Schools trim budget, seek compromise with FinCom

The Canton School Committee last week trimmed almost $227,000 off its proposed $38.3 million budget in a show of good faith to their colleagues on the Finance Committee. The two boards were due to meet this week to further discuss the budget.

Despite better than expected projections from the town’s Revenue Forecast Committee, the FinCom has asked both the school and municipal sides to limit their operating budget increases to 4 percent each in FY 2017. The School Committee’s original proposal, submitted in January, represented a 5.64 percent increase, while the Board of Selectmen recently approved a near 6 percent increase.

The cuts made by the School Committee on Thursday evening, March 10, eliminates funding for a long-term building and educational study; additional teaching positions at the Galvin Middle School; tech support and instructional coaches at the elementary schools; and additional professional development programs.

Keeping the budget to a 4 percent increase would also require the schools to forego an additional .5 special education teacher, a GMS guidance counselor, more teachers at CHS, a home interventionist at CHS, math instructional support at GMS, 1.5 elementary technology teachers, and a .5 district-wide nurse.

While recognizing the need for compromise, the committee did seem inclined to preserve some of the social and emotional supports proposed for the district, including the additional guidance counselor, home school interventionist, and school nurse positions.

The committee recently reviewed the findings of a Youth Risk Behavior Survey that showed an increase in the misuse of drugs and suicidal thoughts among Canton middle and high school students.

Interim School Superintendent Jen Henderson said the home school interventionist would work with families whose children have significant behavioral or social/emotional issues and intervene with students and families on attendance and tardiness issues.

In other financial news, School Business Manager Barry Nectow reported that the additional Chapter 70 state aid that Canton was expected to receive for full-day kindergarten in FY18 and beyond has been reduced from $600,000 to $250,000; however, Nectow said that figure could increase during budget deliberations in the House and Senate.

Tuition-free, full-day kindergarten, which is up for consideration at the May town meeting, would cost the town an estimated $700,000 in the first year of the program. But the reduction in state aid means that for now, the School Committee would have to come up with $500,000 in the second year to maintain the program, rather than the $150,000 that was originally anticipated.

Despite this potential setback, school officials are still very much in support of full-day kindergarten and are expected to seek a free cash transfer at town meeting in order to launch the program in the fall …

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Posted by Mike Berger on Mar 18 2016. Filed under News, Schools. Both comments and pings are currently closed.