Manager: Supt. blew call on school

City Manager Eileen Donoghue said she feels for students and parents who were told they would have in-person teaching when school started, and that she told Superintendent Joel Boyd that she disagreed with the decision to cancel inperson classes at the last minute due to a lack of air purifiers.

She also, in a conversation that focused mostly on the city’s nearly $440 million Fiscal 2021 budget, said that thanks to record funds in city emergency accounts, layoffs can be avoided in Fiscal 2021 despite the COVID-19 pandemic, as long as city unions agree to about $1.3 million in concessions the city is counting on.

“We are looking for those concessions so that we can save jobs,” Donoghue said, though she said ongoing negotiations prevented her from sharing more specifics.

The budget goes before the City Council for a public hearing Tuesday evening.

Donoghue discussed the latest school developments, and the budget, during a conference call late Thursday with Sun editors and reporters.

Donoghue minced no words when asked how she felt about Boyd’s decision to cancel in-person classes just two days before they were scheduled to begin.

“The superintendent felt that unless he had air purifiers he wasn’t going to open. I respectfully disagreed with that. I told him so,” Donoghue said. “It was his call, but I very much disagreed with it because it’s not necessary for opening schools.”

She expressed special concern for the students and families who were counting on being in