School District begins budget workshops: Difficult decisions ahead for future of school  

The Shelter Island School District faces a major decision as it embarks on public workshops to craft a 2026-27 budget.

Should the school administration and Board of Education further cut spending that was reduced last year to survive a second vote, or chance presenting a budget to the public for a vote that goes beyond the State-imposed 2% tax cap?

Numbers are preliminary at this point and are guaranteed to change, Superintendent Brian Doelger, Ed.D., said at Monday night’s first budget workshop.

Suffice it to say that numbers at this stage are place holders, but what the administration and Board of Education are facing are costs going up, revenues going down, and there isn’t money in the District’s fund balance to close the gap.

The goal of the decision makers is to try to maintain programs that continue to enhance student achievements while recognizing the need to keep the tax burden as low as possible.

In terms stated in a PowerPoint presentation at the budget workshop, Mr. Doelger reiterated the goal to “design a budget that helps us provide the best education possible at the most efficient cost possible.”

Since last year, when the district’s budget proposal failed at the polls on the first vote, the district had three choices:

• Go to a contingency budget controlled by the State that would make decisions about what could and could not be funded.

• Put forward the same budget that failed in May for a second vote.

• Cut spending so it would not pierce the State-imposed 2% tax cap.

The choice was to reduce spending that not only resulted in painful costs to programs and staff, but would carry over to this year, since it’s the reduction budget, not the original one that is subject to the tax cap.

The result was to eliminate the Pre-K3 program on which many working parents were dependent. Only because cooperation among the Town, the Early Childhood Learning Center and the District saved the program for one year. Plus, the hours of some district employees had to be reduced. 

Returning the Pre-K3 program is not inexpensive, but failure to bring it back means many families will be forced to send their young children off-Island. If that happens, it’s anticipated by school officials that not many of those students will return to the Island for their later education, threatening the School District’s future.

To taxpayers who think that would be a positive move, they would learn that travel costs and tuition to be paid to those other school districts would not cost less than maintaining the local District, Mr. Doelger has said.

What it would do is hand a bill to Islanders for other schools to educate the students while having no voice about decisions those School Districts may make. It would also result closing a building that, in addition to educating students, provides a venue for community activities.

The District facing rising costs, many of which are mandated, will also see non-property tax revenues drop by close to $500,000, Mr. Doelger said.

In light of making a decision with few options, the administrators and Board of Education will do their best, Mr. Doelger said, to find cuts in spending as actual numbers get filled representing real costs.

Inevitably, few people pay a lot of attention to the budget workshops at which they may have some ideas about cost cutting or ways to increase revenues. More than ever, school officials said they would welcome constructive input to help find ways to increase revenues and cut costs without abandoning vital educational programs.

The second workshop is slated for Feb. 9 at 5:30 p.m.