I am filled with gratitude for the support Northshire Day School (NDS) receives from the towns of Manchester, Sunderland and Dorset. I am fortunate to work and live in a community that prioritizes early childhood education and understands the importance of this early foundation for learning. 

When people think of NDS, it is often with fond memories of their child or grandchild’s time in our school. Most people think of child care and making sure families have a place for their child to go so they may work. Both the history of our 55 plus years and the long standing critical infrastructure to our region are important. Today though, I want to share some things that you might not know or think about when we are asking you to say yes to NDS. 

At Northshire Day School, we serve children with differing and varied needs. All children who come to our school receive child development screeners and assessments for early identification of any developmental concerns. We know that early intervention for a young child can make a significant difference in both their development now and their success in the future. Between 35- 40% of our students receive specialized services as part of children’s integrated services or through their local school district’s early childhood special education services. Several providers, from Occupational Therapists to Early Childhood Mental Health Clinicians to Speech and Language Pathologists, can be found at our program daily providing specialized services and supporting our early childhood educators with tips and information to work with the child for optimal learning outcomes. By the time children leave Northshire Day School, they are less likely to continue to need those services through special education when they begin Kindergarten. The cost savings from not needing these continued services is worth the investment where it yields the highest return, directly reducing the tax burden on our communities.

Another part of our work at NDS is family support services. Children don’t grow up in programs, they grow up in families and communities. We must support both if we are going to fully serve the child and support their early learning needs. The Family Tree Program at NDS expands our scope of service beyond early childhood education and focuses on the entire family. By providing transportation, parenting support and education, play group opportunities, concrete items such as clothing and groceries to meet basic needs, assisting with challenges that we all face sometimes, we are supporting families in equitable ways that build upon their strengths. We are there for our families so they can be active and supported members of our communities. 

NDS contributes to the success and well being of our communities with our enrichment opportunities, our regional professional development support, our community outreach efforts and by providing resources and referrals to anyone who inquires about enrollment at our school. I welcome each of you to visit NDS, see our work firsthand and learn more about how NDS supports the children we serve. For now though, I must discuss money and the investment our communities will consider on this year’s ballot. 

Northshire Day School is a non-profit organization. We will not and do not ask for money that we don’t need. We are sensitive to the needs of our communities and during my seven years at NDS, there have been times when we have chosen to not ask for financial support, recognizing the struggles that our town budgets face. When we can, we reduce our financial ask. We have no interest in burdening our taxpayers. There are sacrifices we make to balance our budget including not offering our employees health insurance because, although incredibly necessary, it is not something we can afford right now. We also level fund all expenses except for those that demand an increase for which we have no control over such as fuel oil, utilities and taxes. We, like all of you, are taxpayers in our communities. We know all sides of the financial equation. We do not ask for support lightly and are not entering into additional expenses that cannot be supported through grants and state funding outside of our town funding. We are committed to saving our communities money both in the upcoming fiscal year and into the future with the services we provide and the thoughtful financial requests we bring to the towns we serve. Please know this is what you are supporting when you say yes to NDS on this year’s ballot in Manchester, Sunderland, and Dorset.

On behalf of our school, our families and our children, I thank you for your continued support.