2011-2012 SCHOOL DISTRICT BUDGET DRAFT

• Supportive documentation for budget found in attachments below.

“AT A GLANCE”

Budget Goals

• “Restore” the Quality of Education: Provide all students with a comprehensive curriculum and extracurricular program
• Support our Strategic Plan Objectives, Reforms, and Innovation
• Maintain our distinction of “high performing” in some areas and address those areas considered “deficient”
• Institute changes to comply with the New Rhode Island Diploma System and the BEP
• Ensure our school facilities as clean, safe, and well- maintained.

Strategic Plan Objectives

• To improve student achievement in Mathematics and English/Language Arts.
• To improve curriculum through an on-going process of planning, design, implementation, and evaluation.
• To develop a process that keeps all stakeholders informed and involved in vital educational issues.
• To provide and maintain district-wide infrastructure / technology to prepare students for a global community.
• To implement the requirements of the RI Regents Regulations for High Schools.

Please keep in mind that the last two years of inadequate school department funding appropriation decisions have placed the school department in a precarious situation of:

a) Being in deficit
b) Not being compliant with many Basic Education Plan [BEP] elements
c) Forcing the continuation of reducing operational budgets and programs such as athletics and music, jeopardizing such things as maintenance of facilities, current textbooks, curriculum development, etc., while maintaining the status of being next to last in per pupil spending throughout the state
d) Possibly being forced to use what little fund balance may exist to fund a deficit.

The FY 12 school department budget draft was presented over two nights, January 10 and 11, 2011, to the School Committee for its review and feedback. Also present during those evenings were Mrs. Alves, Town Council, Mrs. Bartomioli and Ms. Vallee of the Budget Committee. Mrs. Hamilton, Town Administrator, and Mr. Silvia, Town Finance Director, were able to attend on separate evenings. Their attendance was greatly appreciated.

The budget draft does not address:

1) The obvious underfunding of the school budget for at least the last two years.
2) Increase in contract/salaries.
3) Four years of reduced building-based operational budgets {supplies, materials, texts, etc.}
4) The lack of any funds for textbooks at the high school level as a result of past budget reductions.
5) Fifteen years of level funding coaches’ stipends.
6) All areas of non-compliance with the BEP.

The budget draft does reflect / address the following:

1) The loss of ARRA Stimulus funds.
2) “0”-based budgeting from all departments.
3) Outstanding commitment from the administrative team to be as fiscally frugal as possible.
4) “Forced” deficit/reduction areas from FY 11 such as athletics, facilities, etc.
5) Some “non-compliant” areas [not all] of the BEP.
6) Technology support and technology integration in the classroom. This has been requested for several years.
7) Continued effort towards our Strategic Plan objectives.
8) Substantial increase in busing and tuition – public school, charter, special education - costs.
9) Restoration of the “facilities” budget to ensure no further “deterioration’ of our physical plants and school sites.
10) The improvements initiated in special education organization and service delivery to children.

As we go forward, please keep in mind that:

• Rhode Island remains the only state in the nation that has not implemented a state funding formula for state aid for education to communities. This results in substantial inequities in municipal and state funding for local education among Rhode Island municipalities. Implementation was “postponed” from last July 1, 2010 to a date uncertain.
• The school department must meet an extraordinary number of state and federal mandates – a few examples are special education state and federal mandates and regulations, high school / middle school reform with additional requirements for programming and graduation, Department of Health regulations requiring service contracts for our public drinking water, waste systems, annual [2 per year] food service area inspections, OSHA health/hazard inspections and regulations, asbestos abatement plan, fire code upgrades, public building regulations often requiring service contracts for fire alarm systems, etc.