MINUTES
BOARD OF FINANCE & BOARD OF EDUCATION
MAY 3, 2011
A SPECIAL JOINT MEETING of the Board of Finance and Board of Education was held in the City Hall Auditorium on Tuesday, May 3, 2011.
Present were Mayor Ryan Bingham, Board of Finance members Daniel Farley, Mark Bushka, Thomas Scoville, Laurene Pesce, and Wendy Traub, Board of Education members David Oliver, Frank Rubino, Ellen Hoehne, Daniel Thibault, A.Bates Lyons, and Kenneth Traub, and Superintendent of Schools Christopher Leone, Assistant Superintendent of Schools Susan Domanico, Business Services Administrator Danielle Batchelder, Director of Human Services William Joslyn, Director of Facilities David Bascetta and City Clerk Joseph Quartiero. Board of Finance member Brian Paganini was absent.
Mayor Bingham called the meeting to order at 5:00 p.m.
PRESENTATION
Mr. Leone detailed the highlights of the Board of Education budget that was approved on March 30, 2011.
He said the Board of Education will present no more than a 0% budget increase for FY 2011 through FY 2013.
Based on escalating benefit costs, he said, Torrington Public Schools must aggressively pursue Requests For Proposal for FY2011 through FY2013. Mr. Leone said that considering the demand for academic performance and lower revenue projection, the Torrington Public Schools should collectively bargain performance incentives and benefit changes for FY2011 through FY2013. He said the local non-certified AFSCME union has agreed to a zero percent increase and our administrators became the first bargaining unit in the State of CT to not only take a zero percent increase but also introduced incentive merit pay into their contract. Mr. Leone said the fourth sustainable budget goal was that when considering the past decade, the Torrington Public Schools cannot sacrifice the following when budgeting:
- Class Size
- Materials (Including Textbooks)
- Programs (Including Athletics, Arts and Music)
- Technology Integration and Upgrades
- Capital Improvements to Facilities
He announced that, for the 11th time in twelve years, Torrington Public Schools have been named one of the best music communities in the country.
Mr. Leone explained the process followed in the creation of this budget. Each School Leader and Principal worked with parents and staff viewing wants vs. needs. A projection of enrollment expenses was created, because much of what they do is legislated. He said they determined fixed costs vs what could be deferred, integrated a 2010 capital needs facilities study, held open dialog with parents and communities and maintained a sense of reality in hard economic times.
Mr. Leone said they considered district enrollment when looking at the budget. Elementary School enrollment has decreased by 31 students over the last five years, Middle School decreased by 51, and the High School has decreased by 304 students. During this same time period Special Education has gone from 750 to a projected 875 students, but the biggest change is an increase in the Free and Reduced Lunch population occurring in every school.
Mr. Leone noted that the District is smaller with higher percentages of Special Education, English Language Learners, and those receiving Free and Reduced Lunch. It is smaller with more need, he said.
Programs were considered, he said, because it’s important to see where the money goes and what we’re doing.
Mr. Leone said the curriculum goal for Kindergarten through 12th grade over the next three years is for parents to be
able to look at where their child is, and be able to point to that document. Progress being made, he said.
Other work is being done on the Math, Science, English and Social Studies curriculums.
He noted the reduction of an Assistant Director of Special Education, the reduction of consulting fees by more than $300,000, and the reduction in outplaced students by more than $300,000.
Mr. Leone said the position of Elementary School Behaviorist has been created to continue to reduce outplacements. Also created was the position of In-District Coordinator to handle and oversee the ‘Pupil Placement Team’ (PPT) and the ‘Individual Education Plan’, (IEP) and well as an Occupational Therapist/Physical Therapist position previously consulted by outside agencies. He said they will continue to provide necessary and IEP required services and the best utilized resources for all students and ‘Talented and Gifted’ students. They will maintain English Language Learner staffing levels as determined by school enrollment, school needs and population and be flexible with what they have. Mr. Leone said they will provide enrichment to more students at more levels through curriculum and course
revisions, reduce the enrichment fund by $60,000 and are aggressively pursuing more grants. He said he expects to announce over $130,000 in new awarded grants for the district.
Mr. Leone said it is no secret our technology is antiquated. He worked closely with the City of Torrington and the Blue Ribbon Commission to create a shared services program, and share an Information Technology Director position for a savings of $46,000 in their budget. They will implement a New World financial system and lower their repair budget again due to the replacement cycle. It is cheaper to replace machines than it is to continue to fix them, he said. By installing network printers with fewer replacement cartridges $14,000 will be saved, and there will be a reduction of administrative cell phones by 50%, and faithful replacement of antiquated machines, he said.
Textbook replacement will be linked to the curriculum cycle being replaced on a three year cycle. Staff changes, consolidations and restructuring were discussed. Mr. Leone said that overall this budget calls for a net reduction of 15.2 employees. Mr. Leone listed upcoming capital expenses for all the schools for a budget of $803,000 for next year with $180,000 carried over from this year.
For FY2013, Mr. Leone said we must look to see if a referendum is possible. A Technology Committee will be formed to see how we can roll out technology and have our faculty involved. A School Capacity Committee will look at how many students we have, what we are built for, and how we utilize our space, with a full report due back to Board of Education by September 2011.
Mr. Leone expects the formation of a Joint Board of Education and Board of Finance Committee to analyze bonding capacity for the City for FY2013 -- FY2014 with a full report back to the Board by October 2011.
Mr. Leone concluded his presentation by saying the proposed budget remains flat at $64,502,431 while calling for 900,000 in decreased salary, lower professional and technical services, and operations decreased by $226,000. He explained that 74% of the budget is spent on salaries and benefits, and this year alone, there were close to a million dollars in costs associated with DCF cases. He said that 41% of their money comes from the State of CT and 53% comes from local City contributions.
Mr. Leone said they are proud of this zero percent increase in their budget, and that Torrington Public Schools are spending less on themselves, looking at long-term capital needs increasing by nearly 40%, and understanding that building and technology needs that must be addressed. The final cost for FY2013 – Fy2014 will be accomplished through a school capacity study, a bonding capacity study and ultimately public referendum.
Mr. Oliver said these are unique times. The Board of Education’s goal was to live within its means, but the needs of the District are changing quickly. He said we need to be able to adapt the educational product we deliver to our students. This is not a perfect budget, he said, but one they can live with and still produce an evolving but quality education for the City of Torrington. It’s about as responsible a budget that we can come to terms with and feel proud that they did what they needed to do for the community.
Mr. Rubino said they put together a facilities study which confirmed the needs and wants for the schools. As Board Chair he looks forward to seeing what they can do in the future.
Mr. Leone and Ms. Batchelder clarified budget figures for Mr. Farley. Mr. Farley noted the Board of Education is currently running a projected balance surplus of $288,000, based on the most recent financial report dated April 13th with $243,000 in severance. Mr. Leone explained the teachers work August to June with 26 pays. Torrington pays the balance of FY2010/2011 out of FY2011/2012. It would be very expensive, he said, to unwind this past practice of not encumbering these funds.
Mr. Farley questioned the General Fund Revenue from the State of CT. Mr. Leone said it is legislated, and as it stands today, Torrington will receive $23,933,343.
Mr. Farley complimented the Board of Education for their capital plan, saying it looks like a realistic five-year program.
Mrs. Traub asked about the capital that will be carried over into next year, if that is something that will be allowed to be carried over. Mr. Leone replied that no more than 1% may be carried over, and he will return to the Board of Finance in June or July with a request to carry over their money. Mrs. Traub also commended the Board for their capital plan, for the accomplishments made over the last year or so, the new curriculum added to the high school, and the progress made. She applauded the Board of Education coming in at a zero percent budget increase saying it is an amazing task to request level funding for a school system in this economy.
Mr. Leone said they have considered ‘doomsday scenarios’ and created alternative plans if the State funding doesn’t become available. He said it will impact class size, facilities, the central office and nothing will be left untouched.
He cautioned that lay offs and retirements don’t save enough money to make up the budget deficit that would occur without State funds.
Mr. Rubino noted that a key situation during contract negations was to look at the City’s designated “Rainy Day Fund”. He said he would like the Board of Finance to understand that although they like keeping that fund at a certain amount, it hinders negotiations.
Mrs. Traub agreed, saying it’s a double-edged sword. For our bond rating we need to keep a certain amount, but in arbitration they try to use it against you. She said there was attempted legislation to eliminate the use of the Rainy Day Fund in binding arbitration, but unfortunately it didn’t go through. Mr. Rubino said we should talk to our legislators to see that the slush fund is for emergencies only, and not to be utilized for pay raises.
Mr. Oliver said it would be interesting to compare how the size of the fund balance hampers negotiations with the benefits of bond ratings.
Mr. Rubino said the Board of Education needs to know from the Board of Finance which way their feelings are compared to what the outcome is going to be during contract negotiations.
Mr. Oliver noted that they all know how hard it is to get something out of a contract once it’s in there.
Mr. Scoville asked about the reduction of outplaced students. Mr. Leone said they are not putting students out at younger age, and once they are outplaced, it’s impossible to bring a student back. They are keeping more students in district, lowering numbers, and gradually matriculating the older students out.
He noted that Torrington is the largest city in Litchfield County with social issues, and group home issues. He said we are getting an unfair share of DCF placements lately. To help keep those numbers down, they are challenging address and residency.
Mr. Leone said for out of district placements, it costs $50,000 to get a bus to go someplace for a year, along with a placement fee of $30,000 to $225,000. If a one-on-one aide is needed, another $30,000 to $40,000 is added, adding up to a $290,000 cost per student.
He said they’ve been able to lower it by keeping students in, and not consulting as much with outside agencies, as they are not invested with Torrington. He said he will work internally with people who believe in making this district better and are not just here to collect our money and make a profit.
Mr. Scoville commended Mr. Leone and the Board of Education for that direction, saying it’s good to see some of the results.
Mr. Bushka asked for a clarification of the capital budget being carried over and about the dropout rate at the High School. Mr. Leone said we are currently enjoying our best year in a decade, but still have 30 dropouts this year. Over the last decade they had 729 dropouts, with 3100 graduated. He attributed this to his staff being very vigilant getting students to school, staying on top of students, and following them when they move to make sure they enroll.
Mrs. Pesce asked what is being done for our best and brightest to make sure they continue to be challenged. Mr. Leone said they introduced honors classes and accelerated classes at the Middle School level and are still doing Elementary Talented And Gifted.
Mrs. Pesce asked for an explanation of the difference between a behaviorist and a social worker. Mr. Leone said a behaviorist works more with students behaviors, as a lot of times students get outplaced because they have behavior issues. It’s a different type of philosophy, he said.
Mayor Bingham said this marks a historical day, but the budget process isn’t over. He said the Board of Education did a great job.
ADJOURNMENT
On a motion by Mr. Buska, seconded by Mr. Scoville, and unanimously approved, the meeting was adjourned
at 6:12 p.m.
ATTEST: JOSEPH L. QUARTIERO, CMC
CITY CLERK
Respectfully Submitted,
Carol L. Anderson, CCTC
Asst. City Clerk
MINUTES -- PUBLIC HEARING
BOARD OF FINANCE & BOARD OF EDUCATION
MAY 3, 2011
A PUBLIC HEARING was held by the Board of Finance in the City Hall Auditorium on Tuesday, May 3, 2011 regarding the proposed budget for the Torrington Public Schools for the fiscal period of July 1, 2011 to June 30, 2012.
Present were Mayor Ryan Bingham, Board of Finance members Daniel Farley, Mark Bushka, Thomas Scoville, Laurene Pesce, and Wendy Traub, Board of Education members David Oliver, Frank Rubino, Ellen Hoehne, Daniel Thibault, A.Bates Lyons, and Kenneth Traub, and Superintendent of Schools Christopher Leone, Assistant Superintendent of Schools Susan Domanico, Business Services Administrator Danielle Batchelder, Director of Human Services William Joslyn, Director of Facilities David Bascetta and City Clerk Joseph Quartiero. Board of Finance member Brian Paganini was absent.
Mayor Bingham called the public hearing to order at 6:12 p.m.
City Clerk Joseph Quartiero read the legal notice.
There was no one from the public who wished to speak.
Mayor Bingham closed the public hearing at 6:14 p.m.
ADJOURNMENT
On a motion by Mr. Farley, seconded by Mrs. Traub, and unanimously approved, the public hearing was adjourned
at 6:14 p.m.
ATTEST: JOSEPH L. QUARTIERO, CMC
CITY CLERK
Respectfully Submitted,
Carol L. Anderson, CCTC
Asst. City Clerk
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