Committee flags grant uncertainty and food‑service funding risks, including $168,083 Chartwells invoice

Norwalk school officials told the Board of Education Finance Committee on Feb. 12 they are closely watching federal and state grant funding and that a timing issue left a Chartwells summer-food invoice of $168,083 charged to the general fund.

CFO Lunda Asmani told the committee that grant funding has fallen since the expiration of ESSER funds: total grant spending in FY24 was about $48 million, and FY25 grant funding is approximately $35 million. He said most grants flow through the state but that the district receives two federal grants directly: a marine-science grant and the Magnet Schools Assistance Program (MSAP). Asmani described the MSAP award as a five-year grant totaling about $15 million (roughly $3 million annually).

Asmani said the district received guidance from the federal Office of Management and Budget about temporary freezes on some grants; he called the situation "fluid" and said the district is monitoring possible impacts on FY26. "About 20% of our overall budget is grant funded and therefore any disruptions to the grant revenue that we get would have significant impact on the local side of the budget as well," he said.

On the food-services fund, Asmani said the district budgets a transfer to food services (budgeted at $500,000 in the original plan), but the actual transfer is typically set at year end and he expects this year's transfer to exceed the initial $500,000. The district reported a $168,083 invoice from Chartwells for summer food services that auditors said could not be charged to the Chartwells account because contract-signing timing placed the invoice in a new contract year; as a result, the amount was charged to the general fund and a corresponding transfer will be made within the budget to cover it.

Committee members urged contingency planning. Board member Sherry said the district should develop “plan B and C” in case federal grants are reduced or eliminated; other board members described discussions with state and federal lawmakers and noted uncertainty about federal-level changes that could affect education funding.

Asmani and other staff said they are reviewing grants line-by-line with the grants team and that food services — a roughly $7.1 million fund with about $6 million coming through the Department of Agriculture, according to meeting remarks — would be hard to absorb locally if federal funding were removed. The committee discussed outreach to the public and elected officials ahead of council hearings and BET discussions.