Schools

BOE Finance Committee Approves 12-13 Budget

Minor reductions taken, now it goes to the full board next week.

 

Shelby Irwin has a unique perspective when it comes to the 's budget proposal -- she is both a parent to a student and a fourth-grade teacher there.

So her support for the new lunch supervisor incentive comes from both the view of a teacher and a parent, she said.

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"I think this is a step in the right direction," she told the school board's Finance Committee Tuesday during its final budget workshop.

The proposal to install a new, full time Student Support Aid in each school survived phase one of the review process as the Finance Committee approved the budget with that item in tact, to the delight of several parents attending the meeting to show support for the incentive.

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Administrators describe the Student Support Advisor position as "a new initiative critical for principal/building to provide support for school climate/bullying issues, focusing on lunch and recess."  

The net cost of the eight new positions -- one for each elementary school -- is $71,000. That comes after the elimination of one lunch aide and a student support staff position, with those funds going toward the new full-time Student Support Advisor job.

The decision to implement the new jobs came at the request of the PTA's and parents who advocated for the positions, Supt. of Schools Fran Rabinowitz said.

"I want to thank the superintendent for adding the staff for the lunch issue," said Hamden PTA Council President Melinda Sauer.

But the recommendation to increase lunch aide's salaries from $8.50 and hour to $12 an hour did not make it.

"I am right there with you guys, I support $12/hour," said Finance Committee member Bryan Johnson.

But fellow committee members John Keegan and Jim Pascarella said they felt now was not the right time to approve the increase.

"I would like to see the benefits of the Student Support Advisers first," Keegan said. "We are making a pretty sizable investment in that and I would like to see how it works out first -- we can always come back during the year to make other adjustments."

"I agree with both of you," Pascarella said of both Johnson's support to raise the pay and Keegan's desire to wait.

"It is difficult to say no when a few months ago I led the effort to bring department jobs pay up to the going market salaries," he said, referring to the Legislative Council's approval of salary increases for a number of Town Hall employees that were found to be making below industry standards.

"I would say the same thing with the lunch aides but I don't know what other districts are paying," he said. "My suggestion is we get more data, and if they are underpaid, I would be the first to say, 'let's do something,' but first we have to find out what's going on."

"We're never shutting the door on it," Keegan said, "but let's find out what happens with the new support folks first."

Ultimately, the Finance Committee cut Rabinowitz's $81,828180 proposed budget that carried a 3.43 percent increase to $81,587,427, with a 3.13 percent increase. 

Next Tuesday the board will hold a public hearing on the budget at 6:30 p.m. at Central Office. Following the hearing will be the board's monthly meeting when they will give its final approval and send the budget to Mayor Scott Jackson, who then submits it to the Legislative Council for final approval.


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