Superintendent's Blog

The BOE proposed a budget that was a .39% increase over the current 2012-13 education budget.

The BOF reduced the BOE request for a .39% increase over last year to a -.03% decrease from last year, translating to a reduction of $190k from what the BOE requested.

Yes, per the charter, if at least 2% of the electorate is in attendance at the ATBM, a vote approved by a majority of those present may be taken to reduce the education budget.

It can be reduced to the limit permitted by the minimum budget requirements of state law or in this case a reduction of approximately $180k in addition to the already established reduction of $190k.

No, per the charter, it cannot be increased.

The budgets approved at the ATBM – Education Budget, Selectmen’s Budget, and Capital Improvement Budget.

The district administrative team is currently reviewing each line item account to determine a mitigation strategy to recommend to the BOE.  The following list represents some of the areas of consideration for addressing this budget reduction:

• Deferral of some maintenance projects
• Reduction of after-school enrichment opportunities
• Increase in student fees
• Reduction in book accounts
• Deferral of both facility and school equipment requests
• Deferral of furniture replacement requests by schools
• Reduction of scope of academic programs
• Reduction in professional development
• Reduction of overtime accounts
• Reduction of technology requests by schools

In a very similar manner, each line item of the budget would be scrutinized and prioritized for reductions to address the final total reduction to the education budget beyond that $190k.

The BOE will hold a special meeting on May 6, at 7:00 p.m. in the Middle School Library Resource Center to address this issue.  Several days in advance of the meeting, the recommended cuts by the administrative team will also be shared with families to provide an opportunity for feedback before any final decisions are made.

The Board of Education has been reviewing the current enrollments and projected enrollments of the district for the next 10 years to anticipate its facilities needs over time.  Hurlbutt Elementary School once housed 800+ students and currently is home to fewer than 450 students.  Enrollments are projected to decline further over the next few years, also permitting the district the option in 2015-16 of moving grade 2 to the Weston Intermediate School.  Reviewing all of these data, and working collaboratively with the Town, the Board of Education has been evaluating the feasibility of sharing space in the North House of Hurlbutt with the Town over the next few years, and depending upon enrollment, beyond that.

The next step in this process would be for the Board of Education to vote to approve the negotiation of a MOU with the Town for use of the first floor of the North House during 2013-14.  At that point the Town would need to review what approval and funding processes it would need to complete to move forward the use of the space, as well as work with the Board to define terms of a Memorandum of Understanding.

Assuming that the Board authorizes the use of the space and that the Town intends to move forward with the use of the space, the Board of Education would craft a Memorandum of Understanding with the Town clearly outlining:

• the term of usage;
• acceptable uses of the building that do not disrupt the educational environment of Hurlbutt;
• any fees and/or utilities payments that the Town may be required to pay the District for the use of the space; and
• all services that would be provided by the BOE to maintain the building, e.g. snow plowing.

This MOU would articulate the business arrangement for use of the space by the Town.  Yes, the Board does have the right to prescribe how the space may be used.  The Board is not considering giving this space to the Town on a permanent basis, but sharing it at this time so that it can remain flexible in the event enrollment shifts in the future.  It is the statutory responsibility of the Board of Education to provide adequate space for the educational program of the students enrolled in our system.   This MOU would be reviewed each year and updated appropriately.  The Board may opt to offer the space for a set number of years, but still review the MOU annually as enrollment for future classes is monitored.

The challenge of this arrangement is that the Board needs flexibility to withdraw from this arrangement if future needs warrant using that space for educational purposes, while the Town seeks a long-term commitment if it were to invest resources into the structure to retrofit the space for adult use.