Yorktown CSD presents 2.38% tax-cap increase and spotlights AI, cybersecurity, clubs and athletics in budget briefing

Yorktown Central School District officials on Tuesday walked the school board through the district's third budget presentation of the season, reporting a tax-cap calculation that permits a 2.38% increase in the property-tax levy and outlining spending plans and priorities for instructional technology, co-curricular activities and athletics.

Assistant Superintendent for Business Miss San Philippo told the board the district filed its tax-cap documentation with New York State before the weekend and that the calculation produces a 2.38% levy increase, “just a little over $2 million year-to-year.” She said the board has until final adoption in April to alter the levy but that the district does not intend to seek a tax-levy override.

The tax-cap figure frames smaller, targeted changes across departments. Director of Technology Jen Forsber described the district's technology and data operations: a 12-person department supporting roughly 4,100 daily users, a 1:1 Chromebook program K—9–12, building-level technicians for troubleshooting, and staff roles that include data analysts and edge/network technicians. “We are 1:1 Chromebook K through 12,” Forsber said, adding that kindergarten through eighth-grade Chromebooks are touchscreen and that more staff now choose MacBook hardware.

Forsber emphasized cybersecurity and data privacy as top priorities. The district operates 24/7 monitoring, external vulnerability scanning and penetration testing, and in the past year launched a new AI-driven phishing-simulation and employee-awareness campaign to reduce exposure. She credited the Google Workspace admin-console audits and built-in phishing detection with helping block threats before they reach inboxes.

Officials also outlined the district's cautious adoption of artificial intelligence in instructional and non-instructional tools. Forsber said the district has evaluated data-compliant AI vendors, convened a board AI committee, and joined a New York AI Consortium for educator-focused work. She described planned monthly faculty spotlights on AI and ongoing professional learning offerings.

On operations, Forsber said the team resolved nearly 18,000 help-desk tickets since July 1 with an average turnaround of about 36 hours. She credited the district with maintaining near-100% network uptime while adding multifactor authentication across accounts. Forsber listed upcoming work including summer server updates, merging asset-management with the help desk, centralizing software contract management, and bolstering cybersecurity posture.

Miss San Philippo presented the technology budget: a roughly $45,000 decrease in salary lines due to an unfilled resignation, offset by higher contractual expenses to increase Edgitech support by one full-time equivalent through the district's vendor contract. Overall the technology and data budget is up about $67,000, or 1.7% year-over-year, she said.

Co-curricular programming remains largely flat. Miss San Philippo and high-school co-curricular contact Jamie Sabberto said the high school lists 52 active clubs and 17 pilot clubs this year; the middle school lists about 23 clubs. The co-curricular budget is essentially unchanged, increasing by $951 (0.3%), with unit allocations and most supply and equipment lines stable.

Athletic Director Rob Barrett said the athletics program supports roughly 62 teams districtwide with 86 coaches, two athletic trainers and seasonal coordinators; he reported "a little over 2,200" student participants across seasons. Barrett said the athletics budget is rising by about $98,000 this year, mostly from salary increases, with modest increases in contractual and supply costs and lower equipment spending. New items budgeted include a varsity boys-volleyball assistant coach and replacement soccer goals.

During board questions, a trustee (Pete) asked whether Edgitech comprises the contractual expense. Forsber confirmed the vendor is part of that line and that the district-and-vendor team together handled approximately 18,000 tickets since July 1. Governor and board-member commentary (Catalina) thanked Forsber for the cybersecurity and AI update and suggested the new cyber courses at the college level might increase future intern interest.

On program growth, Barrett said the boys-volleyball program began three years ago and has expanded from a single varsity team to varsity, JV and modified squads; the program recently won a section title and appeared at the state tournament, prompting the budgeted assistant-coach addition. On shared programs such as hockey, Barrett said costs are split among participating districts pro rata by the number of students who participate.

Next steps: the board will hear the general and special-education instruction budget on March 16, Superintendent's final recommendation on March 23, with board adoption targeted for April 20. A public budget hearing is scheduled for May 11 and the budget vote for May 19.