The Atlantic School District’s Board of Education held a public hearing Wednesday evening with regard the District’s proposed 2016-17 School Calendar and the 2016-17 Certified Budget. During the calendar portion of the hearing, K-5 Teacher/Librarian Janice Dickerson commented that she was fine with the way it is, but that she would like to have had the Board and Administration communicate more with the Teachers before springing the calendar onto the agenda for action.
She said in the past, options were placed in the teacher’s lounge to review, but in the last two years “It’s become a secret, where we don’t know what is going to happen.” She said it used to openly posted for any staff member to look at. “These things,” she said, “are what makes the moral of our buildings go down. When you don’t value the opinion of your staff and the experience that they bring, too looking at what’s best for students…”
Dickerson said last year, when they taught up to Dec. 23rd, “It did not make for the best education of our students.” The proposed calendar for the upcoming year has the first day of classes starting August 23rd, 2016, with the last day of classes for all students (except seniors) being May 25th, 2017. Seniors’ last day will be May 17, 2017.
With regard to the proposed Certified budget, which amounts to just over $26-million, no one spoke in opposition to the budget or its nearly 60-cent increase in property tax valuation, but Board member Ali Bruckner questioned Business Manager Mary Beth Fast about what was included in the Student Support Services line-item, which went from $472,032 in 2015 to $1.1-million in the proposed FY 2016-17 budget, and Student Transportation, which increased from $560,000 in the re-estimated FY 2016 budget to $1.35 million in the 2017 budget year. She wanted to see a detailed, less confusing explanation of those services.
Board member Jenny Williams agreed. Mary Beth Fast said not approving the budget, would mean re-publishing it and holding another public hearing, and financially impact the district in that it wouldn’t receive the funding it anticipates. With the new budget, the proposed tax rate is $15.83 per $1,000 taxable valuation.
The Board Wednesday night also approved 2016 Summer Capital Projects recommendations by Superintendent Dr. Amstein, the bulk of which includes $385,000 for Bus purchases, $180,000 for Phase 2 of the High School Heat Pump replacement project, $125,00 each for the annual payment with regard to High School laptop computers, and playground equipment at Washington Elementary. Those, and other, smaller projects amount to an expenditure of nearly $1.1-million.
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