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    March 20, 2025

     

     

    Dear Parents, Students, Faculty, Staff, and Community Members,

     

    I am pleased to announce that at last night’s school board meeting the board adopted a $76,095,330 budget for the 2025-2026 school year.  This represents a 3.5% increase in spending over the 2024-2025 school year.  This budget will be presented to the voters for their consideration at the annual budget vote on May 20, 2025.

     

    This adopted budget includes, among other things, the following items:

     

    • A new full time athletic trainer
    • A new unarmed security guard to be stationed mostly in the high school
    • Three new buses and a suburban to update our fleet
    • A $3,000 stipend to pay for a continuing education coordinator
    • The addition of two part-time middle school monitors

     

    This budget reduces spending in many departments/areas and it eliminates/reduces staff positions including:

     

    • A full time middle school social studies position
    • A full time district integrated technology position
    • A full time high school ELA position
    • Two vacant elementary special education positions
    • One account clerk typist in the middle school (due to retirement)
    • A reduction of Project Lead the Way positions from 1.4 to 1.0 (due to retirement)
    • Elimination of Lenape Enrichment Summer School (previously paid for by an expired grant)

     

    These staffing reductions are made possible and necessary by our significant decrease in student enrollment over the past few years.

     

     

    While we truly regret the loss of three valued members of our team, we believe that we have made staffing decisions that will allow us to reduce expenses while preserving programs for students.

     

    Despite a tax levy increase of 4.5%, significant spending cuts across many departments, and over $800,000 saved by reducing staff,  we still do not have sufficient anticipated revenue to cover our anticipated expenses.  In order to close the budget gap, the school board has agreed to use $2,354,000 of fund balance (savings) to balance the budget.

     

    Here is a summary of the most important financial plans for this proposed budget

     

    • The Tax Cap will be 4.35%
    • This will increase the tax levy from $49,346,699 (2024-2025) to $51,490,831 (2025-2026)
    • We will use $2,354,000 in fund balance and reserves to help cover expenses
    • We will eliminate $813,551 of expenses including the positions of three current employees
    • The total budget the voters will vote on is $76,095,330
    • This is a 3.5% increase in spending over last year.

     

     

    We realize that this is a very quick summary of the budget and voters will want to know much more about the specifics of the plan so they can make the best decision possible for their families as they go to the voting booth on May 20th.  Much more information will be coming out between now and the budget vote including budget presentations at community sites, a mandated budget hearing on May 7th, and budget booklets that will be mailed to the homes of each family.

    In the short term, if you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to reach out to me and I will do my best to answer them.

     

    Finally, on behalf of the school board and myself, I would like to thank all those who came out last night and to those who sent us emails and gave feedback on the proposed budget.  We are pleased with the budget that has been adopted and we are thankful for the community engagement that contributed to its creation.

     

    Best wishes,

     

    Stephen Gratto - Superintendent