By J. CHARLES STERN

On Monday, the corridors at the Ferri Middle School were closed to students in honor of Martin Luther King Jr.

The holiday, however, didn’t stop members of the School Committee from heading back to school.

Members of the School Committee – new and returning – spent half of their Monday morning peering over school finances in at attempt to gain familiarity with the budget and how departments are funded.

“A lot goes into the budget process, but I really didn’t know how intense it was,” School Committee Chairman Janice D. Mele said. “The experience today is invaluable.”

School Business Manager Melissa Devine coordinated the information forum. Devine said she agreed to donate her time for the event to help the committee members understand the school’s finances. With the town’s financial resources in the red it is expected the committee will be asked to make cuts. Greater understandings of how the budget works will aid the upcoming touch decisions.

“The budget process can be very exhausting for someone with years of experience,” Devine said.

The meeting was designed to allow members to review the school’s budget outside the glare of taxpayers and media members. At no time during the gathering were more than two members present, preventing a quorum and the need for the meeting to be open to the public.

Committee Vice Chair John Conti used the meeting to review every line item in the budget and ask questions about the funded programs. He said during committee meetings there is often not enough time allotted to ask questions. The private workshop allowed Conti to ask questions and receive candid answers.

The members all said they used the budget to form their own ideas on where funds could be cut. Many of the members asked specific questions about the purpose of individual programs and whether the programs were funded from outside sources, including grants.

“The program is extremely beneficial,” Conti said. “I had a lot of questions coming in and [school officials] have done a great job answering my questions.”