Board weighs future of Caring Steps childcare after budget shortfall; trustees approve one-year transfer

The Rochester Community Schools Board of Education approved a budget amendment on Feb. 20 that updates the Caring Steps childcare fund and includes an estimated $265,904 transfer from the district general fund to cover a projected shortfall for the remainder of the fiscal year.

Why it matters: Caring Steps, the district-operated early-childhood center established under a prior strategic plan, has not reached a self-sustaining enrollment/staffing level since opening. Board and staff said the program serves district families and some employees but continues to require district subsidy; trustees asked administration for clearer options and financial scenarios before committing to ongoing support.

District finance staff told trustees the shortfall resulted from lower-than-projected tuition revenue and from restoring food service at the site after plans to remove onsite food were changed when a planned GSRP (Great Start Readiness Program) classroom did not open. Director of Financial Services Beth Perera said the amended Caring Steps budget reflects reduced enrollment and higher food and staffing costs. Mr. McDaniel (district staff) said the center currently enrolls about 74 children across seven classrooms and that a recent payroll report showed roughly 19 FTE staff assigned to the center.

Superintendent Russo and staff presented options for the board to consider: invest to grow enrollment and staffing (including hiring a center director and raising staff pay to be competitive), explore moving early-childhood programs into other district facilities, or plan an orderly closure of the tuition-based childcare portion while preserving special-education services located at the site. Russo said any closure would include a transition period and that administration would not displace early childhood special-education (ECSE) students mid-school year.

Board debate focused on three persistent constraints: (1) recruiting and retaining qualified childcare staff in a tight local labor market, (2) the district’s ability or willingness to subsidize a non-core service over the long term, and (3) whether moving programs into existing elementary school space would be operationally feasible. Trustees asked administration to return with detailed, comparable financial scenarios — including a) what enrollment and tuition would be required to break even under current staffing and contract arrangements, b) the cost and feasibility of hiring center staff directly as district employees instead of using the current contractor, and c) estimates for retrofitting elementary classrooms if the board wanted to relocate programs.

Trustee Lacui said she would vote no on indefinite transfers and asked for firm recommendations; Trustee Annis and others said they were prepared to support a short-term transfer while the board receives a plan. When the board voted to approve the Caring Steps budget amendment as presented, the motion passed 4–2.

Administration asked the board whether it wanted to direct staff to prepare a detailed business plan and timeline; trustees requested that proposal and comparative data on other public-school childcare/pre-K models, staffing pay ranges, and the financial implications of hiring staff directly versus continuing with the third-party operator.

For now, the center will continue operations; administration said it will return with concrete scenarios (including tuition changes, required enrollment thresholds and capital implications) before the board considers any longer-term commitment or structural change.

Ending: Trustees signaled that Caring Steps’ future depends on data-driven choices about scale, staffing and district priorities. Administration committed to bring back modeled options that show what level of investment — if any — would be required to reach fiscal sustainability or to effect an orderly transition.