Superintendent of Schools Michael Frechette delivered the proposed 2011-2012 school budget to the Board of Education Tuesday.
Frechette prefaced his delivery of the budget with remarks about the progress the district has made in the past two years. He indicated that Middletown had been on a list of fifteen school districts in Connecticut which were at risk of failing.
"We are the only of 15 districts on the list who have made it to safe harbor," Frechette said.
He also indicated that Middletown schools have achieved adequate yearly progress, and that all subgroups had achieved the same.
However, he warned that the dispute with the city of Middletown had taken it's toll.
"The distractions of the last eight months have distracted from our progress," Frechette said.
Frechette indicated that it was important to stress progress in the schools to remind taxpayers that money was well spent.
"I have to say it because once we get into this budget season, some people will forget," Frechette said. "We're a showcase district in the state, and nationally, and we've done it with a zero budget."
The actual review of the budget was brief with Frechette pointing out obvious increases, and explaining that most of those were contractual, or in the case of fuel purchase, are a result of previous expenditures lowering this year's cost.
Frechette warned that the problems with the state budget was always a potential threat to ECS funding.
"Everything I've heard and everything I've read is that the ECS money will be flat-budgeted," Frechette said. "We could get a flattened ECS and still get a $4 million shortfall."
Frechette offered to answer questions, but asked the Board of Education members to review the budget carefully and to prepare questions for the next Board meeting on January 11.
4 comments:
Sounds like time for the education unions to think about pay freeze or some other offset 4 million hole is a large one, or there will be serious layoffs, no way the State kicks in the federal money
Why present the budget at ameeting no one can see at home, afraid of the public reaction?
The unions will do what they do best- throw the untenured members under the bus to protect the tenured slackers.
School unions in Middletown have taken freezes for the past few years. If M-town citizens prefer lay-offs to properly funded schools, so be it. It's going to hurt no matter what - either in higher taxes or lower property values when the underfunded schools can't make AYP. Layoffs mean bigger classes, which means your little darling won't get the attention he/she needs. But you'll do anything to save a buck, i'm sure.
I stand by my comment. Please refer to New Jersey where the union members let 800 of their own get laid off so they wouldn't have to pay about $400 bucks a year more for health insurance.
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