different results; our students deserve more.”
Union reaction
Along with the June 11 announcement to staff about the restructuring, the GMEA also stated there was “no transparency” about the process since it was announced in March.
“There was no transparency in this process, and we are deeply concerned about the impact this will have on our students,” the union said.
This restructuring comes as the school is adopting a Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE)-approved Multi-Tier Systems of Support framework, defined as “a framework for how school districts can build the necessary systems to ensure that each and every student receives a high-quality educational experience.”
Student performance trends at Gill-Montague have shown declines, and the current education structure hasn’t served students well, Thomas explained during the March announcement.
Both Turners Falls High School and Great Falls Middle School are listed as requiring assistance or intervention, with the high school falling into the eighth performance percentile and the middle school in the ninth percentile. This means both schools are performing at a low level compared to others in the state, according to DESE data for 2025.
LaTronica and Jenay Haskins, a member of the GMEA, both shared the union’s support of a strong Tier 1 instruction framework, but were concerned for how the loss of Tier 2 and Tier 3 staff — like the reading and math interventionists with specialized training to help offer greater support to students — will create resource gaps for kids who need extra support.
“Sometimes it’s in the classroom, sometimes it’s not in the classroom, sometimes it’s in a more distraction-limited environment, small groups,” Haskins said about the additional student support, “and so that part’s going to be harder with fewer staff members.”
In terms of communication with the GMEA, Thomas said there’s been an ongoing dialogue, and while the administration’s focus was on finalizing the “operational details required to address urgent state compliance and structural deficits, we acknowledge the GMEA’s feedback regarding the pace and level of collaboration.”
As this restructuring continues, Haskins explained that for the GMEA, the hope is that there can be further communication about how the changes will impact scheduling for the coming school year and how changes to the elementary “related arts” positions will impact those education areas. The district also needs to craft job descriptions for the new positions that staff will be transitioning into.
“They have been moving pretty quickly with giving us what we asked for so far, in terms of job descriptions for the new roles,” Haskins said, “but I think we’ll be looking for more detail on what some of these newer positions are going to require, and then also the impact of that on scheduling and the rest of staff.”
