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Presently, the spending plan represents a 2.2 percent budget-to-budget increase, which is narrowly over the state-mandated tax levy cap of 1.88 percent. To stay within the cap, $106,903 has to be trimmed from the current spending plan .
According to Schools Superintendent David Quattrone, with such a small difference, he “believes the responsible approach is to seek additional revenue and trim costs, rather than considering wholesale program reductions.”
The district, like many municipalities and schools across the county, continues to be handcuffed by escalating state mandates. In total, more than 75 percent of the budget is dedicated to salaries and benefits, according to Assistant Superintendent Dan Carlin.
This year’s budget focused on several key points, which included managing the expected enrollment increases and addressing changes to curriculum that need to be addressed due to the new state Common Core Learning Standards.
To accommodate the enrollment increases, and to control class sizes, the district intends to add an extra second-grade section and two sections each of English and mathematics in the middle school. To comply with the new learning standards, there will be rotating electives at the high school and more time will be spent on science and technology at the elementary school.
“We recognize that this is a community that is committed to excellence in our schools, and expects a top-tier program on all levels,” Board of Education President David Brashear said. “We also recognize that the tax burden driven by our schools is substantial. District spending must be managed tightly.”
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