By Ashley M. Casey
Associate Editor
As the novel coronavirus pandemic rages on, schools across New York state will remain closed through April 29, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced Monday, April 6. School board elections and budget votes have been postponed to at least June, though an exact date has not been set.
Despite the uncertainty, Baldwinsville Central School District administrators and the BCSD Board of Education continue to work on the 2020-21 budget. The BOE held a meeting April 6 on the videoconferencing platform Zoom to discuss the budget, the COVID-19 closure and other issues.
According to administrators’ most recent iteration of the budget, the district is still facing a budget gap of $1,859,032. The tax levy is at the state-mandated tax increase cap.
Acting Superintendent Joe DeBarbieri and Assistant Superintendent of Management Jamie Rodems proposed the following personnel cuts:
• One learning coach (currently unfilled), $68,000
• One custodial supervisor (currently unfilled)
• Elementary school deans at Van Buren and Elden (will return to classrooms), $136,000
• Two school resource officers at the elementary schools (through the Onondaga County Sheriff’s Office), $240,005
Additionally, the district will not hire a replacement school business official until Rodems retires, is eliminating six teaching assistant positions by not filling retirees’ jobs, and eliminating proposed positions for a math teacher at Ray Middle School and deans at Durgee Junior High School and Baker High School.
“Keep in mind any reduction of staffing, we’re doing through attrition. We’re not laying anyone off,” Rodems said.
Rodems said he would hate for the district to cut instructional programs only to have additional state aid come through after the fact, or vice versa: the district could approve certain instructional expenses and then not have the money to pay for them.
“That’s the sword we’re standing on. There’s no easy answers,” he said.
DeBarbieri, who is acting superintendent while Matt McDonald is on a medical leave of absence, said the 2021-22 budget situation will be even more dire.
“We know that next year we’re already looking to potential retirements for our ’21-’22 budget cycle so we can do all of these changes without there being reductions and layoffs,” he said.
BOE member Denise Falso asked if the district had considered keeping one SRO for the elementary schools.
“We’d have to look for two teaching reductions in order to keep one SRO,” DeBarbieri said, adding that a reduction in teachers would lead to larger class sizes.
BOE member Matt Yager thanked Onondaga County for helping the district fill the SRO positions.
“The county did work really hard to help us out,” he said.
BOE member Jim Goulet noted districts across the state are facing the same hardships as Baldwinsville.
“Every school district and every state agency is in the same position and it might get worse before it gets better,” he said.
The BOE was originally supposed to adopt the budget April 20, but administrators said school superintendents are urging school boards to wait until after April 30 in case there are any changes to state aid. The public budget and BOE vote could take place as early as June 2, so the board is aiming to adopt the budget in early May.
Also on the agenda:
• Acting superintendent: McDonald has been on leave since the end of February and DeBarbieri was appointed acting superintendent March 2. The BOE voted to extend DeBarbieri’s appointment through May 1.
• Transportation center: The BOE voted 7-1 to deem work on the new transportation center as essential construction work. (Board member Kim Sullivan-Dec had to leave early and was not present for the vote.)
BOE member Jennifer Patruno voted no, citing concerns about worker safety and her fear that the district could be subject to a $10,000 fine for violating the state’s non-essential construction work stoppage order.
Rodems said the BCSD’s attorney had reviewed the resolution and that school district — like other municipalities — is exempt from the state’s fines. He explained that the work that remains at the bus garage largely consists of one-person tasks that contractors can accomplish while complying with social distancing practices: equipment repair and maintenance, work on cameras and access points, interior electrical and lighting work, installation of the fuel island and removal of the fuel tanks at the old bus garage.
• Meals: The district has extended its twice-weekly distribution of meals to all students, not just those already qualifying for free and reduced lunch. Rodems said the district went from distributing 900 meals during the first few weeks of school closures to 1,500 meals on April 6, with another increase expected with the Wednesday distribution.
Rodems said the school can qualify for state aid for each meal distributed.
“Hopefully it gets us to a break-even situation and it’s helping the community. I think that’s kind of a bright spot in all this,” he said, adding, “It also shows all the stress the families are under.”
