The FY 2018 school budget of $5,896,051 approved by the Marion School Committee on March 15 reflected only a $35,395 (or 0.6%) increase from last year, but committee members lamented that it did not include the part-time physical education teacher eliminated from the FY17 budget, and it also excludes the district’s request to add a part-time health teacher.
“This is perhaps the most disappointing piece of this particular budget,” said Assistant Superintendent Elise Frangos. “I know that next year I will be coming back to request this again.”
Frangos said Rochester managed to add a health teacher to its budget this year, and Mattapoisett has enjoyed the benefits of having a health teacher for one year now.
“The health teacher position not only augments the science and technology curriculum,” said Frangos, but it also fosters healthy decisions around friendships, substance abuse, nutrition, and exercise. “Sadly, as our children from Marion move forward to the junior high, they will not have that foundation knowledge as our sister community schools will.” Frangos continued, “Data points directly to the students needing this important knowledge.”
The Town of Marion has been under a financial constraint this year, and the Finance Committee only agreed to support the modest $35,000 increase.
“We had to absorb all of the other increases,” said School Committee Chairman Christine Marcolini. “We weren’t able to bring [the health and the .5 physical education position] without sacrificing something else from the strong program that we currently have.”
Marcolini continued, “This is something that the school committee, both of these pieces, feel very strongly that Sippican needs … but it just wasn’t possible without cutting something else.”
The goal, she said, was to preserve the current level of staff at the school and the services students currently receive.
Frangos pointed to some cuts in spending for supplies for social science and science and technology classes. “…Supplies to really do the kinds of things we would like to for STEM,” said Frangos. “It’s very, very challenging when you see some of those cuts.”
One item included in this budget that is new to the school this year is the addition of a board certified behavior analyst (BCBA), which Sippican School Principal Lyn Rivet referred to as critical at this point with the changing dynamics and student population at the school.
“Students are coming with greater needs…. We as a staff need a different skill set in order for ourselves to know how to approach these children,” Rivet said. The BCBA would assist with supporting students as well as staff and offer strategies both within the school and at home for children with higher social-emotional needs. “At this point, this is a critical position to our building,” said Rivet.
A part-time psychologist position of .4 was added to the budget this year as well.
Some major areas of the budget that helped account for the under 1 percent overall increase were a $21,000 reduction in Bristol Aggie tuition, a realignment of kindergarten staff accounting for a $27,000 decrease, and a circuit breaker offset of $54,000.
Contractual obligations rose by $103,731, while special education costs went down by $15,000 and the supplies line item was decreased by $83,000.
What we have here, said Marcolini, is “the best case scenario with the hand we’ve been dealt.”
“It’s not perfect, but I think we can live with this budget,” Marcolini said, adding that the budget is the most stressful aspect of being on the school committee. “And I feel good about the experience the kids are going to have walking into our school on a day-to-day basis.”
The next meeting of the Marion School Committee is scheduled for May 3 at 6:30 pm at the Marion Town House.
By Jean Perry