Budget ‘So Far, So Good’
Adam Fine, the principal of East Hampton High School, and Elizabeth Reveiz, the director of East Hampton’s English as a new language program, on Tuesday proposed budgets for their respective programs that they described as fiscally responsible. The school board seemed to agree.
During a budget work session, Mr. Fine pitched a curriculum budget, not including teachers’ salaries, that would increase by about $8,000, or 2.1 percent, over last year’s figure of $388,521. The curriculum budget includes such items as textbooks, workbooks, science lab materials, art supplies, fees for the grading of Regents exams, and conferences for teachers and administrators.
“I believe the budget is completely fair and appropriate,” the principal said in an email yesterday. “Teachers have budgeted for what they need to run the current high school program. I believe it completely maintains our challenging academic program. Of course, I would love to add staff and create more new programs, but at this time it is not appropriate.”
The salaries of teachers and other staff members are included separately in the administrative budget, which was presented to the board on Feb. 9. Tuesday’s session was the district’s second of the 2016-17 budget process. The school board has not made any final spending decisions yet.
The proposed high school budget would increase spending in science, social studies, and math, but decrease spending in English and foreign languages and on guidance department materials. Funding would remain the same for the business, drama, art, family and consumer sciences, music, and technology departments. The high school would keep consistent its contribution of $5,000 to the South Fork Behavioral Health Initiative, which is a joint effort with the state, county, Family Service League, and other school districts to improve students’ mental health.
Among the big-ticket items in the high school budget is a proposed $16,500 for 150 new TI-84 Plus graphing calculators, which are state-mandated for students taking Regents exams in algebra, geometry, and trigonometry. Patty Conigliaro, the school’s math coordinator, said the existing calculators are about 10 years old and on the verge of being inadequate.
“The calculators we have right now are really ancient with the graphing technology we are supposed to be supplying,” Ms. Conigliaro said. With 150 new ones, “at least we can start the process of replacing everything we have.”
Ms. Reveiz ran her programs in bilingual education last year on a budget of $39,187, and this year has proposed cutting about $2,000 from that total, a decrease of about 5.3 percent. The budget includes expenses such as bilingual library materials, computer programs, resource workbooks, magazine subscriptions, and conference and training opportunities for teachers.
“Every little bit helps,” Ms. Reveiz said. “If we can put it toward something more meaningful, then why not? We’re about streamlining.”
“We appreciate it,” said Richard Burns, the district superintendent .
Yesterday, J.P. Foster, the school board president, said that while budgeting is still in the early stages, the board left with a good feeling about the proposals from Mr. Fine and Ms. Reveiz.
“So far, so good,” Mr. Foster said. “I think it’s responsible, is probably the best way to put it. We still have 8 or 10 meetings to go . . . but from the teachers on up to the superintendent, everyone has worked really hard, knowing we are in a really tight situation.”