The proposed elimination of the Bedford Central School District's summer academy has prompted some second thoughts about limiting next year's school budget to an increase of only 5.75 percent.

The Bedford Central School Board met on Wednesday, March 20, only two weeks after the elimination of the summer program was first proposed, and decided to raise its spending increase target to 6.5 percent.

This year's total budget proposal is about $70,813,000. A 5.75 percent increase in spending would have added about $4,071,000. The new spending target would add about $4,602,000 - or about $531,000 more.

"The school board has, obviously, gotten a lot of public comment, and has had some discussions among themselves," said Bruce Dennis, the superintendent of schools, in a phone interview this week. "They have requested that I come back to them with what an increase of 6.5 percent would look like."

"No one is satisfied with the results of our request for a 5.75 percent spending increase," said Dot Fallon, school board president, in another telephone interview.

"Recognizing that virtually every board member indicated areas in which they would like to see spending increased - including capital projects and psychological staff time - we have requested that Dr. Dennis come back to us with his priorities that would result in no more than a 6.5 percent budget-to-budget increase," Ms. Fallon said.

The elimination of the summer academy was one of the most serious cuts that the superintendent proposed in the budget he put forward on March 6. The cut would have saved the school district $239,663 all in one shot and "eliminated the necessity of eviscerating 10 or 15 other programs," Dr. Dennis said.

The summer academy served 350 students last summer.

`Too valuable to eliminate' "We are all in agreement that the summer academy is too valuable to eliminate completely," said Ms. Fallon. "I think that the summer academy has become a critical part of the success for some kids who really can't get everything that they need during the September to June academic year.

"These are students who can't be away from a structured learning environment for the whole summer without regressing," Ms. Fallon said. "I think it's almost a requirement for some students, if we expect them to reach the levels that students are expected to reach in today's world. So I think it's a vital part of our program."

The board president said that she understood Dr. Dennis' proposal to eliminate it, "because we do a lot of other things to support students academically. But I don't see us taking the chance to eliminate it, just to see what happens. I don't believe that will serve us well," she said.

"Certain elements of the program will be evaluated to see if there are some parts that are more critical than others," Ms. Fallon said.

Dr. David Abbey, assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction, has already done that, and proposed to reduce it by about $25,000, she said.

But certain programs, like the summer reading program for elementary school students, have been around for many years and "many, many students have benefited from that program in the second and third grades, especially," Ms. Fallon said.

Capital projects

At least three members of the school board, including Mel Comberiati, Joe Whelan and Elin Sullivan, indicated that they would not be comfortable with the proposed level of spending for capital projects at $500,000.

"I think it is fair to say that there was complete consensus on that," Ms. Fallon said.Dr. Comberiati proposed $650,000 for capital projects for next year and Paula Kumar suggested that it be $675,000.

The school board came under fire during the school board election last year for not keeping up with capital repairs and maintenance, thus precipitating at least a portion of the $68 million capital bond issue approved by the voters in January.

Dr. Comberiati also indicated a number of other things he would like to see restored in the budget, including psychological services, although he indicated a willingness to consider at least a portion of the 2.7 position cuts that Dr. Dennis has recommended.

Lack of information?

Mr. Whelan complained during a telephone interview last week about the lack of information given to the board with regard to actual expenditures over the last several years.

"We were given budget numbers for this year and for last year. We were given no information for previous years," he said."The assumption is that since we are looking to spend a certain percent more this year, that therefore we should find that, somehow, acceptable in every category.

 

"The budget process is an estimating project. You go back and revisit the numbers when you are smarter and you know whether your estimating was good or bad for last year," Mr. Whelan said.

"We had no data on actual expenditures. We just had the total on the line, which is meaningless," he said.

"These are the warmest degree days we have ever had," he said, referring to the mild winter that we have had this year. "The price of fuel is down 40 percent. Presumably, that line should go down by a substantial amount of money, but instead it went up.

"As a CPA, I don't think that you can approve any budget that doesn't fairly analyze variances in spending. You must.

`Other people's money'

"You have an obligation when you spend other people's money to know at least where that money is going. A budget number is not the same as an actual number," he said.

Mr. Whelan said that he had requested four years of actual expenditures in certain categories, and had gotten them.

"You have to know the favorable or unfavorable variances," he said. "After you look at the variance analysis from last year's budget, then you look at trends for the last five years," he said.

Mr. Whelan objected to the ever-increasing budgets the school district adopts every year.

"We're looking at $75 million here. After this year's budget, then we will go to $80 million. In five years we would be spending a total of $400 million plus $100 million on the bond, including a third of it which is interest.

`Less controls than corner deli' "That's a half a billion dollars and we have less financial controls and techniques than the corner delicatessen. And I mean that. I'm not exaggerating," he said.

"This is not the fault of the administration. They have been doing things for years," he said. "It's the fault of not having any kind of an objective, independent body to hold school boards accountable.

"We have no requirement to learn anything under New York state law. We can just sit there, self-satisfied, that we have heard what needed to be said, and say to ourselves that we'll try to do our best based on our good intentions.

"Well, the road to hell is paved with good intentions," he said. "What we need is training, help - we have no help. We can try to get the superintendent's staff to help us, but we are going to be second and filtered through the superintendent's point of view."

Mr. Whelan said he opposes a new policy being considered by the school board that would restrict information going to school board members from the administration. Under the proposed policy, such information would not be provided if the board, as a whole, thinks it's unnecessary in order for a school board member to do his or her job.

`I get the answers'

"That's an outrage," Mr. Whelan said. "This is to weaken and emasculate individuals who want answers and will get them, one way of the other.

"I get the answers, one way or the other. I can't help it if it's disconcerting to people who may or may not want to be held accountable," he said.

Mr. Whelan said that he is currently getting information about $7.8 million in budgeted health care benefits.

"Are you kidding me?" he said. "You don't think there is a problem there? There are 900 to 1,000 teachers, administrators, CSEA and retirees. A total of 25 or 28 percent are retirees.

"Each one is costing us $7,800 a year on average. So, as a comptroller, I want to see where that money is going," he said. "How much money is going to the spouses of employees? Are we being too generous with other people's money?"

`People are struggling'

"I know people who are struggling," Mr. Whelan continued. "We are a wealthy school district based on the average. But please don't use the average. That's a statistical insensitivity.

"Death Valley has an average temperature of 60 degrees, but it's zero at night and 120 during the day. I hope my travel agent doesn't send me there.

"There are hundreds and thousands of people who are struggling in this district and just because some make millions, or hundreds of millions of dollars...

"That's the layer of 10 or 15 percent that is very wealthy. 1 never want to hear that again, that this is a wealthy district," he said.

Election fast approaching

In like rhetoric that seemed to indicate Mr. Whelan's awareness that this year's school board elections are fast approaching, he stated, "Our board is mostly parents. That's a mistake.

"Our board is tilted and not balanced to the community. It's balanced toward supporting education. That's not our job. Our job is to support the interest of the community with respect to education at a practical cost.

"It's a conflict of interest to have your children in the schools and, at the same time, make a decision that might deny them some funding, or, upset teachers or administrators that have something to do with your kids.

"Nobody is saying there are reprisals. Nobody is saying that. But it is a conflict of interest that can only be addressed one way - through clarity of ethical principles," he said.

"This industry does not have a comprehensive reference for ethical principles. I have to go back and take two courses in ethics every year. That's the kind of sensitivity to the public that school trustees should have," Mr. Whelan said.

Slivka, Kumar to run again? The school board election is scheduled for Tuesday, May 21, the same day that the school board's budget will be voted on.

School Board Members Mark Slivka and Paula Kumar have picked up nominating petitions to run for reelection, according to School District Clerk Carole LaColla. Their current terms expire on June 30.

Mr. Whelan has also picked up nominating petitions. But his term does not expire until next year. The deadline for nominating petitions for this year is April 22.

The speculation is that the Taxpayers Oversight Committee, which helped Mr. Whelan get elected in an upset victory over Paul Alcorn two years ago, will nominate one or two candidates this year to challenge Mr. Slivka and Ms. Kumar.

Mr. Slivka is chairman of the school board's finance subcommittee, with whom Mr. Whelan has crossed swords on numerous occasions. Ms. Kumar is chairman of the board's