School Committee OKs online fundraising by friends groups

School Committee · Meeting of February 10, 2026

Peabody's School Committee cleared online fundraising for outside "Friends of" groups. It voted 6-0 to let the superintendent approve such drives, after Mr. Teitelbaum of the city treasurer's office said state law bars Venmo, PayPal and credit card processing in school-run student activity accounts. Groups need an outside nonprofit partner, he said.

Mrs. Dunn called fundraising "a minefield." Business Manager Sam Rippon projected a $600,000 health insurance shortfall, with $35,687,759 spent, or 36.03 percent of the $99,050,552 budget. The superintendent's first fiscal 2027 draft totals $104,979,890, about $3.7 million over minimum net school spending, with Chapter 70 aid up only $430,000 because Peabody became a minimum-aid district.

In the full story:

• The Full Story
• Why It Matters
• Key Motions & Votes
• Source
• Peabody's community access TV: School Committee meeting, February 10, 2026
• The complete report: 872 words

Source: the School Committee meeting of February 10, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.

Checked against the record: before publication this article was automatically compared with the meeting transcript.