2004-05 school budget presented at hearing

by Larry Austin
Grand Island Dispatch, May 14, 2004

With the 2004-05 school budget, the Grand Island School District is trying to strike a balance, Superintendent of Schools Dr. Thomas Ramming said Monday, "between the interests of the residents on Grand Island who pay taxes and generously support our schools, and the needs of our kids."

Ramming's comments came during the Board of Education's budget hearing Monday that preceded the regular monthly meeting. According to state regulation, the board must present its budget to the public at a hearing prior to the vote on May 18. The board of education made no changes to the budget at the meeting.

Beginning in December and ending March 29, the BOE put together a budget after three and a half months of deliberation and "line-by-line" analysis, Ramming said. This year, the budget-building process and budget forums revealed the community wanted the district to maintain current class sizes, academic programs, and after-school programs such as sports and music, he added.

"Those are very important interests to this community," Ramming said, "and this budget leaves those programs intact."

The tax rate increases an estimated 8.9 percent over last year, which translates to $2.92 per $1,000 of assessed valuation. The $40,612,262 budget is an increase of 10.42 percent over 2003-04. Broken down, the budget includes $29,159,215 in program costs, $3,613,227 in administrative costs, and $7,839,820 in capital costs. About 80 percent of the money can be considered personnel expenses, Ramming said.

Increases in the budget are attributable to state mandates, retirement and health insurance costs, labor contracts, and energy costs.

According to the district's figures, Grand Island's per pupil expenditures, at $9,805, are lower than the average of other Erie County schools.

Ramming's presentation touted the school's value for the money. The superintendent noted recent student achievement on standardized tests, and that Business First, a weekly business newspaper in Buffalo, rated Grand Island in the top 20 of Western New York school districts. Though the newspaper is not the highest authority, he said, its rankings are based on student assessments.

Regarding proposed increases for capital improvements to the technology infrastructure, this year 95 percent of the computers at the school are less than seven years old, a large step forward from last year, Ramming said, and a large chunk of the cost of upgrading the school's technological capabilities is reimbursable from state and federal government. The district is playing catch-up with other schools in the technology department, he said.
"Now we're hoping that the public will support the budget so we can finish this project in terms of bringing our technology up to speed by the end of the 2004-2005 school year," Ramming said.

One added as-needed teacher is also included in the budget.

Proposition 2 on the ballot will ask voters to approve or reject the purchase of seven new buses for $527,500.

As an aside during his presentation, Ramming noted the boys lacrosse field's scoreboard, visible from the cafeteria where the board meeting was held, and a 17-9 advantage for Grand Island over Nichols, a perennial lacrosse powerhouse. The school has supported championship teams this year in soccer, football, and basketball, Ramming continued, a strong showing for a school the size of GI.

Ramming's assertions about the quality of the school's music program were buttressed later in the regular BOE meeting, when three GI music students - Margaret Kiehl, Timothy Szczykutowicz, and Matt Fields - thanked the board for allowing their musical groups to participate in Grand National Adjudicators Invitational in April. Martin Allen, music teacher at GI, called the event "the Super Bowl of high school bands and orchestras."

More than 100 GI students made the 16-hour bus trip to Tennessee to perform with groups from 14 different states.

The concert band received a "superior" rating, the highest rating given at the event. The string orchestra, under the direction of Debra Remson, received an "excellent" rating performing in the most difficult division. Also performing in the most difficult division was the wind ensemble, who received a "superior" rating, their highest rating ever.

"It was a pretty a pretty exciting day for us because it was the most competitive festival ever," Allen told the board.

"I‚ve never seen commitment in the wind ensemble the way I saw it in April," said Kiehl, president of the wind ensemble. Kiehl was also among five Grand Island soloists honored at the event.

The district vote will take place in the high school from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.

On May 18, voters will also select two of the five candidates for the Board of Education to fill three-year terms and one to fill a two-year term.

The candidates seekings seats on the board include George Casey, James Milne, Jery Lynn Schopp, Myrna F. Blair and Michael Dallessandro.

An insert in last Tuesday's Pennysaver listed all the facts about the budget and who the candidates are.