In a letter to the School Committee this week, the Wenham selectmen recommended that the school committee adopt a LEVEL SPENDING budget. This radical new proposal would mean roughly $1 MILLION of program and staff cuts to cover for other increased costs, like health care, utilities, transportation and contractual obligations. YOUR PRESENCE IS NEEDED Thursday [...]
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The School Committee’s Public Forum on the Budget is scheduled for Thursday, March 8, at 6:30 p.m. If you are only going to attend one school committee meeting this year, this is the one. Without direct parental input, the School Committee is making tough budget decisions in a vacuum. This is the one meeting set [...]
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Based on FY 2010 data, HWRSD spends approximately $850 per pupil (or 6.3%) more than the average district. See “HWRSD Spending: Do we want to be average or competitive?” Since we have approximately 2000 students in the HWRSD, our total above-average spending was $1.7M in FY 2010. As noted in the “HWRSD Spending” section, we [...]
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WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW: The School Committee’s FY 2012 Budget asks for no new contributions from the Towns, does not affect the tax rate, and maintains level services in the schools. Wenham voters have already approved this number, which is the figure printed in the Hamilton warrant (Appendix B, page 6). Town officials are recommending lowering the contribution to the Schools to an amount, which when added to a proportional decrease on the Wenham side, would combine to de-fund the schools by $500,000. This recommendation would open the door to a second Town Meeting or more, and will require the School Committee to reconsider their budget which could result in service cuts.
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To support the schools, vote “Yes” twice. Tomorrow, Sat. May 7, Wenham Town Election, 8 a.m. to 12 noon, Buker Gym, Wenham Town Meeting, 1 p.m., Buker Gym. Drop-off babysitting available
Follow the meeting on Twitter: www.twitter.com/hwsos. As we sometimes forget during the busy budget season, the only entity that decides Wenham’s share of school funding is YOU, the voter.
This year you have a choice. There are two numbers proposed for Wenham’s share of the school budget. You may vote for the assessment that is in the school’s budget, which represents a 0% increase to the town from last year. It does not affect town services, and it maintains level services in the schools.
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Busy Saturday morning? Vote early! Wenham voters head to the polls on Saturday morning to cast ballots in the Buker gymnasium for school committee candidates, selectboard candidates and other posts. Polling hours are 8 a.m. to 12 noon, a small window of time on a busy day.
If you know it’s going to be a push for you to get to the polls, why not vote early? You can vote absentee today at the town hall clerk’s office from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and tomorrow, Friday, May 6, from 9 a.m. to 12 noon.
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Everything you wanted to know about E&D (but were too busy to ask!).
• This Saturday at Wenham Town Meeting, and next Saturday at Hamilton Town Meeting, voters will decide between two different appropriations for the schools’ FY2012 budget.
• The schools are asking for a 0% increase to the towns from last year — a budget that is level-funded to the towns. The towns want to take $500,000 from that budget.
• Town officials maintain that cuts can be done without cutting teachers or services to our students. How? By dipping deeply into the school’s Excess and Deficiency (E&D) fund.
• The school committee says that isn’t wise and isn’t what the state recommends (the state recommends that schools maintain a minimum of 3% of its total budget in E&D).
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