By Sarah Opdahl

On Tuesday, January 23, New Fairfield’s Board of Education (BOE) heard presentations from the district’s three head principals on each school. They spoke about school budget details, highlighting staffing needs in relation to enrollment projections and more.

Elementary Head Principal Ms. Allyson Story said that the campus is spending “a lot of time unifying and shar ing the same vision and resources across the classes and throughout the campus.” She spent time pointing out the many accomplishments at the elementary level, from standardized testing score improvement to increased arts opportunities. Story was happy to announce that “the investment that we really put into our math instruction over the past couple years, we’re seeing it meeting the needs of all of our students…that was a great celebration for us,” she said.

Story explained that the elementary budget is a needs-based one. There was a large influx of new students this year and the enrollment projections anticipate seventeen more students next year. Given that the numbers are fairly stable, there are no additional full-time employees (FTEs) requested for the classrooms. Staff will shift grades as needed to fit the fluctuations in class sizes. They are able to eliminate one math interventionist position, which Story explained is based on “the performance of our students and the work that we have been able to do.” She went on to say, “we’ve spent a lot of time on the math side, and right now we’re really focusing on the reading side, making sure we have decodable texts,” which will be addressed in the curriculum areas of the budget. She said she is focused on fostering a healthy school climate along with better aligning with New Fairfield Middle School for increasingly successful transitions.

A broken laminator was noted as a primary equipment need—a BOE member suggested that this could possibly be funded though the Parent Teacher Organization’s effor ts.

Principal Ms. Karen Gruetzner spoke about New Fairfield Middle School’s needs. Regarding accomplishments, she pointed out that math scores “are back to pre-pandemic levels” and was excited about the energy surrounding the expanded stri ngs program, in addition to other high-quality arts opportunities. New and revived extracurricular activities, such as Student Council, Intermurals, and Eco Club are “breathing new life into our Middle School,” Gruetzner said.  She  said in Middle School it is important to be inquiry-based, hands on, and working in small groups. They are seeing gains in math and “we have more work to do with literacy,” Gruetzner added.

Budgetary needs are a bit more complex at the Middle School, as enrollment is slated to drop by twenty-six students next year. Those reduced numbers are not planned to affect staffing, however, as the school works on a team model that is difficult to shift without lasting ramifications. Every grade level is divided into two teams—each has an English, math, science, and social studies teacher as the core team so every student is assigned to one of two teams. “We believe that this is truly best for students, and also teachers because it allows for the ideal time for daily collaboration with colleagues and best experiences for kids as well,” Gruetzner said. One new position that is requested for the school is a library media specialist, who will also grow the STEAM curriculum.

Principal Ms. James D’Amico spoke with praise about the new High School, saying, “it’s a beautiful facility that we’re very proud to be in and thankful to the community for investing in…it just offers us a lot of phenomenal opportunities.” He said that it has both changed the programs and the culture in general for the better. He stressed the many ways students are excelling, from increased standardized testing scores and increased participation in groups such as the National Honors Society to statewide athletic awards and arts accolades.

With very stable enrollment projections of approximately seven-hundred students, the High School’s staffing will remain similar to this year. It was noted that there may be a small boost to the enrollment, as interest from Sherman students is far higher this year than in previous years, understandably due to the new facilities. Board members expressed frustration to be reminded that Sherman students’ tuition goes to the Town’s budget, rather than the school district’s. While the teaching staff numbers are planned to remain as is, there is interest in growing the support staff with a guidance counselor to assist in college planning and applications, as well as other needs. D’Amico said, “right now, our counselors are rea lly stretched. They are not able to get into classes to develop and deliver developm ental guidance curriculum on things like study skills, stress management, or on managing and establishing goals for post high school.”

D’Amico explained that the supplies budget is a little higher to help fund the materials for popular programs, such as culinary and the woodshop. He also said that there was a conscious decision to not offer new courses this year or next, in order to evaluate the many new course offerings that were launched in recent years.

Board members expressed interest in having line items truly reflect the bucket they are falling under, as some lines read as essentially a grab bag of items that don’t fit anywhere else.