Board Approves $502 Thousand in Cuts, With Hopes For $350 Thousand More In Savings

Monday night, the Board of Education approved cuts of $851 thousand to the district, but that’s not the end of the story.

Although $501,800 have been accounted for in terms of faculty/staff reductions, the slimming of departments and a controversial cut to the music program, the remaining $349,200 depend on how the Ridgefield residents vote in May and how many teachers adopt a health insurance plan being touted by the board.

These budget reductions do not represent a sure thing, which was why the board’s longest-serving member, Sandi Rose, abstained from the second part of the vote.

“I won’t vote on something I don’t know,” Rose said offhand after all but she and board member Paul Sutherland voted to move forward on the potential savings.

The savings the board hopes to see would come mostly from the energy conservation capital project as part of the May referendum. Additional possibilities stem from the MIRMA discussion with the Board of Finance, which board chair Peter Gomez stated would fall under a special fund – the result of which has lately been less clear – and the health savings account turnout from the teachers.

The health savings account is a pet project of board member John Palermo who calls it a win-win for the district and those under its coverage. Thirty percent of faculty has opted in to the program, but the district hopes to double that number to 60 percent – the more that adopt that coverage, he said, the greater the savings.

With a current cost share of 17 percent, Palermo noted incentives for the HAS, including bringing that down to 15 percent for 2011 if 60 percent of the population adopts the program. In 2012, that number would remain at 15 percent if 75 percent of the population adopts the program.

“It’s a win-win for everybody, particularly the teachers,” Palermo said, noting this item could save $75 thousand or more per each 10 percent of the population that opts in. The savings at 60 percent could conceivably be upwards of $227 thousand.

"We cut less the more we can convince the folks to move to the HSA," Palermo wrote in an email, noting the changes this would make to the possible budget.

The board also approved a plan by high school principal Jeffrey Jaslow and Athletic Director Carl Charles to keep “pay to play” fees at $225 per sport, reducing the waiver program to only those students on the free-and-reduced lunch program – cutting about two thirds of the number already included – and beginning to charge a fee for the Metzger Fitness Center.

Some other options were made available (albeit reluctantly) by Jaslow and Charles, but the board agreed this option was better than raising the pay-to-play fees for too many people.

Among the budget discussion was the possibility of redistricting the elementary schools for further savings, a subject that often riles some emotions.

A presentation by Sutherland and Palermo showed some options for redistricting, the savings of which they said could focus some of the reductions on infrastructure rather than school programs.

By moving some students between schools and increasing some class sizes, the changes would allow for fewer teachers.

But with the possibility of closing a school in the next few years, some board members lamented the thought of moving young children too often from school to school, as well as a potential splitting of siblings.

For now the redistricting conversation is on the table, but the board is looking into conducting a study, if possible within the timeframe, to decide whether it would be a benefit or a burden.

These items may be discussed at next week’s annual town meeting on Monday, where members of the public are welcome to voice their opinions.

Here’s a short recap of the cuts that have been made to accommodate the tighter budget, plus the original budget proposed by School Superintendent Deborah Low.

The original recommended cuts by the Board of Education in February comprised the following reductions – cutting about 15 full-time employees – according to Low’s summary:

• No contingency teacher
• Reduced Art and library teacher time at FES and VP
• Larger class sizes in middle school FCS & Health (changed to co-ed classes)
• Reduced Grade 6 world language choices from 3 to 2
• Reduced high school teachers by increased departmental average class sizes; reduced course options
• Reduced special education teachers
• Reduced special education therapists
• Reduced special education administration (to grant?)
• Reduced technology teacher at RHS
• Reduced custodial, maintenance staff
• Reduced bookkeeper/secretarial staff
• No K-5 literacy resource teacher

Editor’s note: Bolded items represent a direct cut to a school program.

After the Board of Finance further reduced the budget from this 2.81 percent increase to a 1.81 percent increase year-to-year in early April, chopping another $850 thousand from the district, the Board made several more cuts to the tune of $501,800 this week.

• Increase RHS student fees ($30,000)
• Reduce RHS secretary  ($44,700)
• Reduce RHS professional ($22,000)
• Further reduce technology department budget ($75,000)
• Further reduce curriculum and instruction department budget ($55,000)
• Reduce middle school employee based on enrollment or reduce/eliminate Family & Consumer Science course ($84,100)
• Reduce special education teacher ($18,700
• Reduce administration ($60,000)
• Postpone grade 4 music instruction (strings) to grade 5 ($62,300)