How Are Other NJ School Districts Coping?

With a drastic reduction in state aid inflicting painful cuts to the school budget, many in Bernards Township are wondering how to make up the gap.

The Bernards Board of Education will reveal its revised budget at a public hearing on March 31. The district however has tipped its hat that it is looking at several options for closing a $3.9 million gap caused by a loss of 82% of state aid. In order to make up the further losses, the Board will also be looking at several options including: switching to an eight-period day at Ridge High School, moving to a half-day kindergarten and increasing property taxes above the 4% tax cap.

In addition to piecemeal changes, Basking Ridge Superintendent Valerie Goger said, "When trying to compensate for such a large loss of state aid, we are examining the entire Pre-K through 12th grade program, in both general and special education."

But how are other districts dealing and how are constituents reacting? Most, it would appear, are spreading the pain across programs, making smaller cuts here and there—although personnel is taking the biggest hit. Most are raising their tax levy beyond what they had anticipated. And while some have or are planning to negotiate salary freezes, a number are locked into teacher salary increases of 3.9% for the coming school year.

In South Orange and Maplewood many are mobilizing to petition and protest on the state level. But others are wondering if there isn't a different way to cut.

The district made up for an unexpected shortfall of $4.4 million—resulting from an 80.9% cut in state aid—by further cutting non-personnel items, anticipating a freeze in teacher salaries and a 1.5% contribution to their health care, and, finally, by cutting 76 special education paraprofessionals and outsourcing the jobs to a County agency at 50% of salary and no benefits. Some feel that the cuts disproportionately target and impact special education.

In Ridgewood, the district was forced to close a $6.33 million budget gap—the biggest in Ridgewood schools' 116-year history. Budgets were slashed across the board in Ridgewood's six elementary, two middle and one high school. After losing 100 percent of state formula aid—totaling $2.9 million—Ridgewood cut programs that school member Sheila Brogan said "tear at the fabric of our schools." Special education, visual and musical arts, and the libraries—which residents recently voted to expand in a December referendum vote—were severely hampered. Although the school board is considering a waiver—both increasing taxes and alleviating cuts—it approved its preliminary budget March 22 and sent it to Bergen County officials.

The Caldwell-West Caldwell School District had out of a $39 million budget; however, it's believed extraordinary aid—approximately $430,000—will be maintained as well as about a $112,000 allocation to service non-public school students, according to Ronald Skopak, the district's business administrator and board secretary. The district will be increasing its tax levy by 3.71 percent hike—under the 4 percent cap (South Orange Maplewood is proposing a 3.48% levy increase).

According to Caldwell-West Caldwell Superintendent Daniel Gerardi, more than $2 million in cutbacks needed to be made since January from the district's original budget plan. Among the most significant are the elimination of 25 special education aides, nine non-athletic extra-curricular activities, six high school athletic coaching positions, three high school teachers, two resource room teachers along with one elementary school teacher, a custodian, a maintenance worker and a secretary.

The West Essex Regional School District announced Monday night it doesn't plan to make any reductions in personnel, but voted to place a freeze on all wages. Faced with a $1.5 million reduction—nearly 90 percent—in state aid, the district introduced a preliminary budget of approximately $32.5 million. A memorandum was passed that has the cooperation of all bargaining units that would include a zero percent pay raise and maintain current salaries next year (including the superintendent Thomas McMahon). The stipulations within the memorandum could save the district $700,000—approximately half of the state aid lost, according to Board President Joyce Candido.

With all $246,659 of state aid lost, the North Caldwell School District presented a $12,241,923 budget for 2010-11 academic year to the county superintendent that was returned with more reductions needed, according to Victor Hayek, the district's business administrator. Hayek said a finalized budget would not be completed until Friday. 

Livingston will lose $4,312, 693 in state aid for 2010-2011—or a 100 percent cut from the current amount in state aid the district receives and roughly 5 percent of its total budget. (Livingston ranks first in terms of dollar loss out of the 59 other districts in the state that are slated to lose 100 percent of state aid, according to Department of Education figures.) Livingston's proposed 2010-2011 budget of $98,437,330 includes steep cuts with a possible 85 RIFs (Reduction in Force) in the district across the board affecting aides, teachers, administrators, media specialists, guidance counselors and bus drivers, among others, as well as the possible elimination of popular programs such as middle school athletic teams and the 6th Grade Outdoor Education program. (One group formed to save the sports in the schools.) Non-mandated busing and early arrival aides could also be eliminated.

In terms of dollar amounts for cost savings, the revised budget proposes changing the district's health insurance plan from a private carrier to the state's plan for a savings of $700,000 and reducing athletic program stipends by 25 percent, among other cuts such as decreasing transportation costs by $350,000. Still, there are other cost-saving measures; by eliminating the 6th Grade Outdoor Education program, the district plans to save $100,000, for example.

In addition to losing 100% of state aid, the school district in Madison is also having its usual debt service contribution reduced by 15 percent. The district is making up the shortfall by spreading the pain across the district.

"We don't want to single out any one or two areas for major sacrifices," Madison superintendent Richard Noonan said. "We are going to ask everyone to shoulder the pain, shoulder the sacrifice. And that means that when it comes to staff reductions, which are necessary this year to get us within cap, every group–administrators, supervisors, teachers, teaching assistants, custodians, secrataries–we're looking at every group in terms of a contribution and sharing the sacrifice."

Some of the key staffing reductions detailed in a slideshow by Noonan were the elimination of the supervisor of visual and performing arts and the supervisor of special education–both district-wide positions.

Things are very different in Chatham where, the budget contains an 8.9 percent tax levy increase—a number that would have been lower, according to board members, if the state had not cut its aid to the district by 86 percent, or $2.58 million. The tax levy, however, is the total amount the school district raises in local property taxes; it does not specifically have to do with the amount each individual homeowner pays in taxes. The average borough homeowner would see a 3.4 percent tax increase, while the average township homeowner will see a 2.6 percent spike.

The Chatham budget eliminates several teaching positions, such as a special education supervisor, a fifth grade teacher and a district technology coach. The district will also save money by restructuring its central office and by cutting $1 million in capital projects. All those cuts will save the district a total of $1.7 million.

The district is adding 11 teaching positions—four in the high school, four in the elementary schools, two in the middle school and one who will split time between the high school and middle school—that will cost $660,000.

The Summit school levy proposed tax increase is 5.8%. The district has not released details of the cuts that will amount to about $1.4 million. Summit's school board is not elected.

In Millburn the Board of Education has proposed to cut, among other things, five out of 11 supervisor positions and all of its 22 part-time instructional aides. The board intends to use $3.9 million in surplus and leftover construction funds in order to keep the tax rate down to a 1.3 percent raise. But parents are debating if the tax rate should increase in order to save the supervisor positions while offering other suggested cuts, including to courtesy busing.

In Westfield, the proposed budget includes 30 layoffs, with most centered on classroom positions. Ten paraprofressional jobs are being eliminated, along with three librarians, guidance counselors at each intermediate school, two fine arts teachers, a basic skills teacher, six elementary school teachers, a kindergarten teacher, a high school special education teacher and a high school math teacher. One secretary, administrator, and custodian are currently being slated for layoffs under the proposal. Stipends were eliminated for the team coordinators at each intermediate school, along with the health coordinator position.

Athletics are currently slated to lose intramural sports at the high school and intermediate schools, along with the loss of all interscholastic sports in the eighth grade. The proposal also eliminates several arts programs at the intermediate school level. The fall dramas at Roosevelt and Edison are targeted for elimination along with the discontinuation of the spring drama competition at the high school.

The board is proposing the implementation of a student activity fee to offset the costs of the district club and sports. The proposal includes a plan to eliminate the purchase of new library books for the school system, along with reducing school supplies and not purchasing new computers. Specifics on the savings can be seen here.

Westfield created its budget under the terms of a new teacher contract that awards 3.9-percent annual raises and a new insurance co-pay. The contract was approved earlier this month.

In Springfield, most of the cuts are coming from the general fund, which is decreasing by $1,709,350. In the absence of the $1.9 million in state aid, the district is proposing a tax levy increase of 3.97 percent.
 The tentative budget projects that three administrative positions and two secretarial jobs will be cut. While the district projects a slight decrease in overall enrollment, expenditures such as benefits, out of district placement tuition and transportation costs, are driving costs up. Taxpayers, according to the projection, can expect to pay $91 more per $100,000 of assessed home value than they did the previous year as a net tax increase.

Scotch Plains-Fanwood officials proposed a budget Monday night that would pass $1 million on to the taxpayers and cut another $2.3 million from operations, including two administrative positions ($145,000), four district staff ($244,136) and four secretarial roles ($185,000). In addition, summer/other salary would be cut by $147,300; contracted services by $187,500; maintenance repairs by $25,000; supplies by $29,000; equipment by $45,000; construction by $50,000, and other salaries and benefits by $1,253,713. The district must determine how exactly to cut that last $1.2 million, but the business administrator stated that the money is the equivalent of 25 teachers losing their jobs. 

The budget, as proposed, had taxes increasing by $295 in Scotch Plains and $440 in Fanwood for the average homeowner.

The board voted down a teachers' contract that proposed a 3.9 percent increase for union salaries in 2009-2010 and a 3.5 percent increase for 2010-2011; all employees contributing $250 toward their health care premium; the elimination of the Aetna HMO health care option; additional lunchtime supervision; and a reduction of daytime teacher conferences to three days from four. Changes to the budget could be made now that contract negotiations must continue.

In Cranford, a near 78 percent cut of state aid to spurred the Cranford Board of Education to approve a preliminary budget that will cut 50 personnel and raise taxes. The new budget will eliminate 17 part-time and 33 full-time employee positions, including 12 teachers, three administrative personnel, five support staff, and 13 classroom assistants. The budget necessitates a 3.25% tax levy increase.

Contributing to this report: Sam Fran Scavuzzo of Ridgewood Patch, Whitney Rhodes of Cranford Patch, Mike Pignataro of The Caldwells Patch, Kelly Feeney of Livingston Patch, Zach Subar of Chatham Patch, Jen Connic of Millburn Patch, Nathan Susanj of Basking Ridge Patch, and Rick Burchfield of Madison Patch.