Wappingers superintendent recommends $321 million 2025–26 budget, 1.3% tax levy increase

The superintendent of the Wappingers Central School District presented a recommended $321,000,000 budget for 2025–26 to the district’s Board of Education, proposing a 1.3% increase in the district tax levy—below the stated 1.57% tax-cap figure—and recommending $12,000,000 from the district fund balance to limit taxpayer impact.

The recommendation, the superintendent said, maintains existing academic programs while adding staff and services in special education, English-language learning, reading support, school safety, health services, technology and career-and-technical education. “We continue our focus on safety as well as the emotional and mental health of our students and staff,” the superintendent said, adding the district will keep advocating for state and federal funding for safety-related costs.

The budget document presented to the board lists a total budget of about $321 million and a tax levy of roughly $192 million. The superintendent cited a tax-levy increase of 1.3% and the district’s decision to apply $12 million from reserves (fund balance) to reduce the levy. The presentation described the difference between the full budget amount and the tax levy as grants, fund balance and state aid covering the remainder.

The recommended additions and changes in the presentation included: adding a total of eight special education teachers (described as six teachers across the district plus two others), two additional special-education teaching assistants, an assistant superintendent for special education, and a professional-development specialist focused on special education; one additional English-language learner (ELL) teacher at Gay Head Elementary School and elementary-level reading teachers; three teachers to expand sections in the district’s P-TECH program (math, English and social studies); a shared elementary assistant principal position serving Brinkerhoff and Fishkill Plains elementary schools; two additional registered nurses for district health offices; a network specialist in technology and districtwide telephone-equipment replacements; continued assignment of school resource officers (SROs) from Dutchess County and East Fishkill Police Department to specified schools; and additional school safety officers at Roy C. Ketcham and John Jay high schools. The superintendent said the two largest elementary schools (Gay Head and Myers Corners) added school safety officers in January and that those positions are included in the proposed budget to remain.

The superintendent said the district currently spends nearly $2,000,000 annually on safety and security. He also said the recommended budget remains under the tax cap for the fourth consecutive year and described the district’s fund balance—built during the COVID period and managed deliberately over recent years—as the resource used to smooth year-to-year tax impacts. “We received a fair amount of money during COVID, and I stood here in front of everyone and said, we’re not going to spend the money if we don’t have a reason to spend it,” the superintendent said.

The presenter credited Assistant Superintendent of Finance and Business Development Kristen Dainty and senior staff for crafting the budget and listed the district’s continuing priorities as mental health, special education, safety and support, instruction, and career-and-technical education.

The superintendent said New York State aid finalization remains pending and that the district is using the governor’s executive budget proposal as the working assumption because the district must adopt a budget to place before voters. He encouraged the public to review materials on the district website and attend community budget forums at the high schools; specific forum dates and full voting instructions, he said, are available on the district’s budget webpage. The superintendent described the school budget vote as an in-person election (the presentation listed the district election as taking place Tuesday, May 7, with polling hours given) and said absentee and early mail ballots are available, with application instructions on the district website or through the district office.

No formal board vote on the budget was recorded in the presentation excerpt; the superintendent described the document as a recommendation the board could move forward to voters.

The presentation included contact and outreach instructions and encouraged residents to submit questions and comments to the district’s published budget contact channels and to attend the listed community forums for more detail.