Chappaqua School Budget Roundup: Middle School Sports Cuts, Put Backs for Greeley Classes

Budget Items

Some Modified Sports Teams May Get the Ax

Students at Seven Bridges and Bell middle schools could be without boys and girls lacrosse teams next year, under the athletics section of the proposed budget. A middle school bowling team would also be eliminated. In additon, a middle school bowling team is slated to be eliminated. These cuts, combined with cuts in areas such as ice hockey expenses, will total $75,000 in savings.

Steve Young, the athletic director, said that there are efforts to provide similar experiences in New Castle town recreation teams. For example, the town has been offered use of district fields starting at 3 p.m. for lacrosse practice. There is also an effort to get a town replacement for the bowling team.

Manny Areces, a parent in the district, expressed concern that some sports were not be funded fairly, with some teams getting more resources than others. He called for having teams with fewer coaches and players, in returning freeing up resources to fund other teams.

More Put Backs Proposed for Greeley Classes

With more accurate course selection data available, Horace Greeley High School Principal Andrew Selesnick proposed putting back some course sections that were originally considered for elimination, thereby leading to average section increases that are not as dramatic as what was proposed in the original budget version, which was unveiled on Feb. 15.

The new numbers, which are still tentative because of ongoing changes in student course requests, call for a net reduction of 10 sections from this year, compared to 25 in the Feb. 15 proposal and 14 in a March 15 update. This would also result in puting back more teaching positions, leading to a net reduction of just 1.6 full-time equivalent employees (FTE's). Several subjects - Math, Science, Foreign Language and Physical Education - call for adding back a section in each area, which others keeping the same sections as proposed on March 15. In some cases this would lead to lower average class sizes, although some subjects have high averages based on newer course request data. For more details on the proposed put backs, see the attached PDF file.

Another proposal involves restoring a 0.4 FTE at the middle school level for music. According to Lyn McKay, deputy superintendent for curriculum and instruction - and the future superintendent for next year - it will be one person teaching students at both middle schools. It will be a part-time position because of declining participation at Bell, she explained. This person will be a new hire, replacing a full-time employee who is retiring.

Jeff Mulholland, a member of the group New Castle Coalition for Educational Excellence (NCCFEE), which calls for restoring cuts to teaching positions, called Selesnick's presentation "a very helpful analysis." However, he was concerned that the current budget cycle could play out again in future years, with a creep up in class sizes.

Selesnick explained that he is comfortable with the class sizes as proposed in comparison to previous years, and that they change depending on where sections are placed.

Another person in the district, who at a previous meeting asked for a chart showing specific high school classes that have less than 15 students - Selesnick presented it before he spoke - felt that some of the smaller classes could be extraneous and not needed. Both Selesnick and school board presidenrt Janet Benton responded that one of the district's strengths is in the electives it has been able to offer, and each lamented what will be a diminishing ability to do so next year, based on a call for budgetary efficency.

Reserves, 5-Year Projections Discussed

Another notable item came in the form of future projections for the district's expenses and money on hand, both for the coming year and within the next five years.

John Chow, assistant superintendent for business, made a presentation showing what the district could have for fund balance reserves. While most are designated for specific uses, there is a portion that is unappropriated - it is believed that this year's amount could be $6.5 million - and can be used as backup funding. Benton, responding to a question about the nature of the fund balance, compared it to a savings account.

The district will likely apply some of its fund balance to keep down its tax levy increase, although the amount has not yet been decided.

Later on, Chow did a presentation highlighting the projected expenses that the district could face between now and 2017. The picture looks grim, which factors such as higher pension contributions and employee costs leading to a possible cumulative expenditure increase of nearly 24 percent in a worst-case scenario, and about 12.5 percent in a best-case fiscal scenario.

Board member Alyson Kiesel was alarmed by the numbers, saying that the cost is “just to keep our heads above water.”

Benton explained that the rising costs don't necessarily mean the district is constrained from trying new programs, but that doing so could come at the expense of maintaining others.

Before Tuesday's school board meeting, people interested in running for the Board of Education met with PTA members and former board members to learn about the process of getting on the ballot and what the elected office entails.

The two former members, Jay Shapiro and Lisa Davis, advised the potential candidates, Arthur Fried - a member of the NCCFEE - and David Potack. Their advise covered the ins and outs of launching a campaign, with tips included gathering ballot signatures at the train station, to holding community coffees.

More notably was their advice on what the job entails. Words of advice ranged from how to conduct duties while complying with sunshine laws, to understanding the board's role in personnel matters (delegating to the superintendent was a notable point in that area), to the long hours the job will entail. Despite the burden of being a board member, positives, like being able to preside at Greeley's graduation - "special, magic moments" as Davis called such events - were also touted.

The candidate petitions is April 18 at 5 p.m.