After several months of budget meetings and soul-searching, the Board of Education voted to approve a final budget to comply with the Town Council appropriation of $32,446,447 or a .5 percent increase over the current fiscal year.

Becky Tyrrell, chairwoman of the school board, said the budget sessions were very difficult and the resulting cuts to programs and school staffs were “not something we enjoyed doing.” Originally, in March, Superintendent of Schools Kathleen Binkowski had requested a 3.75-percent increase, something educators called “basic” and “bare bones.”

Binkowski said the originally proposed budget would have put off any layoffs.

In its unanimous vote adopting the nearly $32.5 million schools’ budget June 8, the board enacted several additional cuts. Tyrrell said the board reluctantly endorsed a difficult budget because if it had sent the message that it rejected the budget, more cuts could have been forthcoming.

Richard Carmelich III, business manager for the schools, said the last three budgets have had small increases, something that will be tough to endure, but he thinks the school system will prevail. He said administrators don’t like to make cuts because by definition they want to improve programs and curricula for the students.

Tyrrell said some employee groups agreed to wage and benefit concessions in an attempt to reduce the impact on educational resources. The administrators agreed to a five-day furlough, elimination of their tax-sheltered annuity payments for one year, and a health-savings account benefit option. The custodial union and other non-bargaining employees agreed to a wage freeze. As a result of these concessions, the district saved $135,000, which was considerable, Tyrrell said.

In addition, she said, the board has eliminated 11 certified positions including elementary classroom teachers, a high school English teacher, and a health and world languages teacher at the middle school. The board also is eliminating non-certified positions including a maintenance position, a tutor position, a monitor position and two 0.5 full-time-equivalent office professional positions.

Several programs also are being cut, including the Reading Recovery training and the Bushnell Program have been cut. Fall cheerleading and indoor track at the high school have been eliminated, as well as intramurals at both the middle school and high school. Also, the school district will no longer offer late bus service.

Tyrrell said that by law, the schools’ budget must be balanced before the fiscal year ends. She said the cut options were developed at budget work sessions and are difficult to swallow because they end up hurting the children. She said, the community schools will find it difficult if not impossible to play catch-up as administrators, teachers, staff and students react to budget cuts and adjustments that have been endured for the last several years.

Carmelich said that although the elimination of four positions were accomplished through retirement, any cuts in staff are difficult.

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