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Board hears FY27 budget update; approves administrator consolidation at Calut as enrollment declines
Summary
Finance staff presented FY27 budget assumptions including updated state aid guidance and rising benefits; the board approved a recommendation to reduce Calut Middle School assistant principal positions from two to one because of continued enrollment declines. The district will finalize the FY27 budget and return for a vote at the end of June.
District finance staff provided an update on the proposed FY2027 budget at the June 1 Central Falls School Board meeting, detailing updated state aid guidance and cost pressures largely driven by rising health-care and benefits expenses.
Dave, the district's internal auditor, said the state provided updated FY27 guidance in late April, adding roughly a half‑million dollars in recommended state support; nearly all of that increase is tied to benefit costs. The district is using a zero‑based budgeting approach, building expenses from the ground up and emphasizing strategic priorities (MLL/ELA/TLA, special education, technology, and transportation). Board members asked for clarification about the student success factor used in state aid calculations; staff said they would provide updated figures reflecting changes under consideration at the General Assembly.
Separately, the superintendent recommended consolidating administrative positions at Calut Middle School — reducing two assistant principal positions to one — because projected enrollment is about 390 students for the coming year and the district aims to align leadership staffing equitably across schools. The board approved the consolidation by motion and voice vote. The superintendent said the closed position could be applied for elsewhere in the district but is not guaranteed.
Why it matters: Rising benefit costs and enrollment declines are shaping personnel and budgeting decisions as the district prepares a final FY27 budget for board action later in June. Reducing administrative posts is a direct operational response to lower enrollment at one school and aims to reallocate or reduce district payroll costs.
Next steps: Finance will finalize the proposed FY27 budget and return to the board for a vote at the end of June; staff will provide follow-up on student-success-factor calculations and other state-level assumptions.
