FY2025 BudgetOn last Monday, March 25th the School Committee held it's Open Budget Hearing and voted to approve the proposed FY2025 Budget. If you did not have a chance to view the hearing, I recommend that you take a close look at the presentation materials and in-particular the budget book which provides more explanations. The hearing, as well as all of our budget presentations are available on the MURSD YouTube page. Below is an overview to give you more insight into the budget. Process The regional school budget cycle is an annual and ongoing process. At the beginning of the school year the Superintendent meets with the School Committee, Budget Subcommittee, and respective district and school leaders to establish timelines and parameters for the budget development process. This year we began the budget development process early in the budget cycle in October 2023. At this time district and school leaders sought input from departments and school staff on site-based budgetary priorities. In November and December, the Superintendent, Assistant Superintendent, and Director of Finance and Operations held individual meetings regarding budgetary requests. Beginning in December, budget presentations by departments and schools were provided at each of our School Committee meetings with their initial budget requests. I encouraged all of our schools and departments to come forward with what they feel will be the most important needs, even though we knew that we would not likely be able to meet all of the requests. Throughout the year, the budget subcommittee meets to review current (local and state) revenue and expenditure estimates, provide feedback on budgetary requests, and track year-to-date expenditures. In the months of February and March, with the release of the Governor’s budget and through conversations with town administrators, the district leadership continues to refine the preliminary budget. At the March open budget meeting, the budget is certified and assessments to the towns are communicated. The budget continues to be refined in April-May as the state releases the House and Senate budgets. The local assessments are presented at town meetings in May for town approval. Goals and Guiding Principles in FY2025 Budget Development Our goals for this year's budget are to have continued high quality service and instruction for students. We aim to sustain class sizes, programs, instruction, and services at their current standards. Second, we recognize the ongoing impact of the pandemic and continue to prioritize supporting a comprehensive multi-tiered system of support. Third, we are committed to our strategic priorities and fostering the development of the Portrait of a Learner and will continue to allocate resources for PD, tech integration, and authentic learning experiences. We remain steadfast in our commitment to work collaboratively with town officials in both Mendon and Upton, to provide transparent budget presentations and information, to preserve our current high-quality education, while addressing short and long-term needs, and most importantly to adhere to student-centered decision-making. Budget Prioritization A crucial aspect of the budget prioritization process involves crafting a budget that effectively addresses the critical needs of our students, upholds existing service standards, propels our strategic objectives forward, and ensures compliance with external mandates and regulations. This process unfolds against the backdrop of diminishing state funding and heightened state expectations for localized support, all amid ongoing post-pandemic recovery efforts. This year, we initiate our prioritization process by establishing a baseline focused on maintaining existing services and preserving class sizes and programs. For the FY2025 we are trying to maintain a Level Service Budget. A Level Service Budget maintains existing programs, services, and staffing levels without significant changes or enhancements. It serves as a baseline to sustain current operations, covering essential expenditures such as salaries, utilities, and mandated services. While crucial for maintaining continuity and stability, a Level Service Budget may not adequately address emerging needs or foster innovation within our educational system. Since we have a shortfall in revenue to meet the growing expenditures this year, it is difficult to fill the investment budgetary requests that address all of our growing needs and to make strategic investments. The last two years we were able to implement a partial Needs Based Budget which prioritizes resources to tackle pressing challenges and gaps within our district. A Needs Based Budget identifies areas such as student support services, class size reductions or academic interventions that require immediate attention to enhance student outcomes and well-being. We always aim for a strategic and competitive budget investments that goes beyond sustaining current operations; which aims to elevate the quality of education by investing in increased innovative programs, technological sustainability, infrastructure upgrades, and increased programming options. While some of the investment requests may need to be on hold, we will continue to look for opportunities to address these needs and to advocate in future budgets for a larger influx of community funds when we get to the inflection point where even Level Services are not able to be provided for. We anticipate that the FY2026 budget will require more funding than the current town’s levy capacity, even to maintain level services. Challenges for FY2025 This fiscal year, we are faced with greater fiscal constraints posed by increasing fixed costs, decreasing state aid, and limited local funding. We are not alone in the Commonwealth as many communities are facing large deficits last year and this year as costs are increasing at rates disproportionate to revenue increases, and federal/state grants associated with the pandemic end. Fortunately, in our district over the last few years we have responsibly managed our budget and grant funds to maintain level services and implement gradual needs-based and strategic investments. For example, we did not invest ESSER funds in staffing, knowing that those funds would run out as did many of the other districts who are facing 3-9 million dollar shortfalls as a result. What are the key expenditure drivers for the next school year?
What are the funds available for next school year? 1. State Aid: Unfortunately, at this time we are receiving a decrease in $149,898 in state aid (Chapter 70 funding, transportation reimbursement, charter tuition reimbursement) from the last fiscal year, which is adding to the shortfall this year. 2. Local Aid: both towns have been extremely supportive in providing as much funds as they have available to support the school budget. Mendon is providing $529,765 additional and Upton is providing $357, 805 additional. 3. District Funds: we use $150,000 from our revolving funds and $85,000 from Medicaid Reimbursement to support our budget. Additionally, we have what is called an Excess and Deficiency Fund (E&D) which is similar to a town's free cash account, where unspent funds from the operational budget then can remain in E&D. This fund is meant to be used for one-time emergency reserve, not for supporting the operational budget. We have allocated more from this account the last two years to avoid the need for town overrides. This is the last year we will be able to use as much of E&D as we have to support the budget. We also have School Choice funds that we are applying funds to support the budget and we are increasing use of this for the coming year to avoid staff layoffs. Next steps Our primary goal for this year’s budget is to maintain level services and to identify strategies for reducing the $1 million budget shortfall with minimal impact on any future reductions in staff or services. In order to close the approximately one million gap, it includes some reductions of open positions that have not been filled, using grant funds for operational needs, negotiating health care changes, and using emergency one-time funds. We also have reduced multiple line-item requests Resources Spread the Word - InclusionWe received this idea from a Miscoe Hill teacher who had taken Katie Novak's online class on UDL with another MURSD colleague last summer. They learned about choice boards which provide voice and choice for students as they work toward grade-level standards. In their class they used a choice board to facilitate small group instruction. On her website, Katie Novak also shares some teacher tips on taking choice boards to the next level. Keep your ideas coming about how you and your team are committing to new, inclusive practices as we spread the word about inclusion. Co-Teaching Learning Walks for Elementary TeachersElementary school co-teachers will get an opportunity to participate in learning walks on Tuesday and Thursday of this week form 9:00-12:00. Co-teachers from Clough will visit Memorial on Tuesday, 3/26 and then Memorial Co-teachers will visit Clough on Thursday, 3/28. Coaches Mara Powers and Michele Mercurio will work with folks to debrief and apply what we learn to our own classrooms. --Cheryl Level-based PD Committee meetingsPD Committees at the elementary, middle and high schools will be meeting between now and April vacation to make plans for our last 1/2 day PD day of the year on May 17th. These meetings are open to all who would like to participate. Keep your eyes on your school newsletters or email to learn when your school's PD Committee will be meeting. Additionally, on April 30th, we'll have our next district-wide PD Committee meeting of the year at 3:45 in the Miscoe Hill Staff Room. All are welcome. last new educator workshop - April 2ndTech TipsThe Solar Eclipse is happening on 4.8.24! To get ready for the day this blog post has 4 different solar eclipse themed activities you can do with your class. You could try a digital breakout, play a game, create a stop motion video or write a myth. Most important is to go out and observe the eclipse on the big day if you can! Edweek put out this article about the solar eclipse to provide important information as well as some additional ideas for your classroom. This is an exciting time as the last solar eclipse occurred in 2017. Clever is ChangingPlease be aware of changes coming to the Clever portal: Your teachers’ portals will switch to the Enhanced Teacher Portal by default the week of April 1. You can switch back to the Classic Teacher Portal until July 2024. To help prepare for the transition to the Enhanced Teacher Portal in July 2024, Clever is making it the default portal so that teachers can get some experience with the improved version before the end of the school year. Here’s what to expect next:
Your thouthts are still neededPlease take a moment and fill out this brief form to assist us with examining some of the technology tools you use on a regular basis. This form is important to help us better understand some of the software you are using and how you are using it in your classroom. Laughter is the best medicine
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