THE NORTHFIELD TOWN SCHOOL District Board is pleased to present an FY11 budget which is not only 3.6% less than the current year’s overall budget, but is also less than the overall budget approved two years ago for FY09. With enrollments declining in most grade levels, the FY11 budget accounts for decreases in the following operating areas as compared to FY10: elementary school costs reduced by $89,563 (-4.35%), middle/high school costs reduced by $103,713 (- 3.09%), special education costs reduced by $122,999 (-6.11%), and other district costs reduced by $73,643 (-3.02%). These reductions result in an overall decrease to the school’s operating expenses of $389,914 or -3.95%.

The reductions to the operating budget were achieved primarily by reducing the number of employees in the district to better align those numbers with the number of students in the district. The FY11 budget reflects reductions to the following middle/high school teaching positions expressed as full-time equivalents also known as FTE: 1.0 FTE science; .4 FTE social studies; .4 FTE art; .2 FTE technology; .2 FTE business; .2 FTE family and consumer science; and .4 FTE guidance. Elementary school positions that were eliminated were .6 FTE technology specialist; and 2.0 FTE instructional assistant positions. The total positions eliminated for FY11 are 5.4 FTE which equals approximately $235,000. Declining enrollments over the last two budget years have resulted in overall personnel reductions of just over $500,000 or 8.25 FTE since FY09.

As the Board continues to keep personnel costs at a minimum, it is also closely watching the academic performance of Northfield’s students. Although the district’s academic performance is still not where the Board would like it to be in math, there are strong indications that changes to the curriculum and the on-going dedication of our teachers is resulting in much better test scores across all grade levels. For example, as cited in the Burlington Free Press on February 3, 2010, Northfield’s combined test scores on the most recent statewide exam were in the top 15 schools of the state. Our SAT scores continue to climb averaging a 10 point improvement every year for the past five years. In the elementary school, 75% of 5th graders achieve at or above their grade level in math on a recent standardized test. 85% of 3rd graders can read and analyze charts, graphs, and tables with an 80% accuracy rate. We are very proud of the hard work our students and teachers are doing to improve learning in Northfield!

In addition to the FY11 budget presented on Town Meeting Day, voters will also be asked to approve two special articles related to the surplus of $225,178 from the FY09 budget. The first special article requests permission to replenish the district’s long-term maintenance fund with $87,126. That fund is currently at zero. The second special article requests permission to spend $38,000 to replace the district’s 2003 ? ton pickup with a ? ton pick-up in order to better keep up with routine maintenance at the school. In past years, vehicle replacement was part of the regular budget. The Board believes that one-time capital expenses such as this ought to be voted on separately. From the remaining surplus funds $49,512 will be used for tax relief and $50,540 will be used to eliminate the food service deficit as approved by the voters in March 2009.

If you would like more information about the FY11 budget and the special articles being voted on at Town Meeting, please join the School Board for a public information hearing on Monday evening, March 1st at 6:30 p.m. in the Northfield Middle/High School cafeteria. Please remember to vote.