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State comptroller to examine East Ramapo budget; superintendent outlines 2025–26 priorities
Summary
The Office of the State Comptroller notified East Ramapo that it will examine the district's adopted 2024–25 budget and historical operating results; Superintendent Mister Ziccardo outlined priorities for the 2025–26 superintendent's budget including literacy supports, staffing, professional development and sustaining programs.
The Office of the State Comptroller's Division of Local Government and School Accountability will examine the East Ramapo Central School District's adopted 2024–25 budget and historical financial results, Superintendent Mister Ziccardo told the board.
"The division of local government and school accountability of the office of a state comptroller has selected the East Ramapo Central School District for an examination of our budget," Ziccardo said. He said the comptroller's team planned to meet with district staff "this Thursday" to outline procedures and information requests and that the district will share the comptroller's report with the board and the community when it is complete.
Ziccardo presented an overview of his priorities for the superintendent's proposed 2025–26 budget, saying the budget should reflect the district's academic and operational needs, be sustainable year to year and support measurable student growth. He listed themed priorities: student learning objectives, social and emotional supports, consistent K‑12 standards, recruitment and support of high‑quality staff, community engagement, and resource management.
Ziccardo highlighted new state expectations for early literacy, describing a statewide focus on ensuring children read at grade level by the end of third grade and noting the implications for interventionists, staffing and professional development. "The state is saying we can no longer wait for kids to be able to read at the end of grade 3," he said.
He also said work to strengthen restorative practices and professional development is already underway in some schools and will appear in the budget. Multiple trustees and staff said that specific staffing, program and capital priorities mentioned during public comment will be evaluated within the budget process over the coming weeks.
The board did not take a final vote on the superintendent's proposed 2025–26 budget at the meeting; trustees set future budget hearings and indicated the proposed budget will be presented and discussed in upcoming sessions.
