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Board hears special-education deficit update and approves food-service contract renewal
Summary
Administrators reported an estimated special-education deficit of roughly $3.7 million but said offsets and fiscal discipline should shrink the year-end shortfall. The board approved a one-year Sodexo food-service contract renewal with a 3.8% state-approved management fee increase and moved a slate of routine items by consent.
The Stratford Board of Education received an update on district finances and voted to renew its food-service management contract with Sodexo as part of a night that also included several routine approvals.
Chief operations/finance staff reported the district’s largest ongoing challenge is its special-education deficit. "It’s now in the area of exceeding slightly more than 3 point, 5,000,000, 3 point 7 million," the district finance official said. The official said the administration has identified offsets in salaries, benefits and transportation and has renegotiated vendor contracts; those actions, combined with recent expense trends, make the district "optimistic the final... is under $500,000," the official added.
On a separate finance matter, the board approved renewing its Sodexo food-service management contract for one year. The agreement carries a management/administrative fee increase capped at 3.8 percent — a cap set by the Connecticut Department of Education — and the district indicated the state has already reviewed and approved the renewal. The administration also recommended retaining the current six-school community eligibility (ISP) configuration rather than expanding districtwide, saying current free-and-reduced numbers do not support districtwide eligibility.
The meeting also included routine consent approvals: the minutes of the April 28 and May 5, 2025 meetings, personnel assignments and the appointment of Kate Cirillo as director of student and staff services. Those items passed by voice vote and were recorded as unanimous.
Votes at a glance - Minutes (04/28/2025 and 05/05/2025): approved unanimously. - Personnel assignments (human resources): approved unanimously. - Appointment: Kate Cirillo, director of student and staff services — approved unanimously (moved by Miss Caddell; seconded by Miss Carol Fabian). - Food service contract renewal with Sodexo: approved (administrative/management fee increase of 3.8% as approved by the Connecticut Department of Education). - ELA adoption and digital literacy course: approved (see separate article on curriculum). - Disney Imagination Campus trip and Bunnell overnight trip: approved unanimously. - School climate policy: first-reading waiver approved; district will submit required plans to the state.
Board members and staff said the administration will continue close fiscal oversight through fiscal year end and will report final deficit figures when the year closes.
