Please note that this prepared statement was not read or given
SWAMPSCOTT PUBLIC SCHOOLS
TO: Swampscott School Committee
FROM: Superintendent Angelakis
DATE: May 9, 2024
RE: Superintendent’s Report
FY 25 Budget Update
The budget is one of the worst parts of my job. It is an annual struggle to fight for the district's needs while being reminded we are a town department and ensuring we don't take the entire "pie."
Everyone across the Commonwealth feels our pressures and issues; look at Andover or Gloucester. North Andover has a $3 million deficit this year and problems going into FY25.
Please know that I hear and understand how you feel, but we must ensure we are utilizing our resources most efficiently and effectively. We do not take these decisions lightly; much thought, conversations, and meetings have happened around this budget.
We had 22 internal meetings with the leadership team this year as we knew this would be a difficult budget cycle with the opening of the new school, which has increased costs associated with it.
We knew that being in one building would create staff efficiencies with the new school. We have always been committed to looking at the district's overall budget cycle to ensure we are staffed appropriately at all levels.
While much of this focus is on reductions, we have added positions this year as we continue to determine what serves the students best in this changing environment.
No longer having ESSER funding to fund positions created pressure on our budget, and we had to look hard at the positions. Some needed to move into
our appropriated budget to continue supporting MTSS and some of the other district priorities.
The positions we added for FY25 are:
One full-time career counselor at the HS
Increase the FTE for the librarian at the Elementary school
Added a reading implementation specialist
Fully funded the after-dark program
Added a science teacher at the HS (HS now has eight)
Added a Math Interventionist
Funded a new literacy curriculum for elementary
Added the kindergarten aides to our budget
We have always kept the reductions away from teaching and core positions except when enrollment and class sizes dictate how we staff teacher positions.
Support staffing goes with the students. As a student’s needs change or go out of the district, the support staff is either transferred to where there is another need, if possible or eliminated.
I also feel it’s essential to revisit last year’s budget cycle. We reduced the number of positions by 24, and only two were teacher positions - 1 general education teacher and one science teacher.
Other positions that were eliminated
Administrative Assistant in MS
Assist. Principal at HS
Maintenance & Operations position
SEL
Reduced Business office position by 5 hours
Part-time Technology Assistant
Facilities position split with the Town (HVAC)
It’s important to me that the community understands the process and the work that goes into developing our budget annually.
I'm unsure if our community knows our town’s financial policy and determines what we will get for an annual budget increase. The policy states, "2% plus new growth." The new growth amount can vary from year to year.
We work within that number once the town tells us our percentage increase for the next fiscal year.
The community must understand that we do not begin our annual budget by using the previous year’s budget as a baseline; instead, we build our budget from the bottom up every year, called zero-based budgeting.
We have made multiple budget presentations at Finance Committee and School Committee meetings. Through these meetings and work, we received a budget allocation exceeding the town's financial policy because the Finance Committee,
The town Administrator, and the Select Board recognized the district's additional financial pressures and needs.
We analyze student needs, enrollment, class sizes, and programs from K-12. Then the Assistant Superintendents, Director of HR, and I meet repeatedly with building and department leaders to ask for recommendations for reductions that can be made to close the gap between the town allocation and what our budget looks like, factoring in the changes to Collective Bargaining Agreements and COLAs for union and non-union personnel and other annual increases across the district.
A school district budget is fluid. So, the budget voted by the School Committee on January 25th is a moment-in-time budget. Three and a half months later, needs continue to shift and change as we look ahead to the next school year. The one thing that hasn’t changed is how much we will receive for our budget. We must stay within that number. It is a give-and-take as we make additional decisions to stay within the budget we have been given.
I recognize that any staffing reduction is hard on everyone, and I want you to know that it is not easy for me or anyone in the district to make these difficult decisions.
