Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the School Budget topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Carlisle Area School District adopts 2026–27 final budget, approves homestead credit and several routine actions
Summary
The Carlisle Area School District board adopted the district’s final 2026–27 budget (roll-call 9–0), approved a $246.65 homestead/farmstead credit tied to state gaming proceeds, and approved several personnel, contract and curriculum items at its June 25 meeting.
The Carlisle Area School District Board of Directors voted unanimously June 25 to adopt the district’s final budget for fiscal year 2026–27 and approved multiple routine actions, including personnel appointments, contract renewals and curriculum updates.
The budget passed on a roll-call vote of 9–0. Finance committee members described a nine‑month process of cuts and revenue searches that resulted in a budget including a 4.2% tax increase. The committee and several board members said the plan relies in part on proposed state revenue in the governor’s budget. "This is a budget that I'm not necessarily the happiest about having a 4.2% increase," said board member George, who nonetheless said he would support the plan because of the potential impact on programming for students.
The board also approved a homestead and farmstead exclusion resolution to apply state gaming proceeds to eligible properties. The finance presentation said $1.9 million in gaming proceeds was allocated to the district; using that allocation plus a carryover referenced in the presentation and dividing by 7,878 eligible properties produced a credit of $246.65 that will appear on property tax bills. The resolution passed by voice vote.
Other actions the board approved during the meeting included:
- Approval of the May 14 minutes (voice vote). - Superintendent’s personnel report (administrative, professional, support staff appointments, tenure contracts, coaches, transfers and resignations) (voice vote). - District expenditures for May 2026 across multiple funds; the board corrected a transcription error on the record and approved expenditures totaling $7,563,696.03 (voice vote). - Approval of a large set of mostly renewal contracts (software, licenses, maintenance and services) (voice vote). - Approval of the assistant superintendent contract for Michael Gojoy for the period July 1, 2026–June 30, 2031 (voice vote). - Authorization for administrators to approve and execute change orders up to $25,000 for the new middle school project (to avoid schedule delays or address imminent safety issues) and up to $3,000 districtwide; all such approvals must be reported to the board monthly (voice vote). - Education committee recommendations: approval of revised English Language Arts curriculum for grades 7–12 and adoption of two texts (When Stars Are Scattered for grade 7 and Long Way Down for grade 9) (voice votes).
Board members and administrators emphasized the constrained financial context. The finance presentation noted a combination of internal cuts and limited room for new initiatives. "We've taken the unusual step, frankly, of counting on all the state revenue that the governor has proposed in this proposed budget," a presenter said while outlining the assumptions behind revenue projections.
What happens next: the district will implement the homestead/farmstead exclusion as approved; the board will receive monthly reports on any change orders executed under the newly granted authority. The board also posted a vacancy timeline after accepting the resignation of director John Tarrant (see separate item).
