Shelton BOE Considers Plan To Eliminate 32 Positions

SHELTON, CT — The Shelton Board of Education continues to grapple with how best to close a roughly $3 million budget deficit.

Acting Superintendent Dr. Beth Smith presented options at the board’s May 21 meeting. Around $1 million could be reduced through various cuts including energy savings, reducing instructional supplies and professional development.

However, barring staff furloughs or pay freezes the rest would mainly have to come from staff reductions, Smith said.

Board of Education Chairman Kathleen Yolish asked staff members to reconsider taking one or two furlough days in order to save costs at the board’s May 27 virtual meeting. One furlough day would save around $305,000 and two would save double that.

She read a statement into the meeting asking unions to reconsider the furlough proposal in order to help save positions.

"I cannot guarantee all positions would be saved, but I can assure you that we will strive to keep as much as possible intact," she said.

Around 32 positions would have to be eliminated in order to bring the budget deficit to around $152,000.

“When you have to cut $2 million you can’t nickel and dime that by cutting $2,000 here or $20,000 there,” Smith said. “That’s going to come from larger ticket items which end up being salaries.”

Among the proposed cuts are a job coach, custodian, two part-time secretaries, a school psychologist and around 20 teaching positions. Eliminating the athletic director and accompanying secretary position would save $100,000, but then the Board of Education would have to figure out how to manage athletics, Smith said.

Some of the proposed cuts would come from not filling positions over the summer following resignations and retirements, but others would come from layoffs.

Eliminating the 32 positions would also save around $250,000 in health insurance costs.

Ultimately it will be up to the Board of Education to decide on Smith's proposal and whether to accept or modify it.