Lawrence schools seek to cut $3.2M

To offset a $3.2 million increase in payroll, employee benefits and special education and transportation costs, the Lawrence School District is offering a retirement incentive to at least 13 teachers, will outsource its Universal Pre-K program and is planning other cost-cutting measures, Superintendent Gary Schall said at Monday’s Board of Education meeting.

Lawrence’s projected budget for the 2012-13 school year is $93.1 million, the same total as the current spending plan. But the tax levy is anticipated to jump from the current $78.9 million to $80.5 million. District officials have yet to release the expected tax rate.

“With the budget that was presented, we are staying within the tax cap and maintaining vital educational programs without violating the cap,” said Board of Education President Dr. Asher Mansdorf. The state has mandated a 2 percent tax-levy cap for all taxing districts.

The 13 teachers who would be offered a $30,000 incentive to retire are senior faculty in the UPK program and a handful at the high school. “We need 13 positions to make the budget mark,” said Schall, adding that the retirements would save just over $2 million. Included in that savings is a reduction of nearly $300,000 in special education costs. As many as eight students would return to the district from the BOCES programs they now attend, Schall said.

Though Lawrence Teachers Association President Lori Skonberg, said she is not happy about the possibility of losing experienced teachers, she cast the move in a positive light. “It’s a win-win for the district: they save a tremendous amount of money and we can hire people at a lower [pay level],” Skonberg said. “It’s cost-effective.”

Nonetheless, the prospect of replacing up to nine veteran teachers in the UPK program with less experienced instructors just coming out of school is something the LTA must take issue with, and the union has filed a legal action to oppose the change. “We should have new teachers, but I believe in a balance,” Skonberg said. “A brand new teacher will not know what a 10-, 15- and 20-year veteran knows. It’s about quality education.”

Schall said that Universal Pre-K is not state-mandated, and that Lawrence is currently in discussion with several universities to which the district’s program could be outsourced.

One important factor in the district’s favor in meeting the 2 percent cap now and in the near future is its lack of indebtedness, and therefore an absence of interest payments.

Another way the district hopes to cut costs is by renegotiating with its vendors, Schall said, a move that he hopes will save more than $500,000. In addition, the business office operations will be revamped. The implementation of updated and more effective software is expected to save $100,000 per year, after the initial investment, he said, and the district’s printing costs are expected to be reduced by $250,000. And two staff positions will be cut, one in the business office and one in pupil personnel.

“The 2 percent cap is driving us to look into the future and plan for the future,” Schall said. And part of that planning, he added, must begin now. He intends to reduce the number of periods at the high school from nine to eight and redeploy teachers, especially those who hold dual teaching certifications, throughout the district.

Skonberg said she opposes the elimination of a class period.

Schall plans to reduce the frequency of science laboratory periods. High school students will now have one 48-minute lab every four days, and AP classes will have a lab every other day. Currently, all science labs are held every other day. The state requirement is one 40-minute lab every five days.

Board of Education Trustee Dr. David Sussman said that the district is doing the best it can, and he blames state government for its lack of vision when it comes to pensions and other mandated costs. “Hopefully we’ll get more positive input, and an effort by Albany to fix a system that is badly broken and in need of some new direction,” Sussman said.