Darien Superintendent Of Schools Presents Proposed FY24 Budget

DARIEN, CT — Darien Public Schools Superintendent Alan Addley presented his proposed fiscal year 2024 budget to the Board of Education on Thursday, as the school district kicked-off its annual budget process.

The proposed spending plan weighs in at $116,068,266, which represents a $5.4 million or 4.94 percent increase above the current 2022-2023 budget.

In his weekly letter to the community on Friday, Addley said creating the proposed budget was challenging. Major expenditures driving the increase are fixed, health and contractual costs, he said.

Addley said on Thursday night that his budget aligns to the strategic plan of the district, increases safety and security, provides mental health resources, addresses the substitute shortage and supports special education specialized programs.

Of note, $667,000 is earmarked for the new positions of director of mental health, director of security and six School Security Officers that were hired mid-year.

The proposed budget includes a net increase of 9.10 Full-Time Equivalent staff, which excludes the 8 FTEs added for security and mental health.

There is an increase of 11 special education FTEs which are included to support Individual Education Programs (IEPs), specialized programs and positions previously funded through the IDEA ARP Grant, Addley said.

Increases for enrollment and class sizes represent 4.10 FTEs of the 9.10 FTE increase. There is an addition of a third grade class section and a paraprofessional at Ox Ridge Elementary School; a fifth grade class section at Royle Elementary School; and part-time teaching positions for high school PE/health, science and mathematics

Addley said the district is looking to solve the problem of substitute teacher shortages.

"It's a competitive business at this particular point, and we're looking to see if we can address that and get better qualified, more reliable substitute teachers in front of our young people," Addley added.

To that end, Addley is proposing an increase from two substitutes per building to three at five days per week, with a salary increase from $125 to $150.

The daily substitute rate would be raised from $100 to $125.

Other support, educational programming and facility highlights include expansion of space and programming for Fitch Academy, a custodian for Ox Ridge School; Kids in Crisis Teen Talk, services for special education and support services; the expansion of Mandarin; robotics clubs; American sign language and other new high school courses.

On the morning of Jan. 7, a regular Board of Education meeting will be held to go over proposed personnel, operating and equipment spending plans for several departments.

Meetings and hearings will continue throughout January. Approval of a school budget is scheduled for Feb 14.

More information can be found on the Darien Board of Education website.