School Committee cuts $6.6M to balance budget

Matt Bower
Posted 7/16/15

The School Committee approved a series of deep budget cuts totaling $6.6 million Tuesday night in an effort to balance its fiscal year 2016 budget after requesting an additional $6.9 million from the …

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School Committee cuts $6.6M to balance budget

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The School Committee approved a series of deep budget cuts totaling $6.6 million Tuesday night in an effort to balance its fiscal year 2016 budget after requesting an additional $6.9 million from the city and being level funded. The cuts were approved by a 4-1 vote, with committee member Karen Bachus dissenting.

Although the school department had requested an additional $6,952,275 from the city as part of its $166,482,275 FY 2016 recommended budget, it only needed to cut $6,610,299 because it received $341,976 more than expected in state aid.

Chief Budget Officer Anthony Ferrucci explained that because the school department was only appropriated a $159,530,000 budget by the City Council, the full $6.9 million in cuts had to be made first in order to balance to that appropriated amount before a revised budget could be adopted to incorporate the $341,976 in added revenue, thereby resulting in a total cut of $6.6 million.

“Administration has struggled the past month with coming up with recommended cuts that would least impact students and to that end, we have failed,” Ferrucci said. “The cuts being proposed will impact next year’s students, but we will do everything possible to mitigate the impact and look forward to the consolidation process scheduled for September 2016 to help provide resources for student programming.”

BUDGET CUTS

Ferrucci presented a breakdown of the recommended cuts to balance the budget, which targeted three major areas and included the following: an overall cut of $2,759,045 in salaries; an overall cut of $411,075 in supplies; and an overall cut of $3,244,420 in capital equipment and buildings.

Ferrucci explained each of these, breaking them down further. The $2.7 million cut in salaries includes a $543,924 increase in breakage (savings realized from not filling positions lost due to retirements and resignations), in which the department hopes another 11 retirements come forward; an additional 11 teacher layoffs, beyond the initial nine that were made in April, for a cut of $1,100,000; eliminating all professional development (PD) and PD stipends for a cut of $555,955; and cutting all new teaching positions, including the director of technology position, for a cut of $318,851.

Ferrucci added that the additional teaching position for the cosmetology program at the Warwick Area Career and Technology Center (WACTC) is remaining intact because the district is anticipating approximately $100,000 in revenue from out-of-district tuitions for students enrolling in that course.

The $400,000 cut in supplies includes a 5 percent reduction across the board for all budget managers for a cut of $149,140; a 70 percent reduction in textbooks for a cut of $100,000, which Ferrucci described as “a huge struggle”; and an adjustment in the fuel budget for a cut of $137,000.

The $3.2 million cut in capital equipment and buildings includes a cut of $833,000 in building improvements, which leaves only $40,000 for an emergency boiler replacement (Pilgrim fields, gym floors and all other building projects are on hold until bond funds are available for capital improvements); eliminating all vehicle requests for a cut of $165,000; and cutting all technology hardware requests, except for Special Education requirements ($5,000), for a cut of $2,246,420.

Ferrucci said he and the administration are very disappointed to have to present $6.6 million worth of cuts.

“Whether it be this recommended budget or an amended version, the business office and school administration will stand together to maintain a balanced budget throughout the upcoming school year,” he said, prior to approval.

Before a vote was taken, committee member Terri Medeiros shared her concerns.

“We have all new stuff coming in and a chance to move forward. We should have professional development and substitutes coming in during the day,” she said. “What are we going to do?”

School Committee Chairwoman Jennifer Ahearn responded, saying, “We’ll consolidate and leverage those savings.”

Following approval of the $6.9 million in cuts to bring the budget in line with the $159 million balance appropriated by the City Council, Ferrucci then presented a revised budget reseeding $341,976 worth of cuts back into the budget to account for the added revenue in state aid. The reseeded items included the following: $150,000 in professional development funding to account for the mandatory PD day in August 2015 per contractual requirements; $16,976 in Workers Compensation Insurance per bid amount; and $175,000 in purchased services for an outside firm to handle legal services. With the reseeded funds approved by unanimous vote, the FY 2016 budget totals $159,871,976.

FY 2015 PROJECTED SURPLUS

Prior to presenting the recommended budget cuts and revised budget, Ferrucci delivered an FY 2015 preliminary year-end financial report, in which he projected the school department would finish the year with a $1,017,313.42 budget surplus.

“This is a preliminary determination that will be validated through the summer based on payments of accrued expenses and final bills received,” he said. “We expect to have final financial results by mid-September. These final results will then be verified by audit.”

Ferrucci said the school department had a $400,000 reduction in expected revenues for fiscal year 2015, “but luckily we had a cost savings to offset that, so we’re not reporting a deficit.” Ferrucci said the bulk of the savings came from budget managers, who were asked to spend only what they needed and make reductions where possible.

Ferrucci said other potential items that will impact the preliminary year-end report later this year include the following: $2,706,927 in open purchase orders still outstanding; $200,000 in contingency funds for unencumbered expenses; and the potential to move the $544,000 cost of the Warwick Veterans roof from the operating budget to Bond Funds.

If the Vets roof cost were moved to bond funds and out of the FY 2015 operating budget, it would increase the surplus to $1,561,313.42, which Ferrucci recommended using to fund the Chromebook initiative presented to the community to supply all freshmen with the devices.

However, Ahearn had concerns.

“I’m concerned with applying the surplus to technology when we have a number of capital improvement building projects that are needed,” she said. “I would prefer to have more discussion regarding what the priorities are at each building.”

Medeiros said the administration needs to come up with another word other than “surplus.”

“Surplus is defined as excess when all needs have been met, and we haven’t met all our needs,” she said.

Ferrucci said he doesn’t want to ingrain an attitude of “spend it or lose it” with budget managers in the district.

“They will go out and spend it just to have it in the budget next year,” he said. “We need to create an attitude of being aggressive with price cuts and savings. The budget managers achieved $800,000 in savings; if we spent $1 million over, we would be left with a $200,000 deficit.”

The committee agreed to table further discussion until next month’s meeting, when it could get a better picture of what capital projects are needed at each building.

PERSONNEL CHANGES

In other committee action, a number of administrative personnel changes were approved for the coming school year. By a unanimous 5-0 vote, the committee appointed Dr. William Holland as the interim superintendent of Warwick Public Schools for the next three to six months, while it reposts the superintendent position and re-engages the search for a permanent replacement.

Following the retirement of Dennis Mullen, Steven Ruscito, who is from Westerly, was appointed the new director of secondary education by a 3-2 vote, with Bachus and committee vice chairman Eugene Nadeau dissenting. The appointment did not come without controversy, as both Bachus and Nadeau felt William McCaffrey, current WACTC director and former candidate for the superintendent position, should have been appointed.

“Bill McCaffrey should have that position. He’s from the city, he’s been a teacher, a vice principal or assistant principal, a principal and now the director of the career and tech center for us,” Bachus said prior to the vote. “He works with three different districts, the state, and many other folks. He was given one interview under a very difficult situation with the [former] superintendent [Richard D’Agostino] that didn’t care for him and made it well known. It’s a sin.”

As Bachus continued her comments, Ahearn interrupted her in an attempt to call the vote on Ruscito’s appointment.

In a phone interview Wednesday, Ahearn said a committee made up of six individuals was established to review candidates for the secondary education director position.

“After the first round of interviews, the numbers did not place Mr. McCaffrey in a position to get a second interview,” she said. “The majority of the committee decided to go with the candidate we selected.”

Ahearn described McCaffrey as “a qualified individual who has done amazing things with the career and tech center.”

She continued, “We didn’t want to compromise his position as director of the career and tech center. With so much going on in the next year, he would not have been able to serve in both positions at the same time.”

Ahearn said candidate qualifications and an understanding of what needs to happen at the secondary level in the district were taken into account when deciding on a candidate.

“We all recognize Bill McCaffrey as an asset to this district and we don’t minimize that at all,” she said.

Other personnel changes approved by the committee included re-assigning Marie Cote from her position as principal of Pilgrim High School to assistant principal of Gorton Junior High School and re-assigning Pamela Bernardi from her position as Pilgrim assistant principal to Pilgrim principal for the 2015-16 academic year.

CONSOLIDATION MASTER PLAN UPDATE

In other committee news, Symmes Maini & McKee Associates (SMMA), the firm hired to develop a long-term education and facilities master plan for the district, provided an update on the school consolidation process and a timeline for how events would unfold. Nearly a month ago, the school committee approved a master plan that will leave the district with two high schools and two middle schools by closing Aldrich and Gorton junior highs and re-purposing Warwick Vets as a super middle school, and splitting Vets students between Toll Gate and Pilgrim.

Ed Frenette, senior vice president and principal planner of SMMA, said all aspects of the master plan are between 95 and 98 percent complete and will soon be ready for publishing.

“The traffic observations were completed one to two weeks ago, so it’s not up on the site yet but it’s ready to go,” he said.

The timeline presented was as follows: use the 2015-16 school year to perform detailed planning on consolidation at the secondary level, which has already started; use the 2016-17 school year to implement the secondary schools plan and perform detailed planning of the middle schools portion of the plan, in which sixth grade would be moved up from the elementary schools; use the 2017-18 school year to implement the middle school plan and perform detailed planning of consolidation at the elementary level; and finally using the 2018-19 school year to implement the elementary school consolidation plan.

Frenette said during the summer of 2015, school department officials will meet with Rhode Island Department of Education (RIDE) representatives to discuss the master plan and its implementation; in the fall of 2015, the department will prepare a Statement of Intent (SOI) to go forward with implementation and funding, and in August or September, it will prepare a RIDE Stage 1 Submittal, “which basically says you intend to do something in broad, general terms,” he said; in March of 2016, the department will complete a RIDE Stage 2 Submittal, “which will go into further detail and cover all implications of implementation of the master plan”; and in the fall of 2016, planning will begin for the potential bonding needed for implementation of the master plan.

Comments

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  • JohnStark

    Warwick taxpayers will be heartened to know that elementary school consolidation, of which the city is in dire need, will commence In 3 Years!! It took less time to plan, coordinate, and execute the Normandy invasion. Keep in mind, this was all recommended in December 2013 by the long-term planning committee. By the time this plan is fully implemented, it might not be needed as there will be no children left in the Warwick public schools.

    Thursday, July 16, 2015 Report this

  • markyc

    Statement of Intent-I guess you can forget about August; it's almost August now! I agree with John Stark; it took a shorter time to plan & invade Normandy-all the players involved in the Warwick consolidation are supposedly on the same side!

    I do agree with the committee generally; it's difficult to have individuals in 2 positions as Mr. McCaffrey & Mr. Habershaw offered, especially with all that will be going on in the forthcoming school year. Hopefully, Mr. McCaffrey was given proper consideration for Director of Secondary Education before it was offered to someone outside the district. This entire process should have begun years ago & the School Committee/System kicked the can down the road hoping for some type of solution either through unexpected funding &/or increase in student enrollment. Now decisions & choices that could/should have been spread out are required to be made more or less at the same time. Add to these issues within the Warwick School System a restructuring of the State Board of Education as well as a new State Education Commissioner & the forthcoming school year may prove to be quite hectic on all involved.

    Thursday, July 16, 2015 Report this

  • RonPaul

    Looks like a man in that picture, not Karen Bachus. What a bunch of clowns

    Thursday, July 16, 2015 Report this

  • wwkvoter

    how much would property taxes have gone up to cover what the school committee wanted? how much does it cost to run our school system vs a similar sized school system?

    Thursday, July 16, 2015 Report this

  • jackiemama63

    RonPaul, I don't know if you were kidding, but, that is Karen Bachus, she's no longer wearing her signature hats to the meetings. I wish she would leave herself at home, along with her hats. She has displayed a shocking lack of self-discipline since being elected. What has she done, other than perform as a mouthpiece for certain individuals, those "individuals" not being the Students in Warwick she was elected to represent. Her motivation is completely political, whether it is for her own advancement, or that of others, is a mystery to me. As for JohnStark and MarkyC....agreed. WSC will drag this out until there is nothing left of our district, I have witnessed the rapid decline of this school system over the last 16 years, seeing the worst of that "rapid decline" in the last 6 years. 2016 is an election year, please for the love of God, I hope people who actually have strength to make hard decisions will be elected. People who take the stewardship of our schools seriously, with conviction, and placing the City's Children first, are needed. Here's to 'hoping!"

    Friday, July 17, 2015 Report this

  • JusthaFacts

    So Chairwoman Ahearn, you say McCaffrey is "“a qualified individual who has done amazing things" and "an asset to this district." But you can't promote him. Having worked as a Personnel Director for 20 years I know that holding good employees back destroys moral, performance, and efficiency throughout an organization. Now when you need to quickly reorganize the secondary school structure you think a person that knows nothing about the facilities, students, staff and city politics will be your best choice. With a long learning curve and an hour commute for every work day, and evening meeting, Ruscito will be almost useless at this critical time. And maybe if you had promoted McCaffery you could see if he could be the next Superintendent and end the circus of buy-outs, turn downs, interims and consultants that has wasted money, destabilized the system and accelerated the exodus of families from our schools and city. Wow 3 strikes in just one decision!

    Friday, July 17, 2015 Report this

  • bendover

    Somewhere, Bob Shapiro has rolled over in his grave and puked.

    Friday, July 17, 2015 Report this

  • smh

    Ahearn is a wolf in sheep's clothing...she must have learned from the best of them ~ her fellow School Committee members...It seems high time that the School Committee, School Administration, City Council AND Mayor all be investigated by the Attorney General

    Friday, July 17, 2015 Report this

  • allent

    dafuq is that in the picture?

    Friday, July 17, 2015 Report this

  • connor

    The man in the picture scares me Id do whatever he told me not to reap his wrath!

    Wednesday, July 22, 2015 Report this