Budget Process Begins: School Tax Estimated to Rise by 2.64%

The Scarsdale Schools administration unveiled their initial budget estimate for the 2015-16 school year and the good news is that the current estimate will require a 2.64% tax increase for Scarsdale and Mamaroneck strip residents, which is .29% below the allowable tax cap of 2.93%. Purvis told the Board that the school budget has been rebuilt from the ground up, and included some organizational changes, restructuring of the leadership of the athletics program at the high school, two new reading specialists for the elementary schools and delaying the start of Spanish language instruction to second grade rather than first grade.

As school enrollment drives the budget, Assistant Superintendent Joan Weber reported that demographers estimate that there will be a 1% decrease in student enrollment or 47 fewer students for 2015/16 over 2014/15. She noted that the incoming kindergarten class is projected to have 313 students, which is 44 less students than the outgoing high school class.

She provided the following estimates for the number of projected students and classes at each of the five elementary schools:

Schools Students Sections

Heathcote       392 students 19 sections
Greenacres    399 students  22 sections
Edgewood      401 students  20 sections
Fox Meadow   462 students  24 sections
Quaker Ridge 466 students  26 sections

Overall, Weber projects a decrease in 2 elementary schools sections from 107 sections this year to 105 next year. In the next four years, the demographer estimates that the school population will decrease by three tenths of a percent.

Among the proposed staffing changes in the plan, is combining the current positions of athletic director and physical education coordinator at the high school into an administrative job with responsibility for athletics, physical education and health.

There will also be changes in the technology area with the assignment of a director of information systems and other staffing adjustments. Details will be provided at the next budget study session on Monday February 9 at 6:30 pm. The technology department of 16 people would all be housed in one office. There will be an overall increase in .05 positions in civil service staff to add a director of information technology and an administrator to oversee the audiovisual program.

At the elementary schools, due to the reduction in enrollment, one less classroom teacher would be needed. The administration is proposing a delay in the commencement of Spanish instruction from first grade to second grade, and the addition of an ELA helping teacher and 2.5 reading teachers to help first and second graders who are struggling with reading. According to Assistant Superintendent Lynn Shain, the district "Wants to have more time to deliver literacy instruction in English – kids first language. We looked at the first grade Spanish program and decided to take Spanish instruction out of grade one to allow us to pick up two forty minute periods a week to focus on literacy learning."

At the middle school, an additional special education teacher is needed for the parallel curriculum students.

Reviewing the central administration and facilities budget, Linda Purvis highlighted line items that changed over the previous year.

She said that the administration would like to reinstate a reserve for tax certiorari claims and a reserve for emergency repairs which were both eliminated in previous budgets.

The district has seen a big increase in utility costs for both electricity and heating and projects a $190,000 increase for electricity and a $108,000 increase in heating costs.

The district's phone system is antiquated and the service provider will phase out the service of the phone system that is also tied into the paging system. Purvis estimates that the new system could cost $300,0000.

Purvis then reviewed almost $1.9 mm in proposed plant improvements to the district's facilities:

Edgewood: Repair of drainage near the oil tank $65,000

Fox Meadow Playground Equipment $95,000 (she indicated that the previous board made a policy decision to fund playgrounds rather than ask the PTA's to raise money to do it.)

Re-orientation of the school office to provide additional security $395,000

Heathcote: New fire alarm: $280,000

Middle School: Replace and relocate tech room dust collection system: $70,000

Highs School: Renovate Dean Field: $270,000 to address ruts, depressions in the ground, drainage issues, and fence repairs

Paint exterior trim $80,000

District wide roof repairs $300,000

Upgrade ventilation and renovate district technology office $240,000

Drainage/paving bus compound $100,000

Purvis noted that the facilities budgets represents less than 1.3% of the total district budget. The National School Board Association recommends that school boards spend 2% on building maintenance and repairs.

Watch the budget study session on the Scarsdale Schools website here. The next budget study session will be held on Monday February 9 at 6:30 pm at Scarsdale High School.