Mt. Everett Regional School

                                                                                                                        Sheffield, MA

                                                                                                                        February 28, 2006

                                                                                                                        Public Hearing Re: FY’07 Budget

 

School Committee Members: Mr. Pollitt, Ms. Miller, Dr. Savage, Mr. Twing, Mr. Tillett, Ms. Maggio, Ms. Mielke, Ms. Silvestri, Mr. Ronan

 

Administrators: Ms. Spriggs, Ms. Brown, Mr. Devoti, Mr. Nadolny, Ms. Sands, Mr. O’Brien

 

Press: CTSB

 

Student Representatives:

 

Others: Ms. Julie Hannum, Sheffield Select Board; Sheffield Finance Committee Members: Mr. David Steindler, Chair, Ms. Judy Schnurr, Mr. John James; Ms. Karen Ketchen, Mr. Jon Sylbert, Monterey Select Board; Mr. Charles Ketchen, Alford Select Board Chair; Ms. Nancy Doherty; Mr. Bruce Turner, Egremont Select Board Chair; Ms. Barbara Marchione, New Marlborough Select Board Chair; Ms. Peggy Wilson, Undermountain PTO Chair, Several other members of the public

 

Chairman Pollitt welcomed the audience at 6:00 p.m. and reviewed ground rules for the hearing.  He said that the audience members would be invited to ask questions and make comments following the presentation of the budget details.

 

1.     Superintendent Spriggs offered words of gratitude to town officials and community members who had participated in the budget process.   Ms. Spriggs gave a special thank you to Ms. Brown, noting that this would be her last budget for the District, as she will retire at the end of the month.

 

2.     Ms. Brown then briefly reviewed the FY’07 proposed operating and capital budgets and explained differences between FY’06 and FY’07.  Ms. Brown also reviewed the proposed town assessments and explained the use of rolling average to assess the operating budget. 

 

Ms. Brown reviewed the calculations of assessments for the capital budget.  She stated that the equalized valuation numbers will not change for this year

 

3.     The floor was then opened for questions and comments, which included the following:

 

$          Mr. Steindler, Chairman of the Sheffield Finance Committee, spoke regarding the high per pupil cost, which he contended would be over $14,000 per pupil, should the budget pass as is.  He asked that the District recognize that a high school could not turn out students who could go directly into high paying jobs or enter graduate school; rather, he asked that the school redefine its purpose to provide preparation for students to simply go on to some higher education.  Mr. Steindler also reviewed the finances of Sheffield this year, per new revenue, and indicated that it would be difficult not to have to go for an override of Proposition 2 ½ .

$          Mr. Jon Sylbert, Monterey Select Board Member, stated that he agreed that the citizens need to make a choice about what kind of education to provide its students, but said he felt it was important to let the political and budgetary process work in order to let the taxpayers make the decision of how much they are willing to pay for education.  He noted that the District’s towns have passed overrides many times in the past, and said that the override procedure allows the citizens to think and vote privately whether they

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$wish to vote beyond a certain amount for their taxes.  Mr. Sylbert added that he felt that the budget represented a reasonable number, and he urged the Committee to bring that number forward to the people.

$          Ms. Julie Hannum, Sheffield Select Board Member, questioned the budget line for staff additions and reductions.  Ms. Brown explained that some of the funds included in that line will cover items such as extra duty and teacher leader positions.  Funds will also cover a shifting of staff to provide a math coach and new math texts, among other items. 

$          Superintendent Spriggs noted that it is important to understand that all areas are looked at in the budget building process, including the possibility of reductions.  She also pointed out that although the District does well in student achievement, the results of the MCAS tests are “flat”, per standards of the No Child Left Behind Act.  She said that the District feels the need to hire a math expert to move in a forward motion, and that reflected in the budget.  Ms. Spriggs also pointed out that the need to look at long range facility planning has been communicated, and the District will bring in experts in that field, as well.

 

With audience members indicating no additional comments or questions, Chairman Pollitt closed the hearing at 6:40 p.m.