Carlisle board approves March expenditures, contracts, revised biology curriculum and policy updates; members briefed on $4 million budget gap

The Carlisle Area School District Board of School Directors on Thursday approved the March expenditures, several professional services contracts, a revised high‑school biology curriculum aligned to new state science standards and updates to district safety policies, while administrators and board members outlined an operating budget shortfall of roughly $4 million for 2025‑26.

Board members voted, by voice, to approve routine items including the minutes of the March 20 meeting and the superintendent’s personnel recommendations. The board also approved district expenditures for March 2025 totaling $7,398,184.30 and authorized the professional services contracts listed in the meeting agenda.

Mike Sadler, director of business operations, told the board the district is three quarters through the 2024‑25 fiscal year and on the revenue side had collected about 85% of budgeted revenue; he said expenditures were about 74% of budget but that a $3,000,000 transfer from the general fund into capital reserve for an athletic project increases the year‑to‑date spending figure. “If you take out that $3,000,000, we are actually at 71% spent in this year's operational budget,” Sadler said. He also…