MINUTES OF SPECIAL MEETING
SUPERINTENDENT'S FY05 BUDGET
PRESENTATION
PRESENT: Chairperson Anne Larner, Vice-Chairperson Dori Zaleznik, Gail Glick, Susan Heyman,
Patricia Kellogg, Marc Laredo, Nancy Levine, Reenie
Murphy, Mayor David Cohen
Chairperson Anne Larner called
the meeting to order at
Superintendent Jeffrey Young began the presentation by first acknowledging all the hard work of the central staff, principals, curriculum coordinators, and department heads, in helping him develop this budget. He especially thanked Sandra Guryan, Assistant Superintendent for Business, Finance & Planning, and her staff, for their countless hours in assembling this document. Finally, he thanked the School Committee for creating clear and thoughtful budget guidelines, which helped frame their work.
Two
goals were set forth in the preparation of the budget, which in some ways
conflict. First was to preserve the
excellence of the core program and the second was to live within their means.
The
total proposed budget is $131,498,456, or a $4,200,000
(3.3%) increase over last year. As
always, the Mayor has generously allotted the lion’s share of the City’s
revenue sources to the schools and he thanked him for continuing to support the
importance of education in this community.
Despite this generosity, it does not cover all the needs.
The
main categories of the budget proposal are salaries, expenses and offsets. Salaries, as always, are the greatest portion
of the budget ($110,722,614), which is understandable given that education is a
human intensive profession. The 3.5%
listed in the budget as the salary increase makes no explicit assumptions, as
they are just entering collective bargaining with all three unions. Rather, the amount is to set aside a reserve. Expenses make up the remaining $20,775,842 (2.1%
increase).
Offsets ($1,883,000) are funds that are returned to the school system
(1.4% increase).
In
terms of maintenance of effort, or funding for the exact same services this
year that were in place last year, it is important to remember that new
contracts will be bargained. There will
be increases in salary steps, which are contractual, as well as anticipated increased
health benefit costs. Inflation in
transportation, utilities, and materials/supplies are other factors. Finally, increased special education costs
are projected in tuition rates and preschool referrals. All these items are part of the maintenance
of effort budget because they are not enhancing services, but simply
maintaining what is in place for the anticipated population.
During
the override discussions, he was asked numerous times if the system would be
able to sustain services or if overrides would continue to be necessary. He was clear in his response that if they
continued to receive annual budget allocations as they had for the past ten
years (i.e., 5%-6%) they could sustain.
However, if that were not the case and allocations decreased, they would
be faced with serious issues once again.
Unfortunately, this is where they stand now, which is a reflection of the
economy. To maintain their current
effort would require a 5.5% increase ($7,000,000). Given that the allocation this year is only
$4,200,000, they are left with a $2,800,000 gap, or
the level of reductions necessary to produce a balanced budget. He will elaborate later in this presentation
on those reductions.
He
reiterated that the heart and soul of the system is and always will be what
transpires in the classrooms between teachers and students on a daily
basis. Their mission is to retain this
to the greatest extent possible.
The
major factors driving the school budget are contract settlements with
employees, preservation of classroom instruction, fixed and mandated costs
increases, and implementing instructional efficiencies (meeting fiscal
constraints).
With
regard to contract settlements, as previously mentioned all union contracts are
up for renewal this year. There is a
certain amount of funding set aside as a salary reserve, which they believe
will enable the Committee to settle the contracts in a fair and equitable
manner. Included in that amount are
contractual financial increments for staff moving up the salary scale as they
become more experienced, as well as increases to those who earn advanced
degrees. Health benefits are also a part
of this amount and the City provides this figure to the school system. Turnover savings refers to a less experienced
teacher replacing a more experienced staff member upon retirement, which helps
keep costs down.
In
the area of preserving classroom instruction, this is where they face some
difficult choices this year and will be suggesting some changes in staffing patterns. This is extremely unfortunate because they continue
to ask more of staff while providing fewer resources. Specifically, they are facing a reduction of
16.3 full-time equivalencies (FTE) for the 15 elementary schools; six of which
are related to enrollment. Some of this
amount is also related to fewer staff needed in the special subject areas as a
result of fewer classes. Several schools
will be looking at combination K-1 classes.
In some classes that are not large enough to split into two classes, but
are too large for one teacher, they will add a .5. At the middle schools they anticipate a 7.3
FTE reduction to be split among the four schools based on enrollment. Class sizes in some of the major subjects
will increase and there is the possibility of curtailment or consolidation of
certain elective programs. Principals,
in conjunction with their staff, will be making the specific decisions. At the high schools there will be a 10.6 FTE
reduction also to be distributed based on enrollment. Because the scheduling process is not
completed at this level for next year, it is difficult to be specific about the
nature of these reductions. Special
education is actually going to see an increase in staffing (9.5 FTE), mainly to
accommodate increased numbers at the preschool level. Last year they instituted
an 18% reduction in the per pupil allocation, which is funding that each school
principal receives for supplies, materials, etc. This was a very difficult cut and this year
they are restoring 3% to that line item.
While it is not where they want to be, it is a reflection of the
awareness of the need.
Fixed
and mandated cost increases include transportation, of which they are in year
two of a five-year contract. There is an
increase of custodians (3.0 FTE) to address the additional space at
The
final factor associated with driving the school budget is the implementation of
instructional efficiencies or meeting fiscal constraints. An additional phase of the administrative
reorganization will save approximately $70,000.
They are also planning to reduce professional development by $100,000,
textbook purchases by $300,000, and technology equipment by $350,000. The budget assumes maintaining transportation
fees, but with the hopes of making the system somewhat more flexible. There is also a health insurance and Medicare
adjustment to reflect the reduction in staff. These are difficult but necessary
choices. They will discuss the rationale
for these decisions and their impact as they continue through their budget
deliberations.
He then outlined how the $11,707 per pupil
expenditure is spent, of which
the bulk ($5,559) is for instruction. As an aside, he noted that administration is
only $372. This confirms what has always
been the case in
He
then showed the school budget history from FY93-FY05, showing an average of
6.2% increases, with a 10.2% increase in FY03 as a result of the Override, and
a 2.1% increase last year. They were
able keep class sizes favorable last year as a result of the measures he just
outlined.
He
concluded by summarizing the rest of the budget process. He noted that while they anticipate a
reduction systemwide of 22.3 FTEs, he does not
believe they will see much, if any, teacher layoffs, as it is hoped that this
can be covered through natural attrition. In the context of the economy, they
feel this is the best document they can put forward to meet the needs and
provide an excellent education for the students in the Newton Public Schools.
Anne
Larner announced the dates that the Committee will be
discussing the budget and encouraged the public to provide input and stay
involved.
ADJOURNMENT
The
meeting was adjourned at