Southington superintendent presents $123 million budget; asks for 2.4 FTEs to support new middle‑school schedule

Superintendent Steve Modancia presented the Southington Board of Education with a proposed $123,000,000 operating budget that would add 2.4 full‑time equivalent positions to support a new middle‑school schedule and make a series of reductions and reclassifications intended to limit the district’s request to town officials.

The budget proposal would not fund a previously proposed summer‑school expansion and would shift major projects and equipment requests out of the operating budget where possible; the superintendent said the district’s one‑time equipment asks total $396,000. “We are only requesting 2.4,” Modancia said, explaining the smaller personnel request reflects reallocation of existing staff and expected attrition rather than a large hiring push.

Why it matters: the proposal affects roughly 6,200 students and about 1,200 staff across 12 district buildings and carries implications for special education spending, transportation contracts, technology replacement, and short‑term town financing decisions.

Modancia told the board the 2.4 FTEs are targeted to create a ninth team in the middle schools and to increase academic teachers’ contact time by reclaiming minutes from encore subjects. He said that without the schedule change the district would have sought about six teachers; with course and elective adjustments the net additional FTE need is 2.4. “The add is in addition to those 2.4 is to create the 9th team,” Modancia said, describing the reallocation and schedule changes that reduce the net new hires needed.

The budget reflects several specific reductions and reclassifications: the district removed five vacant non‑certified positions (largely paraeducators and applied behavior analyst roles), eliminated funding proposed for summer school…