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Voters Approve 2018-2019 School Budget

Voters Approve 2018-2019 proposed budget for City School District of New Rochelle

The $270,381,160 spending plan maintains existing programs, invests in social-emotional supports, safety and security measures, and adds teaching positions

NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y. (June 19, 2018) – Residents today approved the City School District of New Rochelle’s proposed $270,381,160 budget for the 2018-2019 school year that stays within the state tax cap. The plan preserves programming and includes funds for several positions and safety measures.

The vote was 1,757 – 1,004. The results remain unofficial pending the counting of absentee ballots.

The cap on the increase in the tax levy – the amount of money to be raised by property taxes – was 2.231 percent. The budget kept the increase to that level by cutting $3.4 million from the tax levy that was included in the $272.8 million budget that voters rejected in May.

The tax levy in the now-approved budget is $209,002,162. That is an increase of $4,560,520 over the levy of $204,441,642 in the 2017-2018 budget.

“This budget will serve the District well,” said Superintendent Dr. Brian Osborne. “By allocating resources responsibly, the budget preserves our programs, provides for necessary additions and also protects the fiscal health that we have worked so hard to improve in recent years.”

The newly adopted budget carries an estimated tax rate of $785.72 per $1,000 of assessed value. That’s an increase of $21 per $1,000, or 2.75 percent. The current rate is $764.72 per $1,000. The tax bill for a home assessed at $16,000, the city average, will be an estimated $12,571.52, an increase of $335.95. Such a home has an estimated market value of $695,000.

All necessary programs, faculty and staff positions currently in place for this school year are maintained in the proposed budget. It adds four school counselors at New Rochelle High School, one in each house. It also adds teaching positions to address pressing student needs. They include 2.1 English as a New Language teacher FTEs split among Albert Leonard Middle School, Isaac E. Young Middle School and William B. Ward Elementary School); three special education teachers (one each at New Rochelle High School, ALMS and IEYMS); and one special education teaching assistant and one special education aide (both at the high school).

A sum of $200,000 is included for additional safety measures that have been recommended by the Task Force on Reducing Violence in the Lives of Children and Youth and that will be recommended in a security assessment being conducted by the global firm Guidepost Solutions.

About the City School District of New Rochelle

With nearly 11,000 students in 10 schools, the City School District of New Rochelle, through an active partnership amongst community, parents, staff and students, provides a high-quality and challenging education for every child, in a safe, nurturing environment that embraces rich diversity and drives success.

City School District of New Rochelle
ALMS PTA Hosts Science Festival

Science experiments, games and exhibits enthralled students, parents and teachers at the Albert Leonard Middle School PTA Science Festival on June 5. Hosted by the PTA's STEAM Committee, it was the first science festival at the school in recent history. Among those taking part in the educational festivities was Albot, a robot created by the LEGO League Robotics Club at ALMS.

"The festival was a huge success and exceeded any and all initial expectations," said ALMS Principal John Barnes. "We give great thanks to the PTA steering committee who secured the grant and worked so hard to plan every aspect of the event. In addition, we had many Albert Leonard Middle School faculty members who participated in the event from planning to volunteering, and we thank the many fabulous high school, middle school and elementary school students who volunteered their time setting up, hosting experiments, distributing food and sharing their work with us."

Participating in the Science Festival were: the BioBus, which brings science exploration to students; IDEA New Rochelle, which promotes arts and technology; Mercy College's Center for STEM Education; It Takes a Village to Educate a Child, which offers STEM camps; We Future Cycle; Sarah Lawrence College Center for the Urban River at Beczak; and MacInspires. Interactive tables offered demonstrations of DNA extraction, shibori tie-dye technique, physics experiments and more.

The event was part of a national PTA program in which 30 schools across the United States were awarded a grant from Bayer.
City School District of New Rochelle
Seniors Receive Awards in Two Ceremonies

New Rochelle High School seniors received awards for academics, service, overcoming obstacles and many other achievements, all to the cheers and applause of classmates and family members in the Whitney M. Young Jr. Auditorium on Monday. The honors were given out in two sessions, the Senior Awards Assembly in the morning and the Senior Awards Ceremony in the evening.

"Seniors, congratulations for all of your honors," English teacher Lakia Robinson said after she was chosen by the class as the honored faculty member in the morning session. "May you continue to explore and excel, continue to push the boundaries and inspire everyone around you."

"Our students have proven to be talented, resilient and ambitious," said Dr. Magda Parvey, Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction, during the evening ceremony. "Our students are service-oriented, activists and leaders in their own right."

The awards come from each school academic department, community organizations and private scholarship funds. In addition to academics, awards were given out in a wide range of categories, such as political activism and recruiting blood donors.

For a full list of the awards, what they are given for and who received them, click here.

City School District of New Rochelle
IEYMS Choir Earns Second in Regional Competition

The Isaac E. Young Middle School's Castle Choir sang their way to second place in the regional Music in the Parks competition in Connecticut, performing "Alterations" by Andrea Ramsey and "Dona Nobis Pacem" by Mary Lynn Lightfoot.

Thirty-six IEYMS seventh and eighth graders performed in the festival at Central Connecticut State University on June 1. They competed with 12 other middle school groups. After the performance the IEYMS singers enjoyed the afternoon in the Nutmeg State, visiting Lake Compounce amusement park in Bristol.
City School District of New Rochelle
Watch May 30 Task Force Meeting Here

Dr. Jonathan Brice, chair of the Task Force on Reducing Violence in the Lives of Children and Youth, presented the Task Force's report of recommendations to the New Rochelle Board of Education, the New Rochelle City Council and the community on May 30 in City Council chambers. View the meeting by clicking on the link below.

Special thanks to the City of New Rochelle for recording the meeting and providing the video.

http://newrochelle.granicus.com/MediaPlayer.php?publish_id=a8286dba-6479-11e8-8074-00505691de41

City School District of New Rochelle
Adopted 2018-19 Budget Stays Within Tax Cap
The New Rochelle Board of Education tonight (5/29) adopted a new 2018-2019 budget that stays within the state tax cap while preserving educational programs and allowing for additional student social-emotional support and safety measures.

With input and direction from the Board of Education, the budget, proposed by the Superintendent, removed $3.4 million from the tax levy that was included in the $272.8 million spending plan rejected by voters on May 15. The reduction was needed to produce a budget with a tax levy increase that stays at or below the state cap of 2.231 percent for New Rochelle.

"This budget protects the District's core strategic priorities and avoids any unnecessary cuts that would directly impact students," Superintendent Dr. Brian Osborne said. "It also allows the District to stay within the tax cap and maintain the fiscal health that we have worked so hard to improve."

The measures total $3,398,617 in savings, reductions and additional revenue. They are:

$736,867: Foregoing the planned addition of three psychologists and three social workers.

$642,219: Foregoing the inclusion of several contingent positions placed in the budget for unexpected needs.

$200,000: A reduction from the initial $420,000 set aside to implement safety and security recommendations from the Task Force on Reducing Violence in the Lives of Children and Youth and from Guidepost Solutions. (The proposed budget allocates $200,000 for the recommendations.)

$598,778: Savings from a retirement incentive offered earlier this year that were not known when the initial budget was presented.

$245,069: Savings in technology purchasing by eliminating redundancy and products that are under-used.

$975,684: Appropriation from the employee retirement system reserve fund.

The new plan retains the addition of four high school counselors, one in each house, to address the need for social and emotional development. It would also retain the addition of 2.1 full-time equivalent (FTE) English as a New Language teachers divided among Albert Leonard Middle School, Isaac E. Young Middle School and William B. Ward Elementary School; three special education teachers (one each at the high school and each of the middle schools); and a teaching assistant and education aide, both in special education, also for the high school.

A public hearing on the budget will be held June 5, also at 7 p.m. in the high school library. The plan will be put to a public vote on June 19.

If voters reject the second budget, the District must adopt a contingency budget, which restricts the tax levy to the same size as this year's - $204,441,642. To reach that level, the District would need to cut about $4.5 million more - or nearly $8 million from the initial proposed budget. The District would need to consider measures such as forgoing capital expenses for security infrastructure and cafeteria improvements, eliminating non-mandated transportation, reducing athletics and extracurricular activities, cutting staff positions, increasing class sizes and diminishing elective class offerings.

Find the proposed budget here.
City School District of New Rochelle
Message on Task Force Report from Board President Rachel Relkin

The following is an email that New Rochelle Board of Education President Rachel Relkin sent to the community on the morning of May 25, 2018:

Dear New Rochelle Community,

I am writing to inform you that the Task Force on Reducing Violence in the Lives of Children and Youth has released its final report of recommendations. You can find the report on the City School District of New Rochelle website at www.nred.org.

For anyone who would like to learn more about the recommendations, Dr. Jonathan Brice, the Task Force chair, will present the report at a public meeting at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, May 30, in the New Rochelle City Council Chambers, City Hall, 515 North Avenue.

This is an important milestone for our community, and the Board of Education looks forward to delving into the recommendations provided. In the meantime, I want to thank Dr. Brice and the dozens of community members who devoted their time, knowledge, experience and dedication toward this vital project. I would also like to thank the members of the public who offered their questions and comments in emails to the Task Force and in the April 14 public meeting.

I am grateful that we can all work together to continue building a community where our children and teenagers can feel secure, experience the joy of learning and grow into healthy young adults.

Sincerely,

Rachel Relkin

President

New Rochelle Board of Education

City School District of New Rochelle
Watch Tonight's Board of Education Meeting

View the New Rochelle Board of Education meeting at 7 p.m. tonight here:

http://nred.granicus.com/ViewPublisher.php?view_id=2

City School District of New Rochelle
Message to the Trinity Community from the Board of Education

The Board of Education sent the following message to the Trinity Elementary School community today:

Dear Trinity community,

We are writing to share an update regarding the principalship at Trinity Elementary School.

We have received your many emails and messages about the selection process to fill the Principal position at Trinity Elementary School. While we don’t normally say anything about personnel decisions – and while there are serious constraints on what we can say under any circumstances – the comments and concerns that have been raised have been heartfelt, and deserve a serious response. We have advised the Superintendent that we will not be ready to vote on his recommendation until we are assured your concerns were given due consideration in the selection process.

We recognize there has been an outpouring of support for Michael Hilderbrand. He deserves it. As you know, he was the engaged, deeply committed, and very popular House IV Principal at New Rochelle High School before coming to Trinity; and in the period of several months he has endeared himself to students, parents and faculty at Trinity School. In multiple ways he has modeled the best leadership practices and behaviors we hope to see in our administrators.

The Board of Education appoints building principals upon the recommendation of the Superintendent. This is not unique to New Rochelle; it is a requirement of New York State Education Law. The candidate who has been recommended for the position has deep experience both with curriculum and as an elementary school principal. If that person is finally approved by the Board of Education, it will be because the recommendation was based on a rigorous process, not because we do not share in your affection for Mr. Hildebrand.

Please allow us to work through this process, and be assured we do not take our role in this decision lightly.

Board of Education of the City School District of New Rochelle

City School District of New Rochelle
Letter from Dr. Osborne on 2018-2019 Budget
The following letter was emailed to the community from Superintendent Dr. Brian Osborne yesterday, on the eve of today's (May 15) vote on the budget:

New Rochelle community,

The proposed $272.8 million 2018-19 school budget that voters in New Rochelle will decide on tomorrow (May 15) has become a topic of spirited debate on social media and elsewhere, resulting in much confusing information circulating in the community.

There is an FAQ on the district website that presents the facts on several topics about the budget that are of interest to residents in the City School District of New Rochelle. Below are a few of these Q and A. Please review these items, and to learn more about the plan, find a wealth of information, including a comprehensive Q&A, by visiting http://www.nred.org/

What is the tax impact of the budget?

The proposed tax levy increase is 3.89%. Based on the tax assessor’s estimates, the tax rate would increase an estimated 4.14 percent. That would result in an increase in the annual tax bill of $507.68 for a home with a market value of about $695,000, the city median (based on the average home assessment in the city of $16,000.) The new tax rate would be $798.50 per $1,000 of assessed value. That’s an increase of $31.73 per $1,000 over the current rate of $766.77 per $1,000. The tax bill for a home assessed at the city average would be $12,776, up from $12,268.32 this year. Owners of less expensive homes would see smaller increases and lower bills; more expensive homes would generate larger increases in the annual tax bill.

What will happen to STAR Exemptions?

The STAR tax exemptions will not be affected by the budget. If the budget is adopted with a tax levy increase higher than the cap, taxpayers who receive Basic STAR will lose, for one year, an additional benefit, the property tax relief credit. The credit is calculated as a portion of a taxpayer’s Basic STAR savings and is offered in addition to those STAR benefits.

What happens if the budget fails?

If the budget is not passed by voters, the Board of Education has the option to adopt a second plan to be put to voters on June 19. To stay within the District’s tax cap of a 2.231 percent increase in the tax levy, $3.4 million would need to be cut from the currently proposed budget.

What’s a contingency budget?

If voters defeat an adopted budget on the second try, the District must adopt a contingency budget. For that, the amount of money to be raised by taxes must be no higher than that of the current budget – $204.4 million. To reach that level, the District would have to cut nearly $8 million from the current plan.

Also, the District would be limited to funding only those costs deemed absolutely necessary to operate and maintain schools.

Measures that would be considered include:

Stopping the transfer of more than $2.4 million to capital funds – money earmarked for security improvements and to update and improve school cafeterias.

Elimination of any transportation not mandated for the operation of the schools.

Barring use of buildings or fields by any outside group unless the entire cost was covered by the group.

Cutting athletics and other extra-curricular activities.

Cuts in staff positions, leading to larger class sizes, fewer elective offerings and reduced student support services.

Shouldn’t we use additional fund balance or reserves to lower this year’s tax levy?

A detailed explanation of the purpose and usage of reserve funds is found in the district’s draft reserve plan. To briefly summarize:

The budget does propose using $1.4 million of the District’s fund balance of $10.9 million.

Fund balances and reserves are important for a district’s fiscal solvency. Appropriate balances and reserves enable a district to secure a favorable credit rating, withstand economic downturn, and protect against known liabilities. The use of fund balances should be limited to protracted economic recessions. During the next economic downturn, the District will need the fund balance to stabilize educational programs and taxes.

While the District is financially stronger than just a few years ago, it faces the same daunting challenges as other school districts across the state. Generally, school districts are facing rising fixed costs that are outpacing slower revenue growth, namely state aid revenue. As a result, many school districts are in the unfortunate position of spending down their fund balances. This is a slippery slope. A low fund balance puts pressure on the quality of a school district’s credit ratings, making borrowing for capital expenses more expensive. By improving our credit rating, we have already saved taxpayers $500,000 in borrowing costs.

Using additional fund balance or reserves in the 2018-2019 budget would merely push the budget gap created by the tax cap to the next fiscal year. At that time, the District would need to address how to fund those continuing programs and operations without the appropriate resources. Utilization of reserves and fund balance requires a long-term view to maintain proper tax stabilization. It is very important when using reserves or any fund balance to keep in mind that using these funds for ongoing operations creates a long-term need to fund continuing programs and operations.

Michael Borges, Executive Director of the New York State Association of School Business Officials, as quoted in The Journal News, says; “This year you’re seeing a smattering of budgets where you are having program cuts and layoffs, which is due to school districts drawing on their reserves and a low state aid increase. This may be the tip of the iceberg this year.”

Factors causing districts to attempt tax cap overrides include a 2018-2019 state budget providing one of the lowest year-over-year increases in Foundation Aid for schools, and districts enrolling more students with disabilities, those whose native language isn’t English and economically disadvantaged students, Borges told the news organization.

Why not use the $3.5 million noted as anticipated Tax Certiorari (tax cert) payments in the 2018-19 Budget Statement to reduce this year’s tax levy?

The reserve fund for anticipated tax certiorari (tax cert) payments is not intended for use to lower the tax levy. The anticipated payment of $3.5 million is an estimate determined in conjunction with the City of New Rochelle tax assessor projecting tax claims that may be settled during the 2018-2019 school year. Typically, a tax cert case combines claims made for each of several years. The prior years’ funds are locked in the reserves and are not available to be applied to the 2018-2019 budget to reduce taxes. In fact, the use of tax certiorari reserve funds is governed by Education Law Sec. 3651(1-a) and is set up to be used for a specific purpose. It may not be used to finance ongoing operations

The Tax Cert Reserve is funded each year from operating surplus, when possible. (In 2014-15, for instance, no such fund existed, forcing the District to borrow money for the prior year’s tax cert payments.) Based on past settlement rates and consultation with the City’s tax assessor, an appropriate reserve amount is calculated to be $0.30 for every $1.00 of existing claims. Funds must be used within four years of being placed in reserve, unless there are claims that are still unsettled.

Each year a separate sub-account of the reserve fund is created that can only be drawn upon for claims filed during that year. A tax cert claim must be filed in the year that the property in question is believed to be over-assessed. A claim cannot be filed for a previous year.

The settlement year is a future date, but the money will be paid from the reserve claim year to cover the outflow of cash. If the account for that claim year has already been used and no balance remains, the payment for the tax settlement will need come from the current year’s budget. This will require a budgetary transfer and a reduction of funds available for the current year’s program and operations.

Could the budget process be more transparent?

The proposed budget, with extensive supplemental information, is available on the District website, www.nred.org. Many costs are broken down by school, including instructional salaries, textbooks, computer equipment and supplies and materials such as copy paper, crayons and glassware for science laboratories. Staffing levels and projections are also posted on the site. Some costs, such as special education programs or computer software, are budgeted as a district expense rather than a school expense because they support districtwide programs.

The budget process is far more transparent than in the past. This is evident from various items, including:

1) Vigorous zero-based budget process resulting in a zero-based budget document that is available to the public.

2) Multiple community meetings open to the public and live-streamed for those who could not attend.

3) Lengthy public budget presentations prepared by the administrators and staff members who actually prepared the various sections of the budget (i.e. assistant superintendents, directors, principals, etc.).

Thank you for your interest in making an informed decision, and please remember to vote tomorrow, May 15, between 7 a.m. and 9 p.m.

Sincerely,

Brian G. Osborne

Superintendent

City School District of New Rochelle
City School District of New Rochelle

Trinity Elementary School

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District Announcements

Voters Approve 2018-2019 School Budget

ALMS PTA Hosts Science Festival

Seniors Receive Awards in Two Ceremonies

IEYMS Choir Earns Second in Regional Competition

Watch May 30 Task Force Meeting Here

Adopted 2018-19 Budget Stays Within Tax Cap

Message on Task Force Report from Board President Rachel Relkin

Watch Tonight's Board of Education Meeting

Message to the Trinity Community from the Board of Education

Letter from Dr. Osborne on 2018-2019 Budget

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