Arlington Central unveils budget recommendation with added school safety, pre-K contingency and staffing adjustments

Superintendent Dr. Benante presented the Arlington Central School District’s recommended budget for next school year, proposing additions for school safety and targeted program support while reducing staffing in a specialized program to close the district’s budget gap.

The administration said the recommended budget would maintain existing programs and services, add one school resource officer (SRO) next year (the first step in a planned two-year increase), purchase CRG mapping software for emergency responders, add a safety staff member at Union Vale Middle School, continue a three-year contract with Solution Tree for professional learning (approximately $90,000 per year, aidable through BOCES), and set aside $325,000 to supplement state per-pupil UPK payments for out-of-district providers if a state pre-K expansion grant is not available.

Why it matters: The district framed the budget as balancing program continuity with fiscal constraints. Administrators said federal pandemic funds that previously supported expanded staffing and initiatives have expired and foundation aid increases are unlikely to repeat at prior multi‑percentage levels. The administration proposed a 2.74% tax‑levy increase to generate roughly $1.1 million in additional revenue and presented a set of expenditure reductions and revenue adjustments intended to arrive at a $268.0 million budget figure.

Key elements and figures cited by the administration: - Safety and security: add one SRO next year (part of a planned two‑year increase), add a safety staff member at Union Vale Middle School, and purchase CRG mapping software to share building floorplans with emergency responders. - School improvement: continue the Solution Tree partnership (a three‑year, aidable arrangement through BOCES) at about $90,000 annually for on-site professional learning and coaching. - UPK (universal prekindergarten): set aside $325,000 to supplement per‑pupil contracts with community providers if a state expansion grant is not available; the district currently receives state funding for roughly 400 UPK seats but has contracts for about 100 seats in community providers at present. - RSP program adjustment: reduce staffing from roughly 5.5 full‑time equivalents to 4 teachers (a 1.5 FTE net reduction) while redesigning the model; administration said the goal is to preserve student supports through a different staffing model and not to eliminate service access. - Expenditure adjustments: approximately $4.8 million in net expenditure changes from the January rollover figure, bringing the recommended budget to roughly $268.0 million. - Revenue adjustments: the tax‑levy recommendation of 2.74% would generate about $1.1 million in additional revenue; state aid assumptions reflected the governor’s executive proposal and an expected modest increase in Foundation Aid (administration cited an expected state aid increase of about 2.57%).

Administrators described several offsets and one‑time items that affected the draft: a reduction in the Teachers’ Retirement System (TRS) contribution assumption, a favorable health insurance premium projection (the Duchess Educators Health Insurance Consortium rate expected to be 6% vs. prior assumptions of 8%), and the absence of a one‑time premium holiday that in prior years returned about $3 million to $3.5 million to the district. The administration also reported about $300,000 in BOCES service reductions based on historical usage and additional expected pilot (payment in lieu of taxes) revenue of about $200,000 as properties transition to full assessment.

Board members and administrators discussed tradeoffs and clarifications during a robust Q&A. Trustees asked about: - Whether the RSP staffing change was additional to previously announced reductions (administration said yes; the RSP change is in addition to other staffing reductions under consideration and that the total personnel reductions now under discussion are in single‑digit FTEs plus a small administrative elimination when positions are not filled); - UPK seat counts and transportation barriers (administration said the district has funding for up to about 400 UPK seats but only about a hundred district‑placed seats at community providers this year; several community providers charge significantly more than the state per‑pupil rate, which creates pressure to supplement or pursue an in‑district option; administrators noted busing to some off‑site UPK locations presents accessibility barriers and said the board will consider contracted providers such as Healthy Kids as an additional option); - CRG mapping: administrators explained the district would purchase the product and collaborate with local first responders to ensure responders have access to the mapping data; no separate purchase by responders is required.

The administration described the recommended budget to the board as conservative: the projected 1.53% budget‑to‑budget increase is the lowest in a decade, the proposed levy is below the district’s allowable tax levy, and district leaders emphasized continuing to protect core programs while responding to the end of one‑time federal funds.

Next steps: The administration will present a formal education plan and proposed budget for adoption on April 8, followed by a formal budget hearing on April 13; the public vote is scheduled for May (date specified in district materials). Board members have about a month to request additional detail or revisions before the April adoption vote.

"The budget maintains our programs while addressing safety and targeted investments," Dr. Benante told the board. "We are asking for modest additional revenue to preserve critical services as federal aid sunsets and foundation aid growth levels off."