Budget Increase Reduced and Kindergarten Moves to Full Day Program

There was good news for Scarsdale taxpayers at the Scarsdale School Board Community Budget Forum on Thursday April 8th. The Board is now projecting an $800,000 surplus from this year’s budget as a result of lower than expected expenses for electricity, natural gas, health insurance and salaries for teacher aids. The Board agreed to pass this savings back to the taxpayers, and as a result, the projected school tax increase for 2010-2011 will be 2.56% for Scarsdale residents and 5.7% for those in the Mamaroneck Strip. Given that the Board began the process with a projected 8% increase, School Board President Barbara Kemp was very pleased with the results and credited Scarsdale teachers for contract concessions and residents for their participation in budget discussions.

The Board decided to continue with plans to repave at the Middle School and renovate bathrooms at the Heathcote School, two projects that might have been cut if the additional funds had not been found. Though the Board cautioned that it is difficult to project future budget growth, they provided a very tentative estimate of a 5.3% budget increase for 2011-12, citing looming increases in the cost for health insurance, fuel and retirement charges.

The conversation then turned to the transition of the kindergarten program from the current callback schedule to full-day kindergarten for all. Superintendant McGill attempted to clarify how the administration had come to the decision and dispel a few misconceptions.

Though some felt that this was a major change that required a study before implementation, McGill contended that the program shares the same goals for learning and growth of the current kindergarten curriculum. He contended that the new schedule will provide added time and flexibility and is not a curriculum shift as we experienced with the transition to Singapore Math.

Though there was talk of a district-wide meeting to explain the change, McGill said that specifics are particular to each school and classroom and that meeting on a community-wide basis did not make sense. In addition, no committee had been formed to study the change.

On scheduling, he could not provide parents with specific schedules, as this will be dependent on the number of students in each section. Programming will be done by the Elementary School Principals in the summer but will include time for small group learning experiences. He encouraged parents to meet with their principal if they had questions or concerns.

Assistant Superintendant Lynn Shain provided information on how parents would be informed and involved in kindergarten orientation:

There will be meetings at the elementary schools in late April and early May for parents of incoming kindergartners

In September, all kindergarten classes will be half days, and teachers will meet with parents to discuss their children’s needs

There will be regular opportunities for parents to participate in the program, by accompanying the class on trips, and participating in class activities

Shain also assured parents that the program offered posed no curriculum changes, just added time for learning and individual instruction.

Despite assurances, a small group of parents expressed their frustration and concerns. An Edgewood mother asked the Board if they had taken time to visit a call-back session at a district school. Calling the leap from Pre-K to a full day of kindergarten “a gigantic jump” she argued that children are tired, and prefer play dates at home. She challenged McGill to verify his claim that many Pre-K programs now run longer days than the current kindergarten.

A Greenacres mother, who is also a teacher in the South Bronx called the decision “mismanagement in the name of the budget,” something she has witnessed time and time again in the Bronx. She argued that philosophy should precede budget concerns and asked for the logic behind the decision. Furthermore, since the Greenacres school does not bus, she asked out this change would benefit students at her school.

Another emotional Greenacres Mom, said “shame on the Board.” Contending that “more is not always better” she asked the Board and administration to take a step back, do their due diligence and consider adding optional enrichment in another setting, such as Kids Base. Last, another concerned mother brought up over-scheduled children and asked what time would be left for free play and creativity.

The Board and Administration answered these concerns and ultimately agreed to schedule a program evaluation in the fall. Assuring the group that “nothing is written in stone,” the Board said that if changes needed to be made, it would be done.

Board members were asked to comment. David Gurin let the group know that the Board has received many emails about the change and said there was a 50/50 split on those for and against. Jill Spieler answered the Greenacres mom query about the benefit of the change in a school with no busing, by telling the group that the Board does what is best for the entire community. She also suggested that parents could still bring their children home for lunch if they felt a full day was too long. Jeff Blatt said that the strength of Scarsdale lay in our continued quest to do things better and felt secure that the program would be smoothly implemented. Linda Chayes was “excited” by the new schedule and said that the consistency of the same schedule each day would be better for some children. Elizabeth Guggenheimer assured residents that “we all have done a lot of thinking” and was pleased that the district had the resources to take this on. Mary Beth Gose was skeptical and said it was a “big leap of faith for her to support” the move. She was disappointed with the way the change had been presented, felt that the long day could be stressful for young children and wished to hear more from the kindergarten teachers.

Ultimately, the Board agreed to accept the change and next year, there will be a full day of kindergarten for all with a program evaluation scheduled for the fall.