The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
School closure back on table
Superintendent presents plans to lower 2017-18 budget
TORRINGTON >> Superintendent Denise Clemons broached the possibility of closing Vogel-Wetmore School during her presentation of a budget for the district’s 2017-18 year.
Clemons presented a threetiered plan to the Board of Education Thursday night that would have no increases for the coming year. Her original proposal for $75.3 million reflected a $3.19 million increase, or 4.4 percent.
Other city departments have been asked to flat-fund their budgets from the current year.
Tier one represented Clemons’ original $75.3 million operating budget proposal.
Tier two would bring the district budget down by $1.27 million, a 2.67 percent increase over the current year, by, among other measures, cutting staff positions, including a kindergarten, thirdgrade and fourth-grade teacher at Forbes School; a first- and fifthgrade teacher at Vogel-Wetmore; a secretary at the high school; part-time positions in the middle school; a first-, second- (through retirement) and third-grade teacher at Torringford.
Some $131,335 currently ascribed for building maintenance across the district also would be stripped from the budget, and a nursing position for local Christian schools would be made oncall.
Tier three would cut the district budget by an additional
$1.93 million, of which $1.52 million would come from the closure of Vogel-Wetmore and the elimination of associated staff positions.
Vogel-Wetmore, according to Clemons, is the only school that, if closed, would allow the district budget to be brought in line with the last year.
During a discussion, budget committee member Peter Vergaro suggested that a plan including the closure of East School be formulated, since that institution will either have to be renovated — a likely multimillion-dollar outlay — or abandoned in the near future, requiring students to be moved to another school.
“The first school that ends up having to be taken out of commission is East School,” said Vergaro. “Either on a temporary or a full-time basis.”
Clemons said that closing East would bring the district budget down by approximately $893,000 — leaving more than $500,000 in cuts to create a flat budget plan. She said she was unsure how this figure could be reached, but it likely would require further staff cuts.
“Unfortunately, Vogel Wetmore is the biggest bang for the buck,” said Clemons. “As you can see, the district would be decimated.”
Other potential cost reductions in tier three include: The closure of the Board of Education offices on Migeon Avenue, which are to be used to house expelled students after a statute change requires 180 educational days for such pupils; the reduction of an assistant principal position at the high school; and the elimination of the superintendent’s secretary.
Clemons said she hoped that flat-funding the district The Torrington Board of Education considered a conceptual plan to level-fund the city schools budget for the 2018 fiscal year Thursday. was off the table, and that the road map she put forward Thursday was “just a thought exercise.”
“This zero is decimation,” said Clemons. “We’re talking staff, we’re talking services, we’re talking materials. And if student achievement is needed in the district, we can’t keep cutting. It’s just not feasible.”
Budget Committee Chairman Ken Traub said the Board of Finance had asked to see what it would require for the district to have a flat budget over last year, prompting the conceptual outline discussed Thursday.
A $2.3 million capital budget for the coming fiscal year was also included in Clemons’ initial proposal, which represents an $85,000-odd decrease over the previous year.
The full Board of Education is expected to meet next week to come to a final budget to present to the city. Administrators were asked to create a prioritized list of potential reductions to the initial proposal for these meetings.
A budget is due to be sent along to the Board of Finance by April 18, Traub said Thursday, but roughly one week is required to print and bind the proposal before it can be presented.
The Board of Finance sets a financial allocation for the city schools in each year’s budget.
Board members, in an informal straw poll, shared the percentage increase with which they would be comfortable putting forward for this coming year.
Four board members — Ellen Hoehne, Wendy Pataky, Jessica Richardson and Bill Knight — said they wanted to forward the superintendent’s initial proposal on for consideration, while five — Armand Maniccia, Fiona Cappabianca, Vergaro, Traub and Daniel Thibault — said they wished to put forward a budget with a 2.5 percent to 3 percent increase.
“It’s not all about numbers, it’s about kids,” said Hoehne during Thursday’s discussion. “We can’t come in with a zero because someone wants us to.”
Richardson said she wanted to hear what the Board of Finance would request after considering the original proposal. Board member Joanne Brogis was not in attendance Thursday.
Other items raised for consideration Thursday included the possibility of asking teachers and other district staffers to forgo contractual raises next year; the virtue of a marketing/ communications position slated to be added to the budget; the amount the district spends on licensing software; and the funding spent to place students into out-of-district programs.