Tuesday, October 11, 2011

A few years ago, our School Board wisely decided to invest nearly $90 million in physical improvements over the next several years. Nearly every school will be receiving central air-conditioning.

I never tire of sharing information about our tremendous investment in school facilities, including our plans to replace two of our aging elementary schools, Enos and Matheny-Withrow.

Please find two documents to your right. The first list what kind of HVAC system each of our schools currently has. The second lists all of our facility projects by school, cost, and projected completion date.

Though a lot of the work already is finished, much work is still ahead. Our forward-thinking board is to be applauded for doing what is best for our students and teachers, who deserve the best working conditions we can provide.

While that is the most important reason for our facility plan, there also are economic development reasons, too.

An engineer friend of mine who works closely with the Greater Springfield Chamber of Commerce calculated that in just one year of construction, we created more than 800 jobs. During the course of our whole multi-year upgrade plan, he estimated more than 2,500 jobs will be created.

I am proud that our district is "giving back" in this way. I'm even more proud of the community for supporting the board and the district in this important investment.

Tuesday, August 9, 2011

Dear Faculty and Staff:

Welcome to a new and exciting school year, filled, as always, with possibilities and unlimited potential. I hope all of you had great summers, whether productive, fun, or refreshing. I also hope you are eager and energized to return to your classrooms and schools.

We have been hard at work this summer preparing for the new school year and have much information to share with you. In this letter, I'd like to address the budget for the 2011-2012 school year in particular and share with you an overview of our financial situation.

The District Administration and the School Board are in the process of preparing the budget for the upcoming school year. Revenues have either stayed flat or declined precipitously prompting several cuts on the expense side of the ledger. As the impact of poor economic conditions at the federal level ripples down to state and local governments, all school districts across the country are feeling the pinch. This means that these cuts must be made despite certain critical needs of the district. For instance:

* The student population is continuing on an uptick at about 2 percent each year. This is a good problem to have. However, it calls for resources to sustain any type of population growth.
* The need to provide instructional resources to support our students as they march toward ever-increasing AYP requirements.
* The need to comply with certain unfunded government mandates in a number of areas including special education.

This past week, the district leadership proposed $5 million worth of cuts to the budget and the School Board currently is reviewing them prior to incorporating them into the budget.

A copy of the list of cuts is on the district's website, which contains a rationale for each of the cuts. Even though the rationale is self- explanatory, I do want to point out that the cuts were prudently made as far away from the classroom as possible. And, while no layoffs of district personnel are proposed, some positions will be eliminated through normal attrition.
While the challenges are great, let me also assure you that the district's overall financial health is still strong. Consider the following:

* Even with the challenges we face and the cuts that have been made, the District would still have approximately $18 to $20 million left over in its fund balance at the end of the year — $15 million of that fund balance is in our working cash reserve. This means that the District will continue to be in compliance of its fund balance policy.
* The District entered this budget process with the highest bond rating it has ever earned from the Moody's bond-rating agency.
* There are several financial management policies and controls in place that help guide operational practices. Last year, for instance, the District froze all employee salaries and raised the employee share of health insurance cost as part of a cost-cutting measure. Put another way, the financial stewardship of taxpayer dollars by District leadership is continuing.

The School Board is planning to approve the final version of the budget at its meeting on September 6. Meanwhile, we plan to keep you updated on the approval process.

Regardless, we have a lot to look forward to. Our District has much to be proud of, mostly due to your hard work and dedication.

As we all prepare for the start of school, let us keep our eyes on the prize: the children in our midst who are going to accomplish so much this year with our support, guidance, and love.

It is with deep sadness and a heavy heart that we announce the passing of Dr. Walter Milton’s mother, Mrs. Louise Elizabeth Milton.

Mrs. Milton, who lived in Rochester, New York, left this world in the early hours of Friday, July 8, after a brief illness.

Funeral arrangements have been made as follows:

A wake will take place Thursday, July 14, from 6 to 8 p.m. at the D.M. Williams Funeral Home, 2793 Culver Road, Rochester, New York, 14622.

The funeral is scheduled for 11 a.m. Friday, July 15, at Memorial AME Zion Church, 549 Clarissa Street, Rochester, New York, 14608.

Mrs. Milton was a devoted mother who was loved and cherished deeply by the superintendent.

Please keep him and his family in your thoughts and prayers.