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Budget Subcommittee of the Arlington School Committee
DRAFT Minutes for Meeting of Jan. 11, 2010, 5:00 p.m., Office of the Interim Superintendent
Attendees
Committee Members
Present: Joseph A. Curro, Jr., Chair
Cindy Starks
Ronald Spangler
Administration: Interim Superintendent Kathleen Bodie
Chief Financial Officer Diane Fisk Johnson
Principal Charles Skidmore
Others: Richard Fanning, Finance Committee
Juli Brazile
Call to Order
The meeting was called to order at 5:10 p.m.
Public Participation
There was no public participation during this segment of the meeting.
Review of Minutes
On a motion of Dr. Spangler, seconded by Ms. Starks, the minutes of December 14, 2009 were adopted by a vote 30, following amendments.
Budget Update
Dr. Bodie and Ms. Johnson reported a projected drop in revenue for FY2011 of approximately 10%. They explained that expenses were generally growing at a rate of 5-6%. They explained how many of the assumptions that had been made in the crafting of the FY2010 budget proved to be overly optimistic. For example, grant revenue fell by 12%, and circuit breaker reimbursements dipped by $500,000.
Dr. Bodie said that in light of the FY2010 experience, her judgment was that it would be better to start the budgeting process with a set of conservative assumptions and large projected gaps, adding back in if news was more hopeful.
Dr. Bodie explained that the budgeted amount of circuit breaker funds for FY2010; for FY2011, she is working against the possibility that this would be $0. ARRA federal stimulus money is also assumed to be $0, with IDEA up in the air and also potentially zeroed out.
Dr. Bodie explained that if we had not had 20 students come back into the District to participate in our new programs for children with special needs, we would be even further in the hole.
In the budget assumptions presented, there was discussion of the need to plan for unanticipated maintenance items. These have traditionally been underbudgeted, resulting in the need to address them from other areas of the budget.
This led to a brief discussion of the role of the capital budget. Dr. Bodie indicated that indications are that needed improvements at the Stratton Elementary School and a new bus appeared slated for inclusion this year.
In a discussion of offsets, it was noted that this year the District accepted 19 LABBB students, of whom 18 paid.
Dr. Bodie and Ms. Johnson noted that athletics currently take $300,000 out of the operating budget and that to make them self-sustaining would require a fee of $525 per student per sport with no family cap. There was a discussion of the components of athletic costs, as well as the current efforts to look into the potential of outdoor advertising at sporting events.
Subcommittee members discussed an analysis from the summer of 2008 that looked at the percentage of specific activity costs that are covered by fees.
In reference to special education costs and the circuit breaker reimbursement, Dr. Bodie noted the existence of a special education revolving fund, which has been depleted.
The Town contribution to the budget is projected to be around $36,725,000 for FY2011. In discussing the split in costs between the Town and the School Department, it was noted that there will be roughly 300 more kids in the system over the next five years and that probably 20% of them will require special education services.
Dr. Bodie distributed a sheet outlining some potential reductions and their impact. In answer to questions about the disproportionately small reduction in administrative costs, she emphasized the need for administrative support when there are so many staff cuts. Dr. Bodie also noted the large secretarial cuts that were endured last year.
Dr. Bodie mentioned that the special education coordinated review was slated to start next year. Mr. Curro requested that the possibility of deferring this be pursued.
There was discussion of the potential for longer periods and fewer electives at the middle school, which raises its own host of problems around where to put kids.
Mr. Skidmore talked about high school scheduling challenges and how one of the ways to address the requirement of 990 hours of learning time would be to recognize the hours devoted to selected projects.
On the issue of stipends, there was a suggestion to essentially start with a blank slate and build in those stipends deemed most necessary. Total stipends total approximately $200,000.
On the issue of METCO, it was noted that for the current fiscal year there is a need to close a $70,000 gap, and that another big cut is projected for the coming year.
There was discussion of the trajectory of the budget since 2003/2004 and the difficulty of recovering from that time. Members asked whether the School Committee actually needed to vote a bottom line budget, as has been past practice.
Advertising as Potential Revenue Source
There was brief discussion of legal, policy, and zoning aspects of outdoor advertising as a revenue source at athletic events. After some discussion, there was a consensus that Mr. Curro would make a motion at the full School Committee meeting to authorize Dr. Bodie and Ms. Johnson to work with Town Counsel and the Director of Planning and Community Development on a warrant article for Town Meeting that would allow the proposed outdoor advertising to take place.
Other Business
There was no other business.
Adjournment
On motion of Ms. Starks, seconded by Dr. Spangler, the meeting was adjourned at 6:50 p.m. by unanimous vote.
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The School Committee's Superintendent Search Committee has chosen eight candidates for screening interviews. The names are not public, and interviews will be held in private.
Boston.com has expanded its successful hyperlocal network of Web sites, Your Town, to two more Massachusetts communities -- Arlington and Dedham. See www.boston.com/yourtown/arlington/.
YourArlington.com is an experiment in community journalism dedicated to reporting news about Arlington, Mass., and the Arlington-related views of its residents. The experiment not unique but is part of a nationwide movement called "citizen journalism." The phrase gained currency through We the Media, a 2004 book by Dan Gillmor. This kind of journalism encourages members of a community to write about that community. The writing may be reporting, or it may be opinion.
