Hewlett-Woodmere schools’ proposed budget up $2.5 million

Eight new programs and six possible new hires — five of them teachers — are part of the proposed 2014-15 Hewlett-Woodmere School District budget, which totals $112.1 million, $2.5 more than the current spending plan with a $2 million increase in the tax levy.
The new programs included student assessments, academic support, college preparation, science research and tools, and character education.
The tax levy is expected to be $99 million. Next year’s state aid is estimated to be $7.7 million.
Employee pensions and health benefits account for a large portion of the budget, rising from $24.6 million this year to an estimated $25.6 million in 2014-15.
Dr. Peter Weber, the district’s assistant superintendent of business, said that funding for math intervention is contingent on need after this year’s math assessments are completed. “We don’t know what the math test results are going to be,” Weber said at the district’s March 9 public budget forum. “The tests haven’t been taken yet. We have to prepare for those students who might need the extra support.”
Hewlett High School is projecting an enrollment of 294 incoming ninth-graders, an increase of 51 over the current freshman class. “The high school is expected to have its largest enrollment increase in a long time,” Weber said. “We are planning for five academic sections. More special-education classrooms and teachers will be added. We plan to add a resource room teacher as well as speech support and a school psychologist.”
The spending category with the largest proportional increase is Staff Development Planning and Evaluation, which is set to jump by 20.8 percent. About $562,000 will be spent on new textbooks, according to Mark Secaur, assistant superintendent of curriculum and instruction. “We have two new books to review and adopt to our curriculum,” Secaur said. “The geometry and algebra textbooks need to be updated.”