Budget account by account (round 2)

Starting with school nurses and posting as we go
Monfredo motion to approve
approved


personal services
O'Connell: principal mentor program part of personal services: not here?
Boone: not in FY15 either
O'Connell: what is admin doing?
Boone: network of principal support system
make sure they're connected with professional development
security guards: level funded
O'Connell asks if it should be revisit or expanded
Allen: that is one of the items that is in the RFP for school security assessment
O'Connell then we'll get a recommendation
Novick: curious if we need the security guards at all
39% decrease in special education expenses due to coming back in house
are we required to use Teachpoint?
Rodrigues: (not exactly) cataloging goals of teachers and the PD necessary to support them
Biancheria: partnerships?
Boone: Children's Friend no longer receiving grant to provide School-aged mothers program
United Way providing services this year; waiting to hear if they have a grant for next year
Biancheria: is there a night shift of security at Creamer?
Allen: yes, thus not listed under day program costs
translation: in different areas of the budget
have we continued to work with new ideas as others across the country?
Rodrigues: yes, we have
continue to absorb more and more families whose first language is not English
all information that goes home has to be translated into seven languages
IEPs into any language that a family speaks
large database of documents reused
have been working with community on translating and communicating with families
different ways that we can provide the services while not being redundant moving forward
Biancheria: have we discussed with other districts how they're handling it?
Rodrigues: yes, the reverse: Springfield has looked to us
Boston, Springfield, us largest in the network dealing with the issue
approve

administrative clerical salaries
O'Connell: change in system administration amount
Allen: all positions in account are contractually approved increases, longevity, step increase
O'Connell: is that due to upgrade in positions in superintendent offices?
Boone: there is no upgrade in those positions
O'Connell: change in salaries structure
Allen: same salary scheduled
No change
approve

non-instructional support
Biancheria: information system, concern that we have an additional 11.5 positions under various grants
Allen: no change in the number of positions in IT position
Boone: last year you asked for a specific report for internship opportunities
internships saves us in terms of the total salary piece
grant opportunity to fill the gap
Biancheria: motion to how we complete the department
have a number of employees that are being paid under grants
Allen: report that compares this year versus last year
approved

support overtime
O'Connell: in some accounts we've increased 2%; in this one, 5%
Allen: in other accounts there is vacancy or attritition to offset; there is none here
closer to align with actual expenditures
O'Connell: do you still anticipate underspending
Allen: no, traditionally underfunded
Monfredo: appears that this item is underfunded, in need of additional clerical help
administration needs to consider going forward
approve

administrative salaries
O'Connell: motion to reduce account by $200,000
message to reduce number of central adminstration
significant number of people under other accounts...number is significantly
"would be a maximum of two people"
Monfredo: believe Mr. O'Connell's heart is the right place
281 out of 320 district
nearly all district spend more
Petty: thought we were just talking about how to support principals, now you want to take them away?
roll call: fails, 5-2
Biancheria:
approve

Misc Ed OM
Biancheria looking for $25,000 to move $25,000 from Facilities OM
was approved at last discussion
"I think that we've had a very long year...would like to see $100,000 under school safety so we can do what we can prior to having a large report from an outside company"
asks to open the item again to move the money
Foley: think we're all on the same page in terms of our buildings
we talked about building repair dollars being insufficient last time
"I don't know that we gain a whole lot by moving $25,000 from one account to the other"
safety systems like fire alarms
prefer to keep it as it is
more than $25,000 that will be used over the summertime
O'Connell: support Biancheria's motion
"modest sum"
"drop in the bucket compared to what we will need to spend"
Petty: is $75,000 enough to what's needed?
Allen: it's a 50% increase from this year
not sure if I followed the direction of the discussion correctly: if the intent is simply move money from one to the other...
Petty: the money is there if needed
Bianchera; looking to have the hundred under school safety to provide the walkie talkies that are necessary
instead of blanket hope that it will go there
Boone: can provide to School Committee a report on support provided to security
Novick: $25000 per building from this account for repair: that isn't enough to keep up already
also provides for repair of heat, plumbing, electrical already
Ramirez: should have audit performed before increased investment in safety
"that could change everything that we're investing in today"
Foley: fully expect to be back here in six or eight months with a list of things from the safety audit
probably something over several years
Petty: waited until we had a report before shifting it over
roll call to move $25,000 from repair to safety: fails 4-3
approve Misc Ed OM without F
Foley recused
F (building and parking lot rentals): Biancheria, are we anticipating overcrowding at Chandler El?
Allen: third year of contract, still significantly overcrowded
Biancheria: gym at Y rented for $40,000?
Allen: ten month contract access
Biancheria: any work towards not renting parking lots but owning parking lots?
Allen: do you have a parking lot in mind?
Boone; Gates Lane sign off on shopping center, Chatham Street have been renting for some time
Biancheria: probaby purchasing is going to be more expensive, discussion is if there are any other options of purchase
Boone: parking is a premium particuarly in our older schools
would be interested in classroom space, if we had funds, than buying parking lot
motion to look at buying Chatham St
approve

Instructional Materials
Novick: looking at testing spending through testing audit via Accountability
can we clarify with city that funding us at zero brings us below due to charter tuition
O'Connell: do we know how much we can pull out of here?
Allen: wait til state budget is passed
this account has funding for Abby Kelley's transportation, as its undercalculated by that amount
O'Connell: asks for information from admin once we have them
Biancheria: recommened to fund $68 per pupil, not a change from FY15
why wasn't B spent down?
Allen: frozen during second quarter
Biancheria: that's a drastic dollar amount
Allen: difference is that it's being level $215,000; increase is for special education classroom
Biancheria: who didn't have money to do anything?
Boone: as monitor quarterly, froze some purchases across the district
Biancheria: we only alloted $60,000 for supplies?
Boone: either IAs or supplies after 9C cuts
Biancheria: look at this in the future, difference in the dollar amount
had some concerns with that
"hardship for us"
we went up $43,000 in student support services
Boone: requirements for psychological testing are very specific assessments; we're at least 3 versions behind the current assessments; needed to update those
approved

special education tutition
Novick: breakdown on how that works per student
O'Connell: full circuit breaker?
Allen: full being 75%

Instructional assistant salaries
Monfredo: anything on IAs grants
Allen: either going to be zero or what we budgeted?
hope work of House will prevail; budgeted House amount
approve

teacher salaries:
Monfredo: two more non-teaching department heads?
Rodrigues: positions are result of restructing in Child Study
one for 504s, the other for McKinney-Vento
both department heads for evaluation of personnel
evaluate school adjustment counselors
Monfredo: wouldn't we be better off hiring school adjustment counselors?
Rodrigues: will be working with student in 504s and in homelessness
deficit in supervision and oversight
used to have a PBIS coordinator, coordinator of Child Study (which was left vacant last year)
Biancheria: elementary PE and health: how is time determined for schools
Allen: liaison juggles how to deploy staff to all the schools
Boone: we have a requirement to provide PE to our students
Monfredo: how many adjustment counselors are we hiring?
Rodrigues: hiring 3 more
Monfredo: have 4 people doing 1 person's job
Rodrigues: no, had two department chairs, were already there
two new people will be doing the 504 and the McKinney-Vento
that's one of the roles they'll assume
approve

Child Nutrition
O'Connell: Fruits and Vegetables grant; 14 schools are participating in the program
Lombardi: are requirements for the grants
do apply for schools beyond those in the budget, but they are often not awarded
O'Connell: is there a reason?
Lombardi: it's USDA funds alloted on a state by state basis
state chooses which districts and which funds
O'Connell: is it based on free and reduced numbers?
Lombardi: it's at discresion of DESE
we received one of the highest of level of funding
O'Connell: is there any reason why we're not applying for all schools that are avaible

grants:
Novick: Title I; forecast of what's up
Barnes: so much circulating around, forecast is difficult
Boone: watching ESEA closely, will advocate and share as it comes up
Biancheria: vocational director: half funded at Perkins
vocational director for district at Tech
Biancheria: teachers coming off of Chapter 74 funding, not changed on budget
Boone: funding blended between local, state, and federal
still providing bus passes for internship? Yes
O'Connell: adult education: dollars decreased in materials and supplies?
Allen: grant continues to be level-funded, but salary increases, has to come from somewhere
$95,000 is from rest of budget
O'Connell: teachers and instructional coaches increased
Allen: sustainability of Level 4 schools and those coming off into
approve

back to utilities
report came back
O'Connell had made a motion to reduce oil by $5000
motion to take $15,000 from these accounts
look at trends and directions; reflect likely prices in this area
Boone: number two fuel oil is down but have factored in change in gas
Allen: have already assumed a natural gas savings, have not yet locked in
even half a cent difference would eat up difference
after summer months will have a better idea of actual prices
O'Connell: can we hold topic in July?
Foley: small dollars, don't know that we'll know in July
quarterly reports really do look at which accounts may be move or underspent or overspent
perhaps wait til first quarter report, can see what gas pricing then?
O'Connell: could transfer into another account for beginning of school year
Petty: we don't know what it's going to cost us for safety
motion to cut $15,000 fails 4-3
Biancheria: still averaging $245,000 in electrical between South and Sullivan
there's been a change, I don't see a change
Allen: now in MSBA, we'll see a change going forward
Martin: we are in process of design for solar panels at Sullivan, will reduce draw
Boone: city is contractor for that work
Martin: panels across parking lot of Sullivan this summer
Monfredo: any other schools that we're putting solar panels in
Martin: Burncoat High and Elm Park
approve

Motion to approve entire budget
budget approved 5-2