Easthampton Public Schools
Easthampton School Committee & Superintendent
Who Runs the Schools
Seven people set policy for Easthampton Public Schools, and you elect six of them. Charter Section 4-1 puts six members on the ballot at large, chosen by every voter in the city rather than by precinct, for two year terms that start on the first secular day of January. The seventh member is the Mayor, who sits because the charter says so. Every year the committee organizes by electing one of its own as chair, and the chair votes on everything like any other member.
The committee does three things that reach a student directly: it writes the policies the schools run on, it reviews and approves the school budget before that budget goes to the City Council, and it hires, evaluates and can fire the Superintendent. It does not run a building, hire a teacher, or set a grade. That is the Superintendent’s side of the line, and knowing which side your question falls on is the fastest way to get an answer.
There is one piece of budget arithmetic worth carrying with you. When the City Council votes the school appropriation, it votes the total. The charter lets the Council recommend moving money between accounts but forbids it from doing so, which means the argument about what the schools spend money ON happens at the School Committee, not at the Council.
Committee Members
At its organizational meeting on January 2, 2026, the committee chose Laura Scott to chair it again.
Laura Scott
Megan Harvey
Sam Hunter
Eric Guyette
Linda Markee
Bonnie Atkins
Salem Derby
Meetings are usually every other Tuesday at 6 pm, and every agenda and remote login is posted at least 48 hours in advance in the city’s Agenda Center at easthamptonma.gov.
The Superintendent
Michelle Balch
Michelle Balch is the Superintendent of Easthampton Public Schools. The School Committee hires the Superintendent, sets the contract and evaluates the performance; the Superintendent runs the district the committee sets policy for, which here means 1,340 students in two schools, the staff who teach them, and the budget that pays for both.
That two school district is unusually recent. Mountain View School, which holds every student from pre-K through grade eight, opened in 2022 and replaced three elementary schools and the middle school at once. Easthampton High School takes it from there.
| District | Easthampton Public Schools |
|---|---|
| Central office | 50 Payson Avenue, 2nd Floor, Easthampton, MA 01027 |
| Phone | 413-529-1500 |
| Website | epsd.us |
The District at a Glance
- Enrollment: 1,340 students.
- Schools: two. Mountain View School, pre-K through grade 8, and Easthampton High School.
- Four year graduation rate: 93.1 percent.
- State profile: DESE profile (code 00860000).
The numbers behind the district, in full.
MassCivics last checked this page on October 20, 2026.
Sources
- Schools and districts: Massachusetts DESE, Cohort 2025 Graduation Rates, as of 2025.
- Schools and districts: Massachusetts DESE, district profile, Contact Information, as of October 2025.
- Schools and districts: Massachusetts DESE, district profile, Enrollment Data (2025-26), as of October 2025.
- City records: City of Easthampton, Staff Directory, as of October 2026.
- Charter and bylaws: City of Easthampton, Easthampton City Charter (2025), as of 2025.
- School district records: Easthampton Public Schools, Easthampton Public Schools home, as of October 2026.
- School district records: Easthampton Public Schools, School Committee Meeting Minutes, September 8, 2026, as of September 8, 2026.
- School district records: Easthampton Public Schools, School Committee Special Session, Organizational Meeting, January 2, 2026, as of January 2, 2026.