“It was a whirlwind,” Principal Rene Martin said of the school year.
School is out for summer, but not for the board who met on June 5 to hear reports and approve the FY19 budget, the Language Arts curriculum, hires for next year, and policy clarifications.
The fiscal year 2019 budget was approved unanimously, though interim superintendent Rich Carlson said that the numbers may be revised in the future due to the potential addition of an intensive student and additional funds from the Borough.
A lot of work went in to cut costs since last year, said Carlson, including restructuring an administrative staff position, re-bidding telecommunications and audit services, and reorganizing support staff. The school will spend $73,000 less next year compared to this year. Next year’s budget includes a $154,000 loss in revenue due to anticipated enrollment decreases and about $73,000 in federal reimbursements. Those losses will cause the school to spend over-budget by about $135,000.
“It is important to understand that a large part of the projected enrollment decrease is due to a large exiting senior class compared to a small incoming kindergarten class,” Carlson said, “Variations in enrollments are fairly normal and generally balance out over time.”
The Language Arts curriculum was approved and will also help cut costs. It was significantly restructured to allow more teacher flexibility and the purchase of fewer textbooks.
Early data on student progress in the school “looks very solid, above national norms,” Martin said. Of the 70 students who received reading intervention services in K-5, “50 percent made more-than-expected growth over the course of the school year.” More thorough data and analysis will come in August, after assessment results are returned in July.
The board expressed gratitude for the hard work put in by superintendent Carlson, principal Renee Martin, and athletic director Tiana Taylor, among others.
The board penciled in a meeting for July 8 to prepare for the incoming superintendent, Roy Getchell.
The board hired Getchell in February.