Manchester school superintendent seeking nearly 5 percent spending boost for 2019-20

MANCHESTER — The superintendent of Manchester schools is seeking a 4.82 percent spending increase for fiscal year 2019-20.

The proposed hike, according to Superintendent Matt Geary’s budget presentation, is driven by increased costs for contracted salaries and health benefits, transportation and out-of-district tuition, and school board policies on spending for capital improvement, computer equipment and field trips.

The proposed budget totals $118,876,678, an increase of $5,470,498 over current spending. The board has workshops scheduled this month to discuss and possibly adjust Geary’s recommended spending plan.

Increases for the last five board of education budgets (the board of directors sets the final allocation) averaged 1.65 percent.

Major changes in the school district over the past five years include an enrollment decrease from 6,267 students in 2014-15 to 6,203 this year. In the same period, however, the number of students qualifying for free and reducedprice lunch climbed from 54.8 to 61.1 percent; special education students increased from13.4 to14.2 percent of enrollment; and English language learners increased from 6.2 to 6.5 percent of students.

Teachers’ salaries are to increase by 2.46 percent overall, administrators’ pay is to rise by 2.81 percent and noncertified employees’ salaries are to climb by 4.09 percent, As one of the lowest performing districts in the state, Manchester schools again are to receive the state Alliance Grant totaling about $4.3 million. The grant is to fund 6.5 administrators, eight behavior specialists and 17 STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) specialists, among other positions.

A chart of per-pupil spending for this fiscal year from the state Department of Education shows Manchester spending $16,360.73, compared with $19,647.41for Hartford students; $13,780.60 in East Hartford; $18,525.86 in Windsor; $16,571.59 in Vernon; and $18,644.41 in Windham. Of the 32 districts in the chart, the highest per-pupil spending is in East Windsor at $22,324.06, and the lowest is in Danbury at $12,899.45.

Budget priorities, Geary said, include maintaining equitable class sizes, ensuring teachers have instructional resources, ensuring adequate staffing, providing professional development opportunities and strengthening afterschool academic and recreational programming.