School Officials Recommending $140M For FY20 Budget

FRAMINGHAM, MA- Next year's school budget is a big one, $140,546,821. The official budget hearing is set for March 20 but Superintendent Tremblay and Executive Director of Finance and Operations Lincoln Lynch presented an overview of the recommendation at Tuesday night's School Committee meeting.

The recommended FY20 budget is a 5.66 percent increase over the FY19 Operating Budget, a $7,528,872 increase.

Of the $140 million recommended budget, $107,863,921 will be allotted for personnel and contractual obligations, including teacher and paraprofessional salaries. A $350,000 turnover savings was factored into the salary portion of the budget as well. Turnover savings applies to the school if a high paid teacher leaves and the replacement is paid a lower salary. Lynch said the estimate was kept conservative so that the district didn't have to scramble to find money it didn't have later.

In the overview, Tremblay highlighted programs that will be piloted or expanded next year, including the dual language program, a 1:1 Chromebook program and the Sage department.

The Sage department was specifically highlighted after Tremblay said community members worried that the programs in the department would not be continued. Under the recommended FY20 budget, the Sage department would see a $97,730 increase. The bulk of the department increase will go to staffing with $84,867 allotted. As King Elementary will house grade 5 starting next year, a new Sage teacher will come as well. The other $12,863 covers expenses like curriculum supplies, universal screening materials and professional memberships.

Universal screenings will begin next year for first graders at King and Wilson Elementary. Next year will be the first year universal screenings are done and the district hopes to increase the number of grades participating each year. Now, screenings are done on a referral basis. So if a parent wants their child screened, they have to bring it to the attention of the teacher, administration or Sage department.

A much anticipated pilot program for 1:1 Chromebook ratios was also budgeted in for FY20. The program will be rolled out in King Elementary and cost a total of $50,000. Tremblay said that the pilot program would be based on student interest and include an expansion of language offerings as well as coding. The program would start at the newly added fifth grade. "An expository kind of a program is a great opportunity," Tremblay said adding that in a 1:1 initiative the learning program can grow with the student, "or it could just be exploratory," he said. King Elementary was selected because it is a STEAM school and the language focus was seen as an extension of the arts, according to Tremblay. The program would be after-school focused and not inhibit classroom time.

School Committee members had mixed emotions on the topic, with several members questioning the equity of the rollout. School Committee member Tracey Bryant, District 9, suggested separating out the language programs and coding programs so that the rollout could be done in multiple schools. She said giving piloted programs to just one school could give students in other schools a disadvantage in the future. Ricky Finlay of District 2 also noted that the rollout should be done throughout the elementary schools in the district, for equity purposes.

Gloria Pascual of District 8 made the argument that the high school or eighth grade should have the pilot program since their curriculum is largely geared towards online work. While noting the points made, Tremblay said the Chromebooks were meant to be a tool and not replacement for curriculum and further that curriculum needed to be made specifically for the program if it were integrated on a classroom level. He added that insurance and a multi-school pilot program may not be cost-efficient for the budget.

The dual language program was also highlighted as the district plans to expand the program to Wilson and Brophy after its success at Potter Road and Barberi. A total of $59,230 was allotted in the FY20 budget with $45,000 of that total going to an increase for translations. Tremblay said the schools have been pulling existing staff for translations.

The recommended district budget will be presented at the formal budget hearing on March 20.

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