May 18, 2004

Thank You Scotia-Glenville!

The $37.348 million budget for the 2004-05 school year was approved by the community tonight. The $298,499 bus and equipment purchase plan was also approved. Margaret Smith and Joseph Crisafulli were elected to the Board of Education.

Here are the vote totals:

Budget:
Yes: 1,592 (57.5%)
No: 1,141 (42.5%)

Bus and equipment purchase:
Yes: 1,635 (59.1%)
No: 1,004 (40.9%)

Candidates for the Board of Education:
Margaret Smith, 1,856 (elected to a third term)
Joseph Crisafulli, 1,838 (elected to a first term)
Jerry Moore, 1,073

Voter turnout: 2,766

"I want to thank the members of the Scotia-Glenville school community for their support during another difficult budget year," said Superintendent Michael J. Marcelle. "I look forward to a great 2004-05 school year."

Remember to vote on May 18!

Voting will be held from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. at the Senior High School gym. To vote, you must be 18 years old, a resident of the community for 30 days and be registered with the county Board of Elections.

Here's an overview of the budget:

$37,348,832 budget for the 2004-05 school year.

The budget would increase the tax rate by an estimated 5.14% before any savings from the state's STAR property tax reduction program. If town property assessments or state aid are higher than expected, that would also be used to reduce the tax rate increase.

The current tax rate of $26.14 per $1,000 of assessed value would increase by 5.14% to an estimated $27.48 per $1,000 of assessed value.

The typical home with a $100,000 assessment would see their school taxes rise by $11.19 per month or $134.30 per year, again before savings from the state's STAR property tax reduction program.

The community will also:

• Consider a $298,499 proposition to buy three small buses, two Suburbans, a courier van and two large lawn mowers for the buildings and grounds department. This proposal would have no impact on the 2004-05 tax rate
  
• Select two Board of Education candidates: Joseph Crisafulli, Jerry Moore or Margaret Smith

Here is the budget newsletter that was mailed to the 8,100 homes in the community.

May 7, 2004

Newsletters detailing the budget were mailed to every home in the district. If you did not receive one, call 386-4343. Here is a pdf of the budget newsletter.

May 6, 2004

These two events related to the 2004-05 budget will be held this Wednesday, May 6, at the Middle School:

7 p.m.: Public hearing on the proposed 2004-05 budget

7:30 p.m., PTA Council's Meet the Candidates' Night

Voting on the budget will be held from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Tuesday, May 18, at the Senior High School.

April 21, 2004

Here is an article about the budget that was in the Daily Gazette on Wednesday, April 21.

April 19, 2004

On Monday, April 19, the Board of Education approved a budget of $37,348,832 for the 2004-05 school year.

The budget would increase the tax rate by 5.14% for bills mailed in September by the town. That is before any savings from the state's STAR tax reduction program. If town property assessments or state aid are higher than expected, that would also be used to reduce the tax rate increase.

The current tax rate of $26.14 per $1,000 of assessed value would increase to an estimated $27.48 per $1,000 of assessed value.

The typical home with a $100,000 assessment would see their school taxes rise by $11.19 per month or 134.30 per year.

Here is a fact sheet with information about reductions in the budget, STAR savings and the bus and vehicle purchase proposal about the budget in pdf format.

The spending plan represents a 5.4% or $1.9 million spending increase over the current budget.

Board members reduced the superintendent's March 1 budget by $718,460 and had tightened up spending estimates for workman's compenstation and occupational and physical therapy.

April 19, 2004

Three candidates are seeking seats on the Board of Education in the May 18 vote. They are Joseph Crisafulli, Jerry Moore and Margaret Smith. Here is more information about them.

April 12, 2004

A yellow postcard was mailed to the 8,100 addresses in the district summarizing the budget reductions to date. Here is the postcard in a pdf format. If you do not receive one, please let us know by emailing rhanlon@sgcsd.net.

April 5, 2004

The Board of Education reviewed new informaton that showed it had reduced spending by about $650,000 since early March. Revenues were also increased in the areas of state aid and town tax assessments to reflect new information. The reductions and increase revenue brought the proposed tax increase down to 6 percent. Here is the handout from the meeting. If you want to download it, here it is in Microsoft Excel.

The board on April 5 decided to keep several programs that were to be considered for reductions or elimination. The board decided to provide a one hour per day monitor for children after school at the middle school, offer the Young Scholars Program (12 of 33 grade 3 students who took a qualifying test are eligible next year) and will keep the Fitness Center supervisor position.

The board will next meet on April 19, 7 p.m., at the Middle School. On that evening, the board must make decisions in a few areas: administration and clerical reductions, GOAL and GED programs at the high school, business education programs at the high school, cleaners and elementary realignment to balance class sizes between schools.

The board expects to adopt a budget that evening.

March 29, 2004

The board continued its review of the 2004-05 budget and agreed agreed to keep the Transitional Kindergarten program, replace two retiring elementary librarians, provide small increases for supplies, equipment, and professional development and make reductions in CORE subjects in grade 8 and in the technology program at the Middle School.

March 22, 2004

The Board of Education continued its review of the proposed 2004-05 budget, including additional reductions. Here is the handout from the meeting. If you want to download that document in Microsoft Excel, it is here.

The board also agreed to place a bus and equipment purchase proposal on the ballot May 18. More information about that is here.

The board also scheduled a Saturday, April 3, work session to discuss the 2004-05 budget. It will be held from 1 to 4 p.m. at the District Office and is open to the public. This is in addition to the already scheduled community forums at 7 p.m. on Mondays March 29 and April 5 at the Middle School. Budget adoption is scheduled for April 19. The community vote is 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Tuesday, May 18.

March 17, 2004

This article appeared in the Daily Gazette about the March 15 Board of Education meeting.

March 16, 2004

Here is a pdf of the post card that was received in homes on March 16.

March 15, 2004
The administration presented $1 million in reductions to the Board of Education.

Here are some the proposed reductions:
• Most new additions from the Long Range Plan were eliminated. As well, supplies, equipment and professional development would be cut back to this year's levels. The three special education classes proposed for Glendaal, the MS and HS are still in the budget because they would SAVE the district money over sending the children to BOCES or a private program;

• Summer curriculum work, intramural sports, club advisors (gr. 6-12), modified sports, elementary summer school and the proposed Young Scholars program would be eliminated.

• Among staffing, the fitness center supervisor, 6.0 FTE K-12 positions, 0.4 FTE dean of students at the Middle School, 2.0 FTE library media specialists and 1.0 FTE "floating" teaching position would be cut. As well, a full-time OT/PT position and proposed half-time positions in guidance and a teaching assistant (the last two for the proposed MSP and HS Life Skills programs) and 2.0 proposed cleaners would also be eliminated.

• Afterschool bus runs and the mid-day bus runs would be cut from transportation. That would effectively create a full-day kindergarten program, a change from the current transitional kindergarten program in place for the past few years.

Here is the summary of the reductions from the meeting. Download it here in Microsoft Excel.

Here is the rationale behind the reductions. Download it here in Microsoft Word.

Here is the press release sent to the local media after the meeting.

At the Monday, March 15 board meeting, the administration was also asked to explore these areas in an effort to cut spending:
• Class sizes in grades K-5;
• GOAL/GED program at the high school;
• Clerical services;
• Administrative reductions, both instructional and non-instructional.

The administration will return on Monday, March 22, at 7 p.m. at the Middle School to discuss further reductions.

March 8, 2004
Board of Education directs administration to reduce the proposed spending increase by $1 million; would bring tax increase to 6%

The Board of Education asked Superintendent Michael J. Marcelle to slice 6 percent from the estimated 12.4 percent tax increase proposed in the $38.06 million preliminary budget.

Marcelle plans to meet with administrators this week to hammer out some of the reductions being requested by the Board of Education. As well, District Treasurer Dorothy Nolie will attempt to firm up revenues from town assessments and state aid.

Marcelle and adminisrators will meet this week to hammer out ideas to bring spending down by $1 million.

In the face of proposed state aid cuts, the board cut $1 million from spending last year to bring the tax increase down to 8.8 percent.

The board will hold a community forum next Monday, March 15, at 7 p.m. at the Middle School. At that time, Marcelle will review what levels of cuts would be needed to reduce the expenditure increase by $1 million.

Board of Education asks administration to cut $1 million from proposed budget

March 1, 2004
Preliminary budget presentation: March 1, 2004

Superintendent Michael J. Marcelle presented the preliminary $38.06 million budget to the Board of Education on March 1. The proposal, the first step in a seven-week process, projects a spending increase of $2.6 million or 7.5%.

Assuming no increase in state aid, property assessments in the town or other sources of income, the resulting tax increase would be 12.4%.

That figure would most likely be reduced as potential income for the district becomes more clear.

Last year, for example, the preliminary budget called for a tax increase of 18-20%; after $1 million in cuts and a partial restoration of proposed state aid cuts, final tax rates were increased by 8.8% before savings through the state's STAR program.

Here is Marcelle's presentation (in Microsoft Powerpoint) to the Board of Education. You can download it here. Here is a newspaper article about the presentation.

The majority of the proposed increases for 2004-05 are in three areas:

• Employee benefits (state-required employee and teacher retirement contributions, health and dental insurance, Social Security and workers' compensation insurance), an increase of $1.114 million or 18.8%.

• Instruction (staff development, instructional salaries, three new proposed special education life skills classes, supplies, equipment, distance learning, technology and special education), an increase of $994,440 or 4.7%.

• Central services (supplies, equipment, utilities, maintenance and buildings and grounds), an increase of $402,033 or 7%.

All area schools districts are facing the same type of increases, as are local governments like towns, villages, cities and counties.

The Board of Education will sponsor several community forums on the proposed budget. They are scheduled for 7 p.m. at the Middle School auditorium on the following Mondays: March 8, 15, 22, 29 and April 5.

The board expects to adopt a budget by April 19. The formal public hearing on the budget is set for Wednesday, May 5, at 7 p.m. at the Middle School. Voting will be held from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. at the Senior High School gym on Tuesday, May 18.

Here is a link to information about the 2003-04 budget process and adoption by the community in June 2003.