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| WPS Budget Held to Guideline |
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The School Committee unanimously approved the
WPS FY08 Operating Budget, representing a 5.5%
increase over last year. This increase meets the
guideline provided by Advisory Committee, intended to
keep cost increases down across town.
The WPS Administration presented a
"Recommended Budget" which
provided for level
services, in addition to needed improvements. The
recommended budget however, would require a
5.98% increase.
After some debate, the School Committee
decided to hold the budget to the guideline increase of
5.5%. The items cut from the recommended budget
included library books, increased technology support
at the middle school and the secondary ELL (English
Language Learners) program.
Additionally, though presented as a level
services budget, class size in the 6th grade will rise.
Additional teaching staff was considered in order to
keep the class size from exceeding the guideline of 22
students per class, requiring a significant budget
increase. (The 6th grade is organized in a house
system; the addition of a new section requires the
hiring of 3+ teachers and special educators.)
Ultimately, the WPS Administration decided to wait
until FY09 to add an additional 6th grade section to
accommodate the continuing increase in enrollment.
The School Committee presented the
Operating Budget to the Advisory Committee on
January 17th. There remains the potential for
additional adjustments or cuts to be made prior to the
final presentation at the Annual Town Meeting in
March.
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| Consolidated Town Budget |
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All town boards have submitted budgets for the
upcoming fiscal year, starting July 1st. The Board of
Selectman have completed a preliminary,
consolidated town budget, including all revenues and
expenses.
The preliminary town budget yielded a
shortfall of $3.1 million. Town officials
indicated that
very conservative revenue estimates were used and
they would be looking at the revenue assumptions to
minimize this shortfall.
Each board will be meeting with the Advisory
Committee to review the budgets in detail and
determine if any changes or cuts should be made. It
is still early in the budget process to determine
whether an override will be necessary to fund a
shortfall.
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| School Committee Election |
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The Wellesley School Committee is comprised of 5
volunteer members, each elected by residents for a 3
year term. This year, School Committee member Suzy
Littlefield completes her second term. Additionally,
School Committee member Susan Jablonski has
announced that she will resign the Committee,
leaving a one year term open for election.
The nomination process is complete and the
races are uncontested. Suzy Littlefield has agreed to
serve a third term to see though the completion of the
Middle School Project and to continue to provide
valuable experience and insight to the School
Committee.
We thank Susan Jablonski for her 5 years of
service to the town. Chris Guiffre of Wingate Road
has volunteered to fill the remaining one year of her
term.
School Committee members have a great
responsibility to the education of our children and to
the town at large. We appreciate those willing to serve
and applaud their dedication.
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For additional information, archived
editions of this newsletter, and links to relevant town
and state websites, please visit our website at
www.committee
21.org.
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Committee for Education in the 21st
Century
