Coronavirus Forces Concord School District To Scale-Back Budget

CONCORD, NH — A plan to add new school staffing to fill gaps and add coverage next year in the Concord School District is being scaled back due to the economic fallout in the wake of the new coronavirus. Franklyn Bass, the interim school superintendent for SAU 8, and Business Administrator Jack Dunn, plan on making the scaled back recommendation to the full school board Monday. The plan is shift expenses and line items in the budget to limit what was first proposed to be $1.6 million in new property taxes to around $46,000.

Dunn said he hoped to hold the budget increase for the 2020-2021 school year down to less than 1 percent.

"We looked at the school budget from the point of, 'Where does the school system need to be?,' given all the issues and concerns that have been brought to our attention," Bass said, of the original budget proposal. "And that was always our foremost thought — how do we approach that in the best way possible … now, Jack, and I, and the board have looked at the current situation we're in and realized that people are getting hurt … we know that."

The economic collapse in the wake the new coronavirus is not just something felt on Wall Street but also Main Street. During the last week in Concord, restaurants and businesses have closed, more than 40,000 applied for unemployment in the state, and the notification of non-essential businesses closing in New Hampshire at midnight Friday, in an effort to stop the spread of the virus, was only going to cause more hardship. Those retail stores closing and people losing their jobs made officials take another look at the budget to cut and shift increases in an effort to scale things back.

"(Property taxpayers) are not going to be in good shape," Bass said.

Some of the new proposed positions — like the school safety compliance officer, a recommendation made in the wake of the Primo "Howie" Leung teacher-student rape allegation case, as well as, two new social workers, and a floating nurse — will be funded with shifts in other expenses, including the reduction of eight non-certified staffers (10 were proposed in the previous budget) and $96,000 removed from the substitute teacher account. Instead of hiring five new special education teachers for the elementary schools, three will be hired. Other proposed staffing additions, like a new assistant principal for the Rundlett Middle School, three education assistants for kindergarten classes, a SPED teacher at Rundlett, and a new guidance counselor, are being scrapped altogether.

The final budget is expected to be in the $90 million range.

"(Hopefully) the community will recognize that the school district is also is aware of the concerns that are out there," Bass said, "and we have to do a good job of recognizing what those issues are (while), at the same time, trying to make sure we are addressing the needs that the school district has been calling for, for some time. This revised budget takes a lot of that into consideration."

Altogether, there were 22 new position requests in the budget, Bass said, and 16 were scrapped.

Bass said the three new kindergarten aides were a great concept but will the kindergarteners survive without them? Can volunteers be brought in to help? Sure, he said.

Dunn is still shifting numbers around to make it all work and there would be no cuts to current full-time staff. The shifts are being made in proposed new positions. Dunn said the key was to try and limit the spike in property tax increases.

"Our goal was to try to be in that 1 percent or under," Dunn said. "If we can get there. We need to start worrying about people being able to pay their taxes … the state revenue coming through …"

Dunn said state retirement issues coming up for 2022 and the fact that school districts were given on a one-time shot of new revenues in last year's state budget agreement were weighing on him because that money is going to be gone the year after next. Every new teacher, Dunn said, added about $100,000 to the budget, presuming salary, a family health care plan, and other benefits. The district, he said, would only want to fund positions and programs that were sustainable.

"These are all of the things we're starting to think about," Dunn said.

Future Issues

The district, by law, will be funded before city and county services, Dunn said. So, while the school district will receive its money, other services around the city might get cut. This is why, Dunn said, officials were looking ahead and presuming that many people in the city might have future issues paying their property taxes. He said that consideration made it all the more important to scale back the new positions.

There will be no cuts to current staff although coaches who were slated to be paid for some spring sports will not be paid since there are no games. Revenues from rentals of facilities will also fall since buildings are completely closed. Dunn said utility and energy savings, due to the schools being closed, would provide a tiny bit of savings.

Stefanie Breton, a public information officer for the city of Concord, was unable to comment at post time on the process of how property taxes are divvyed up between the school district, city, and county.

Board Meetings

The Concord School Board will hold the following meetings remotely to discuss the 2020-2021 school year budget.

• Executive Committee Meeting: 5:30 p.m. on Monday, March 30.
• Public Hearing 1: 7 p.m. on Thursday, April 1.
• Public Hearing 2: 5:30 p.m. on Monday, April 6.
• Vote on Budget: 5:30 p.m. on Monday, April 13.

Microsoft Virtual link; Audio conference: 925-391-1169 (ID: 674140711#); Live Broadcast on Channel 6 Concord TV; and on YouTube.com.

For more information about the meetings, visit Virtual Special Board Meeting.

Got a news tip? Send it to tony.schinella@patch.com. View videos on Tony Schinella's YouTube channel.