Community Corner
Supt. Proposes $33 Million Budget for Stonington Schools
'I think the Board and the community will be very pleasantly surprised,' Superintendent of Schools Leanne Masterjoseph said.
Stonington School District Superintendent proposed a $33.26 million budget—a $1.32 million, or 4.1 percent, increase from the current budget for the 2012-13 school year.
The requested increase is more than l. The but the Board of Finance cut it to a .
Masterjoseph presented the board and the public with her proposed budget at Thursday night’s Board of Education meeting. She said her three priorities in creating the budget were an “advocacy for excellence,” a “commitment to transparency” in the budget process and clarity in the budget between items that are wanted versus needed.
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“I think the board and the community will be pleasantly surprised,” Masterjoseph said, adding she had tried to create a budget that meets the goals and challenges of the school system while keeping in mind the current economic times.
The proposed budget honors all contractual salary commitments, reflects increases in fuel and utilities, and includes tuition increases that are the result in part of students who choose to go to the new , which costs the school system $6,000 per student that attends.
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Masterjoseph proposed several new program initiatives including two-full time staff in mathematics at the elementary and middle school level, funding high school CIAC sports teams for a full schedule and a summer academy for incoming freshmen.
The budget also features several cost-saving items including the second consecutive year of a decrease in health insurance, which resulted in an almost $60,000 savings, and an estimated $40,000 in revenue generation from advertising, parking permits and gate receipts from basketball and football games.
“This is the first time revenue generation has been factored in,” Masterjoseph said.
She estimated an additional $350,000 in annual support came from the generosity of businesses and individuals. Masterjoseph did not factor those funds into her proposed budget.
But she said, “We should celebrate that support.”
The school board will meet next Thursday, Jan. 19 at 7 p.m. in SHS commons to discuss the budget. The board will meet every Thursday until they approve a budget, which they must send to the finance board in the beginning of March.
Below is glance at the 10 main components that make up the proposed school budget:
Section Proposed Budget Increase/Decrease ($) from 2011-12 Increase/Decrease (%) from 2011-12 Staff Salaries $20,440,558 $604,826 increase 3.05 percent increase Benefits $5,155,298 $28,595 decrease 0.55 percent decrease Revenue Estimates ($40,000) n/a n/a New Programming $135,450 n/a n/a Other purchased services $600,470 $53,042 increase 9.69 percent increase Utilities, Rental, Repairs $1,349,030 $35,528 increase 2.70 percent increase Transportation, Insurance, Tuition $3,935,450 $463,271 increase 13.34 percent increase Fuel and Supplies $1,374,474 $81,380 increase 6.29 percent increase Equipment $94,742 $2,281 increase 2.47 percent increase Dues and Fees $171,408 $8,794 increase 5.40 percent increaseGet more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.
