By Sarah Opdahl

On Thursday, January 18, New Fairfield Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Ken Craw presented the district’s proposed budget for the 2024-2025 academic year. The proposed total, $48,833,259, is a $2.4 million increase over last yea r, or a 5.25% increase. Craw presented this to New Fairfield’s Board of Education (BOE) as a “needs-based budget,” impacted by some “environmental factors” that drive the increa se for one more year, saying “next year looks much more favorable.”

Craw explained, in addition to the typical operating costs that impact the budget—such as payroll and benefits, special education, transportation, etc.—there are three unique factors that are driving a possibly larger-than-expected increase. First, the district has exhausted the federal monies that funded positions and new initiatives in the pandemic’s wake. Though the funding is depleted, “we still have essential resources that need to be supported and bring that into the budget,” Craw said. Another factor is a reduced poverty rate in New Fairfield. While Craw stated this is “good news,” he pointed out that the district will now receive a 52% reduction, or $230,000, in entitlement grant funding. The district relies on those funds “to be able to pay for many essential positions,” Craw said. Lastly, Craw hopes to draw to a close an assumption in the budget that staff turnover will equal savings. In the past, a $300,000 savings was assumed in the budget for turnover, expecting that a certain number of teachers and staff will retire or exit and be replaced by those commanding a lower salary. Craw relayed that this is an unrealistic marker. “The fact of the matter is that teachers love working here, we don’t get much turnover, and when we do, the market is very challenging right now to achieve those savings,” in terms of the padded amount.

Total student enrollment, a major factor in determining budget needs, is projected to be flat or “stable” in the next five years. Next year, the district is slated to decrease by thirteen students. Though this signals that staffing would typically remain consistent, with shifts in elementary positions to fit the ebbs and flows of particular grades, there is interest in continuing to invest in mental health needs. “The social emotional needs of our students is one of the signature investments in this budget,” Craw said, going on to say that adding another school psychologist and high school guidance counselor will support this focus. Another renewed position in the budget proposes a Middle School librarian, which has remained vacant for the last couple of years. One math coach/interventionist position is planned for elimination.

There are unfunded mandates being issued by the state—such as the Right to Read Act which is contributing to a literacy curriculum shift at the elementary level—that will require significant funding. To support student growth, Craw reinforced the need to invest in targeted professional development that translates to higher-quality teaching and learning and to “build a robust K-12 coordinated coherent curriculum.” In addition, the district hopes to begin acting on a five-year capital improvement plan, in which New Fairfield Middle School will receive a series of updates and the athletic turf fields and lighting syste ms will be replaced. While the Field Fees Fund was originally promised to taxpayers to act as a self-funding endeavor, the fees could not keep pace with the total amount needed. The current Field Fees Fund account holds $630,000, however approximately double that is needed to enact the repairs.

In the presentation’s beginning, Craw was happy to praise the district’s achievements, pointing to many as the “return on investment,” school boards and town officials often like to see. He highlighted many academic and co-curricular accolades for which the district is proud.

Board workshops will be held over the next several weeks to allow BOE members to work through questions as they dive into particular areas of the budget.

The budget season will be one many will closely follow. The BOE and Board of Selectmen received a signal from the Board of Finance that a small tax increase is preferable this year.