The month of June has arrived and we are “coming down the home-stretch” for the school year. This is the time of year when there is a tendency to place an emphasis on end-of-year activities such as final examinations, retirement celebrations, graduation, summer planning, etc. However, I would like to take this opportunity to refocus on the “big picture” and “not lose sight of the forest through the trees.” We – as a community – just completed an annual milestone that will have a long-term, positive impact on our ability to deliver a high-quality education for the students of South Orangetown, namely, the 2019-2020 School Budget Vote. While most school district administrators are relieved to watch this herculean effort disappear into the rear-view mirror (until next year), I believe that this event deserves further analysis post-referendum.
The series of events leading up to the approval of the 2019-2020 School Budget were closely aligned to our strategic planning efforts. A deliberate approach was taken to:
- Critically analyze our intended use of resources (e.g., labor, financial, capital).
- Identify opportunities to use our staff more effectively to better support our students (e.g., academically, socially, emotionally).
- Streamline operational processes to gain efficiencies.
On top of all the planning considerations listed above, school districts must have balanced budgets each year. Unlike other governmental agencies (for example, the federal and state governments) school districts cannot spend in deficit. More simply stated, the South Orangetown Central School District does not spend more money than it takes in. Our long-term financial planning forecasts account for a balanced budget by ensuring that our projected expenses do not exceed our anticipated revenues. To this end, the administration and the board of education implemented several cost containment strategies to include more efficient purchasing practices, retirement incentives, and refinancing higher interest debt, to name just a few approaches. It is important to note that these adjustments in spending allow us to avoid budget shortfalls that would otherwise add up to millions of dollars. Again, budget shortfalls are not an option in our school district.
Beyond this, cost-saving measures are just one side of the story. The revenue side of this equation is much more complicated in that New York State school districts are limited in the amount of taxes they can levy due to the NYS Property-Tax Cap Law (which recently became permanent). Because we are sensitive to the burden that increased taxes place our taxpayers, our Board of Education continues to explore and implement ways to increase non-tax (or miscellaneous) revenues such as aid and lease incomes.
We are certainly excited and proud of all the work that we have accomplished this year in the South Orangetown Central School District – especially as evidenced by the outcomes demonstrated by our students. Beyond this, I am confident that we will continue to meet the evolving needs of our students: Our recently approved school budget (and related strategic/long-term planning) puts us in a position to deliver a high-quality education to our students for years to come. Thanks to our community for its continued support!