[{"_1":2,"_100":-5,"_101":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76,88],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6592447,"mediaKeyId","2858018-ee0378248f6014be014f0a40406d575d","parentId",2858018,"title","Pelham UFSD reviews 2025–26 budget line by line; voters to decide May 20","audioSeconds",5078,"startMs",2304000,"endMs",7382000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2858018-ee0378248f6014be014f0a40406d575d&start=2304&end=7382","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2858018-ee0378248f6014be014f0a40406d575d/thumbnail_2304000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6592447/New-York/Pelham-UFSD-reviews-202526-budget-line-by-line-voters-to-decide-May-20","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6592447-ffb2b8f7966bc28de1fda16bd95fa200/orig.mp4?Expires=1770445390&Signature=hL~4Q4tnNIsQbRdP7LrwRXRe3UgFiXpWiYnPLiAE2D3RcTf0rPZBU6ps6ucO1CbNyyH5OTTTS0RACh4tnzUBN6SUwtyEwz3QWvHZu3Od~jn5T4IDCjLzVmXooEtGkkK4o-mCP1dDFjHTGOBURo7nno5cKbk3qA~71EY1oWblQoyKQPSoW-elgE-ghiEUP9uvNOpVr6p-cxJGEKxdAeNHTWFfh4n2mpy7scmt7QLzmddQ6E3fawWUq1VThmxGREnfiKDuxRJXn2U7ia~FfUbO-KWduHIQIwocRgiHZvrfM3L2z2s9latbQF0UFclTr6ZljuwNBA2ero918nJ-GScmrA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","PELHAM UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT","date","2025-04-03T02:36:10.937Z","article","The Pelham Union Free School District Board of Education on April 2 continued a line-by-line review of the proposed 2025–26 spending plan and set a timeline to present a finalized budget to the board on April 22 and, if approved, to put the budget before district voters on May 20.

The review placed facilities, personnel and benefits at the center of the discussion. John Condon, Director of Facilities, walked the board through operations and maintenance line items covering custodial and summer help, grounds and building equipment, vehicle fuel, and contracted services. He told the board “we're actually finally at full staff, which is a nice place to be,” while noting several recurring cost pressures from fuel, light and power, and water service.

Administrators warned of several cost drivers that affect next year’s recommended budget. They flagged a recent increase in insurance costs (estimated in the budget review at roughly a 12% year‑over‑year increase for the district’s insurance line), higher health insurance costs (noted as about a 9% increase for active employees), and state retirement contribution rate changes. Jim, a business‑office presenter at the meeting, said the employer rate for the New York State Employees’ Retirement System (ERS) rose and was reflected in the proposed budget; the district also noted year‑to‑year movement in the Teachers’ Retirement System contribution rate.

Facilities projects discussed in the review included replacement of the high school turf field (scheduled for this summer), ongoing pre‑bond architect and scope work, and planned HVAC replacement in buildings where units are failing. Condon said many systems are aging and some projects can only be done in summer months. He also described routine annual costs such as elevator inspections and maintenance for the district’s seven elevators and recurring contracted field and turf maintenance.

Security and monitor staffing prompted extended discussion. Superintendent Dr. Champ reviewed the district’s use of a third‑party vendor identified in the meeting as Bridal for some security monitors, explaining the vendor rate is $32.95 per hour but that figure includes company overhead for training and insurance and is not the direct hourly pay received by every monitor. The district presented that the budget assumes the equivalent of 24 hourly monitors (the budget line covers front‑door, hallway and cafeteria posts), and said contractual and hourly lines can be adjusted by transfers if staffing needs change during the school year.

Human resources items surfaced in the line‑by‑line discussion. The executive in charge of HR described a proposal to add three Frontline Education modules — Recruiting and Hiring, Frontline Central for onboarding and a data analytics module — to move many hiring and onboarding tasks from paper to digital workflows. The HR presenter said the modules would prepopulate forms and create a clearer applicant-to-onboarded-employee workflow, and that “it will really increase our ability to use data and to access data quickly.”

Transportation and debt service were reviewed in sequence. The business office outlined costs tied to contract yellow‑bus runs (for special‑education and out‑of‑district routes), public transportation passes for eligible students, and field‑trip and athletic transport. The presenters reiterated that eligible transportation expenses generate state transportation aid; the district reported historical aid recovery at roughly the mid‑40 percent range for qualifying expenses. On debt service, the board was shown multi‑year lease accounting for the Sanborn building and scheduled principal/interest payments for capital improvements.

Board members asked for follow‑up materials to help compare staffing and student enrollment over time. Administrators said the board will get updated transportation census numbers after the April 1 deadline and any state budget changes affecting foundation or building aid will be brought forward as they occur. The board plans a finance committee meeting before final action and additional budget discussion at its next scheduled meeting.

Votes at this meeting included routine approvals of minutes. The board approved minutes for Jan. 22 and a Jan. 28 work session. No budget adoption vote occurred at the April 2 meeting; the board expects to finalize the recommended budget April 22 and to submit it to the voters on May 20 if approved.

What’s next: the board will receive updated transportation and state‑aid numbers as available, hold a finance committee meeting to reconcile remaining questions, and consider any adjustments before the April 22 finalization and the May 20 budget vote.

","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Events from the Pelham Public Schools -","oneSentenceSummary","The Pelham Union Free School District Board of Education on April 2 continued a line-by-line review of the proposed 2025–26 budget and set a timeline to finalize the plan April 22 for a May 20 voter referendum.","taxTitle","PELHAM UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT, School Districts, New York","taxId",48009,"location","New York","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6592438,"Pelham UFSD outlines HR upgrades, reports two retirements and virtual job fair results",3301,4573000,7874000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2858018-ee0378248f6014be014f0a40406d575d&start=4573&end=7874","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2858018-ee0378248f6014be014f0a40406d575d/thumbnail_4573000.jpg","/articles/6592438/New-York/Pelham-UFSD-outlines-HR-upgrades-reports-two-retirements-and-virtual-job-fair-results","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6592438-437a83e1e11757261c6e055c7a39d8f1/orig.mp4?Expires=1770445390&Signature=LYMJdso6lnGPF7VInqW6n2bGZiv6DY5AcD1iqnvxz587bdqw6-CYNsO3QuLqINqyG2g2MGe38fSwj1pMhReboJIIHgiqwaHCkjWZzvO5gs8s0E5ywIYZCvZHwzOSYzCrNV8iv90xGFEzv1bu7BTBaziBEgqwMKpaERhMuxKQbB3mpV4LvAutndh3fbDSxwhcsHByjsedwFcTQukSqXon4U2Wtxz-tNPkZ5CTypa8t7-bH~VzjKygoi7-Xl3uPlw9ov2ectF8qMr6EwVEesRE4-4DWHayrfbg3x5NJUmSJRZYx0bN9FWsTsLMh5gQPvPJsLGc5NlVxJwkxi-86dBwyw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","District human‑resources leaders used the April 2 Board of Education meeting to describe planned staffing supports and recruitment activity. The administration proposed purchasing additional Frontline Education modules to create a digital hiring‑to‑onboard workflow, and announced two planned retirements and results from a regional virtual job fair.

Dr. Fitzgerald, the district’s human‑resources executive, explained the Frontline modules under consideration: a Recruiting and Hiring module to manage applicant tracking; a Frontline Central module to automate onboarding and document workflows; and an analytics module to combine data from the modules for reporting. She said the system would move many currently paper‑based processes online and \"really increase our ability to use data and to access data quickly.\" The district plans to buy the modules as part of an effort to improve hiring speed, onboarding accuracy and recordkeeping.

HR also announced two retirements: Victor Torres, a maintenance mechanic with the district since 1995, and Pascuale Perino, a longtime Hutchinson School secretary; both are expected to retire in August 2025. The district thanked both employees for long service.

The HR office described participation in a virtual job fair run by the Lower Hudson Council of School Personnel Administrators. Pelham screened 45 candidates in 10‑minute virtual interviews and forwarded viable candidates to hiring committees. HR said the fair produced multiple resumes that will be considered as vacancies are filled.

Administrators also reviewed HR budget line items in the proposed 2025–26 budget, including a 1.5 FTE clerical allocation for HR, a placeholder line for non‑represented salary increases pending board action, and a sustained contractual line for recruitment and professional development. The presenters told the board the district will use the April 1 staffing and transportation deadlines and any state budget changes to finalize numbers before the April 22 budget action.

","District HR leaders on April 2 described a proposal to add Frontline Education modules to streamline hiring and onboarding, announced two retirements effective August 2025, and said a virtual Lower Hudson job fair yielded 45 candidate screenings and viable applicants forwarded to hiring committees.",{"_33":89,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":90,"_41":91,"_43":92,"_45":93,"_47":94,"_49":95,"_51":96,"_53":97,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":98,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":99,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6592442,"Superintendent rebuts censorship claims, details corrections on student newspaper opinion about safety monitors",157,2795000,2952000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2858018-ee0378248f6014be014f0a40406d575d&start=2795&end=2952","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2858018-ee0378248f6014be014f0a40406d575d/thumbnail_2795000.jpg","/articles/6592442/New-York/Superintendent-rebuts-censorship-claims-details-corrections-on-student-newspaper-opinion-about-safety-monitors","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6592442-b094f4778e6125e3ea23248ae1706f3f/orig.mp4?Expires=1770445390&Signature=JXX0b5405LdNGmQPK-k~s0~uGAGKdt8BM5W0CLpl8Z3e4lS8MNmEU0utcFhikurCpyInzdH7AMakjcdWgDg04hQc-Jsenzq0doCLAHwiG7SM5GJCPsJPrDfeeRxkLN295scDkddwGuf9dl8aWwWgoUwwOePDZrL9YmwVoBm6YesuVYQ7zYee00F4Ajs4TOzwXPDCU~3TO8I49dOzpfQwV~S2fFNU6yvEHTk5FDm9kRR2I7tey~rJw8YPJsM4Qt1ENleM4NbgyozI9lxQFDPi-ASnKNX~kTgANyroHZ6YV1u9SHGvuU6-tzIqZ4d6CAfF7AYbwIKZTI37Ca1YIkF1dw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Superintendent Dr. Champ told the Pelham Union Free School District Board of Education on April 2 that an opinion piece originally published in the high school student newspaper, the Pell Mill, had been reposted on local Facebook pages and prompted public questions about district oversight of student journalism and the pay and contracting of safety monitors.

Dr. Champ said the piece was an opinion column that quoted anonymous safety monitors and that the district had provided factual clarifications to the student reporter before and after publication. \"Decisions about approving or disapproving articles from the Pell Mill are not made at the district level. Any statement to the contrary is false,\" she said at the meeting.

The superintendent noted several corrections that she provided to the reporter and that were later added to the online piece. She said she did not receive a $30,000 raise last year; rather, her pay increased by the approximately 2% reflected in the budget documents (about $5,600 as cited in the meeting). On safety monitors’ compensation, Dr. Champ said most monitors had received raises of 2.1%, 3.6% and 3% over the past three years.

Addressing the district’s use of a third‑party vendor for some security coverage, the superintendent said the contracted vendor (referred to in the meeting as Bridal) is paid a published hourly rate that includes overhead for training and insurance, and that the vendor arrangement was implemented to provide reliable coverage during staffing shortages. She listed other nearby districts that use third‑party security vendors.

Dr. Champ framed the district’s review of student publications as part of ordinary oversight by faculty advisors and administrators for accuracy and appropriateness when the audience is students. “While people are entitled to their own opinions, they are not entitled to their own facts,” she said.

The board received Dr. Champ’s remarks as part of the superintendent’s regular report; the meeting record shows no formal action on the student newspaper item.

","Superintendent Dr. Champ told the board April 2 that a Pell Mill opinion piece republished on social media was an opinion column that quoted anonymous safety monitors and that the district provided factual corrections. She denied any district censorship of the student newspaper and clarified pay and vendor arrangements for safety monitors.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Pelham UFSD reviews 2025–26 budget line by line; voters to decide May 20

Pelham UFSD outlines HR upgrades, reports two retirements and virtual job fair results

Superintendent rebuts censorship claims, details corrections on student newspaper opinion about safety monitors