School budget workshop set for Monday

With the last budget workshop serving notice to taxpayers the 2026-27 school district budget is expected to have to pierce the tax cap, the third workshop takes place Monday evening at 5:30 p.m. in the Board room.

While one aspect of spending will be the plan to try to restore the Pre-K3 program that had to be cut from the current year’s budget.

But just to keep pace with costs over which the school district has no control, including contractual agreements with teachers and staff, rising costs of health care insurance benefits and other program costs, to stay within the cap would mean scaling back or cutting vital programs, Superintendent Brian Doelger, Ed.D., said earlier this month.

District elementary students who have made strides in math and English as a result of stepped up programs are slated to extend those efforts to secondary students. A similar stepped up program in science is anticipated to start at the elementary level in the fall.

The Board of Education is slated to adopt a budget for the next school year on April 20 and a May 11 public hearing is set for May. But once the Board of Education adopts its budget proposal in April, there can be no changes before voters act at the polls on May 19.

This is the time when anyone wanting to make suggestions on the budget need to be informed and make their views known.

Budget sessions are recorded for those who are unable to attend the sessions in person, but the administration and Board of Education welcome input at a time when changes are possible.