Vernon 2020-21 Education Budget Request Totals $54 MIllion

VERNON, CT — Vernon Superintendent of Schools Joseph Macary has requested a budget of $54.8 million for the 2020-21 fiscal year. The spending plan was presented to the school board on Monday.

The bottom line of $54,869,223 represents an increase of 1.85 percent, or $998,629. That is in-line with increases of less than 2 percent for the approved education budgets over the past several years:

• 2016-2017: 1.06 percent
• 2017-2018: 1.02 percent
• 2018-2019: 0.87 percent
• 2019-2020: 1.30 percent

Budget breakdown:

• Salaries and wages: $34,061,468, an increase of 3.4 percent or $1,119,540
• Employee benefits: $8,714,081, a decrease of 4.6 percent or $418,498
• Professional and tech services: $1,520,202, an increase of 4.8 percent, or $69,322
• Property services: $1,737,232, an increase of 2.3 percent, or $38,694
• Other purchased services: $6,288,982, a decrease of 1.2 percent, or $78,315
• Supplies and materials: $1,479,037, an increase of 2.2 percent, or $31,894
• Capital outlay: $725,664, an increase of 38.3 percent or $200,909
• Other sundry: $342,558, an increase of 11.4 percent, or $35,084

The school board will now review the budget request before sending it to the town council.

Staffing impacts are:

Vernon Center Middle School

• Addition of an instructional coach for math and science (STEM program) teachers
• Change school Clerk to a 10-month secretary for assistant principals

Center Road School

• Addition of a Grade 3 teacher (enrollment)
• Elimination of a Grade 4 teacher
• Continued support of a social worker (2)

Lake Street School

• Addition of a Grade 4 teacher (enrollment)
• Elimination of a Grade 5 teacher

Maple Street School

• Addition of a Grade 4 teacher (Enrollment)
• Addition of a Grade 3 teacher
• Elimination of Grade 2 teacher (enrollment)

Skinner Road School

• Addition of a Grade 5 teacher (Enrollment)

District

• Additional school climate specialist (VCMS)

Paraprofessional Support

• Center Road School: 26
• Lake Street School: 16
• Maple Street School: 16
• Northeast School: 8
• Skinner Road School:10
• Vernon Center Middle School: 19
• Rockville High School: 16
• District Next Step: 3

Other proposals

• A new sound Ssystem in the VCMS Auditorium
• A new van for the Next Step Program to transport students to work-job sites
• New track and field area and stadium "turf" at Rockville High School
• Funding for Vision of the Graduate implementation work to ensure that students obtain necessary skills and competencies
• Addition of E-Sports Club at RHS via CIAC
• Support the Unified Sports Program at Vernon Center Middle School (like RHS)
• Use of "literacy Interns" in each elementary school through St. Joseph’s College to support literacy intervention
• Support curriculum writing in social studies (Grades K-12) and "unpack" NGSS Science Standards with Labs
• New athletic uniforms for RHS Golf and Boys Tennis and VCMS Baseball and Softball

Every School will have a minimum of:

• One social worker
• One school psychologist
• One speech and language pathologist
• One school climate specialist

Technology

• All Major Technology Initiatives (like 1:1 Chromebooks, Grade K-1 I-Pads) will be funded via the Alliance Grant

Other Budget Implications

• Loss of Pre-School Development (PDG) Grant funding (approximately $162,000)
• Reduction of Hartford Foundation funding to support FCSP via community grant
• Increase of 9.0 full-time equivalent paraprofessionals to service special needs students
• One announced teacher retirement

School enrollments as of Dec. 1 are:

• Center Road School: 521
• Lake Street School: 210
• Maple Street School: 299
• Northeast School: 213
• Skinner Road School: 321
• Vernon Center Middle School: 724
• Rockville High School: 848
• Outplacements: 35