Business administrator warns NFA tuition and out-of-district special-ed placements strain Norwich budget
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Summary
Business administrator reported net tuition expenses of about $37.85 million and warned that decreased NFA enrollment and rising high-cost outplacements could create a tuition-related net deficit of roughly $1.1 million; administrators expect to seek legislative support for full excess-cost reimbursement.
At the Dec. 9 meeting of the Norwich Board of Education, the district’s business administrator told members that tuition and related NFA costs are now the single largest expense in the Norwich budget.
The business administrator reported a net tuition expense figure of approximately $37,849,000 for the year and said that NFA’s regular-education share represents about 20.8% of the district’s budget. He said October 1 enrollment showed 66 fewer regular-education Norwich students at NFA compared with the prior year, which he estimated would reduce NFA tuition revenue by roughly $1,025,000 if rates and other factors hold.
On special education, the report said NFA’s special-education budget was about $9.4 million and that the district’s initial excess-cost grant filing estimates roughly $2.6 million in state reimbursement — an amount close to this year’s budgeted figure. However, the business administrator warned that high-cost out-of-district placements (top 10 students averaging about $256,000 each) produced an almost $1.6 million negative variance in those placements; when netted with other items, he said the tuition line could create a net deficit of about $1.1 million.
Board members discussed causes for enrollment decline at NFA (demographic shifts, students choosing other high schools, and declines in international students due to visa issues). Administrators noted that keeping more students in district — for example through Rose City School placements — had delivered savings and would remain a priority. The board and administrators said they will continue working with state legislators to press for higher excess-cost reimbursement and other relief.
The business administrator said the district is managing current-year variances and that the tuition budgeting (paid one year in arrears) provides some short-term flexibility but that next year’s budget will need careful planning.
