Schools

President: BOE Will Not Appeal Council Cuts

Board of Education President Tom O'Rourke outline cuts to make up additional $350,000 in cuts.

Board of Education President Tom O'Rourke confirmed that the district would not be appealing council's decision to trim another $350,000 from the 2010-2011 operating budget. This appeal would had to have been made within the next 10 days to the Commissioner of Education Bret Schundler.

"We are in the process of obtaining legal advice on this action taken by council," O'Rourke said. "As we have previously stated we have determined that we will not appeal council's decision on this current budget."

O'Rourke and Superintendent of Schools Dr. Nathan Parker also outlined how the board will make up for an additional $350,000 in cuts.

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  • The board has formally requested that the Summit Educational Association modify its current contract to accelerate the 1.5 percent salary contribution to the costs of healthcare. O'Rourke said this would yield the district approximately $425,000 in savings.
  • The board has finalized and approved with the SEA a change in work rules which will cover the math and writing labs as "duty periods" instead of "teaching periods." By doing so, O'Rourke said the district will forego replacing two retirement positions, saving $172,000.
  • The board is in the process of finalizing an offer from the district principals to modify their contract to give up approximately $41,300 in the costs of conferences and other fees which they agreed to.
  • The board will also be reducing the salary line items at the middle school and high school, which will reflect the retirement of an additional supervisor whose position will not be filled. This move will save the district $136,000.

"This has been a very difficult three and a half weeks for the baord and the administration," O'Rourke said.

The district's budget woes began, March 17 when the Department of Education released its state aid numbers for the 2010-2011 school year, revealing Summit would receive none of it's aid. This move created a $2.6 million budget deficit. O'Rourke noted Thursday that before this announcement, the board of education wa sprepared to introduce a budget with a 3.97 percent tax levy increase.

Find out what's happening in Summitwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The Board of Education proposed a budget to the Board of School Estimate that would not have made major cuts to staff or programming, instead choosing to eliminate a handful of extra curricular activities, such as the literary magazine. by eliminating teacher stipends for the advisers. This budget carried with it a 5.6 percent tax levy increase.

But the Board of School Estimate approval was a contentious one, with two of the five members voting against the budget. Councilmen Tom Getzendanner and Rich Madden wanted to see additional cuts to keep the levy increase under 5 percent.

On April 6, the common council executed its right in state statute 18a: 22-17 to have a second look at the school board's budget and recommend additional cuts. The council is legally allowed to do this because the school budget exceeds 1.5 percent of the assessed valuation of the ratables of the municipality.

The council voted 4-3 to cut an additional $350,000 from the Board of Education's budget. If the Board chooses to do so within the next 11 days, they can appeal council's decision Bret Schundler, the state Commissioner of Education. However, such a move is considered by many to be a risk. The commissioner could side with the school district or could force additional cuts to keep the tax levy increase under 4 percent. This could result in more than $900,000 in cuts.

At a town hall meeting on Tuesday night, Council President Dave Bomgaars said that a debate April 6 about a state law that requires municipalities to reassess homes every so many years turns out to not really exist. City Solicitor Barry Osmun told Bomgaars that after some research he discovered he was incorrect in saying such a law existed. The belief that such a law existed prompted Mayor Jordan Glatt to strongly oppose council taking action on the school budget when it was using one law to its advantage and seemingly ignoring another because it was inconvenient.

Frank Belluscio, director of communications at the New Jersey School Boards Association, said there are 21 Type I districts in the state including Summit. While other governing bodies have exercised the right to a second look, he said very few school board's appeal those decisions.

Only two did so in 2009 and the year before none did.


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