The East Williston Board of Education presented a $51.6 million budget 2011-2012 school budget last Wednesday that cut $356,722 in personnel costs from the budget presented by Superintendent of Schools Lorna Lewis, and considered a wide number of other cuts.
The decrease was base on the elimination of one teaching position at The Wheatley School and another at the North Side School and two teaching assistants due to continuing enrollment declines, as well as the retirement of two teachers who will be replaced by instructors at entry level salaries.
The revised budget would represent a 2.22 percent increase over the 2010-2011 school budget and require an increase in the real property tax levy of 5.51 percent.
School board members also considered cuts of $125,203 for extra curricular clubs, $45,900 for the Wheatley Summer Research Program, $19,000 for theatrical productions and $28,200 for the Long Island Philharmonic program.
Students rose to defend the programs, including Sonya Prassad, who represented Wheatley as an Intel finalist in its Talent Search competition earlier this year and is presenting her project at the upcoming International Intel Science and Engineering Fair.
“It’s so different with hands-on learning,” said Prassad, adding that she doubts she would have developed an affinity for laboratory research without the opportunity to work outside the classroom in the summer research program.
Program director Paul Paino said the summer research program is “cutting-edge science” to which many students “have no other point of entry.”
Speaking up for the music programs, Wheatley student Max Woods said “working with members of a professional orchestra is an experience not every music student gets” and said he’s hoping to play with the Long Island. Philharmonic in his senior year.
Among other possible cuts is a $38,000 reduction in the technology budget, based on a cost reduction for software and buying one Computer on Wheels for the North Side School instead of two. A purchase of 10 new Dell Computers, an estimated cost of $10,000 to $12,000 according to district science and tech guru David Casamento, will be taken out of this year’s budget.
School board members also questioned the $38,000 purchase of new permanent bleachers for the track field and $50,000 in capital expenses to make more parking space at Wheatley on hold while patching potholes there.
When Board member David Keefe said he was “not comfortable” with reducing the capital budget, Board member Robert Fallorino pointed out that the district has $685,000 in reserves.
Lewis said the parking lot improvements could be paid for out of reserves, but Posner called that “irresponsible.”
Fallorino immediately reacted, calling the practice “irresponsible” is an “inappropriate term.”
“We’re looking at this as a totality. This has to be a budget addressed in terms of what can be done,” Fallorino said.
The board also considered cutting $48,316 in bus service for extracurricular activities.
Board Vice President Robert Freier said he has monitored late bus usage at Wheatley occasionally, observing only one or two students taking late buses on some days.
“My feeling is, I’d rather save programs for kids to attend this school instead of spending money on this budget line. Car-pooling can be worked out,” Freier said.
The final working draft for the evening showed a total budget of $51,478,559, reflecting a 1.96 percent increase over the current year, with a 5.23 percent tax levy.
Larry Posner of the district’s Financial Advisory Committee recommended that the school board allocate more funds to defray the cost of the Employee Retirement System, which will rise by nearly 16 percent this year.
“What we’re gambling with is a 2 percent tax cap and ERS continuing to rise. That 2 percent cap is going to be a noose around the neck,” Posner said.
Posner said pushing the problem three or four years away is “the American way to do it,” but he said, “it isn’t the most prudent thing to do financially.” He said that committing funds for the Employee Retirement System would, in effect, be giving money back to the taxpayers.
Howard Siegler, chairman of the resident’s Capital Facilities Administration Committee, said the district should be committing a lot more money for building maintenance. He said permitting buildings to fall into disrepair would be “financially imprudent.”
As it considers these issues, the school district is projecting a loss of $324,000 in state aid, although school Board President Mark Kamberg noted the district might recover 1 percent or 2 percent of that money.
“I’m putting my taxpayer apples in one of three baskets,” said Board member Barbara Slone. “I want to put it in the best place to control making cuts to programming.”
