Driven by rising salary and benefit costs, the school tax in Fair Haven would increase by about 2.6 cents per $100 of property valuation, according to a report in today’s Asbury Park Press.
A proposed $13.26 million spending plan introduced by the Board of Ed Monday calls for $11.03 million to be raised from borough property owners, an increase of $558,000 from last year’s spending plan, the Press reports.
The district, which includes the pre-k through grade 3 Sickles School and grades 4-8 Knollwood School, provides education to about 1,000 students. A separate tax is imposed by the Rumson-Fair Haven Regional High district.
From the Press:
“This budget is exactly the same as last year in the things we have control over,” Board President Andrea Bakst said. “It is not adding anything programmatically.”
While state officials ballyhooed an additional $300 million in aid in
the governor’s proposed budget, Fair Haven saw state aid basically stay
the same as it was in 2008.The district also saw a 1.6 percent increase in salaries, a 7.1 percent increase in benefits and a 6.6 percent increase in special-education costs form the current school year’s budget. Expenditures increased by $557,928 over the 2008-09 budget.
“Those are the top three (expenses) that we have no control over. Salaries and benefits are contractual,” said Nancy Walrath, board finance committee chairwoman.
Officials plan to use $323,852 from the district’s reserve fund to offset taxes, Walrath said. She cautioned that is a one-time infusion of funds the district won’t be able to repeat next year.
The Press says the budget would increase the school portion of the local property tax by $32.79 per $100,000 of assessed property value. The newspaper provided no information to explain why the increase of 2.6 cents per $100 doesn’t add up to $26 per $100,000.
A public hearing on the plan is scheduled for 7p March 31 at the Knollwood School.
Let’s merge the school districts do something with the schools and the redundant use of administrators instead of always trying to find ways to save money through the police department and department of public works which has no more money to cut and is already at it minimums and a skeleton staff. Schools were always the problem but all these towns in New Jersey like to try and save through other department, which ends up biting them in the ass in the future.
Super!!!!! wonderful news!!!! NOT
Well there goes the money you were saving by merging the police dispatch with Little Silver!!!
I agree with the first poster. Look at states like VA - countywide school districts with one superintendent and economies of scale. Freehold Regional HS District does something along these and has superb results.
The sad thing is these changes should have been made in times of economic prosperity. Laid off teachers would have had a better chance of finding a new job. Instead, now everyone will hide behind the prospect of more jobless claims instead of taking the long view for economic health and a sustainable educational model.
They can't explain part of the increase?? Well, maybe voters then don't have to explain not supporting this year's budget. These are tough times.
Even if the taxpayers vote down this proposed budget, the Borough Council has the power to pass it, which they have done in the past. Because of this, I don't waste my time with school elections anymore…I'm too busy working to pay for these tax increases!!!
I think regionalization makes sense, but I don't think it will be such a big savings. The number of teachers will not decrease (except maybe a special ed teacher or a Spanish teacher here or there). The number of principals will not decrease.
Someone mentioned VA's county-wide districts, so I picked one: Arlington. They've got about 20 times as many kids as Fair Haven. Here is their org chart: http://www.apsva.us/15401081104226237/lib/15401081104226237/APS%20Organizational%20Chart%20Sept%202007.pdf
Each of the top row of boxes is an assistant superintendent. Each of the other boxes probably includes at least one supervisor and one supervisee, and I'll bet most boxes represent many more employees.
For example, look at the "Curriculum Area" box under "Instruction." I picked one of the curriculum areas (I think there are 8), Arts Education, figuring it would be small. There are 4 employees in that department, none of them teachers. So that's 4 people filling up one-eigth of one of the 46 boxes on that org chart.
It just doesn't look like much savings to me.
I'll add Freehold Regional and Arlington to the comparison list I posted in another thread. Here are the costs per student for 2008-2009:
Fair Haven: $9,978
Freehold Regional: $10,694
Monmouth Beach: $11,094
Rumson: $11,688
Little Silver: $12,009
Shrewsbury: $12,019
Red Bank: $13,490
Arlington, VA: $19,538
Freehold Regional is a H.S. district, which makes the comparison a bit apples and oranges.
Arlington, VA is even more different, like comparing beans to oranges.
Sources: http://www.state.nj.us/education/guide/2008/k-8.pdf
For Freehold Regional:
http://www.state.nj.us/education/guide/2008/7-12–9-12.pdf
For Arlington, VA:
http://www.apsva.us/154010716144517/lib/154010716144517/Quick_Facts_Feb_09.pdf
If both FH and Rumson schools feed into RFH High School doesn't it make sense to have ONE superintendent to run the district, one curriculum for consistency and one budget to find synergy's? Don't even get me started on the 'job for life' theory that the NJEA lobbies for! Good teachers should be paid good salaries - pay for performance - not a minimal raise each year for mediocrity that we the tax payer has to pony up for…
I said it when they started this talk of merging police departments or dispatching. Stop ignoring the pink elephant in the room and look at ways to cut the cost which is the vast majority of a tax bill.
Tad ironic that this comes out after the merge of dispatch. Was that supposed to smooth the road for this to roll out?
FH Mom of 2 is absolutely right. Why do these 2 towns have to support 3 superintendents?? Crazy! What are these towns waiting for??? Corzine and Co. to MANDATE regionalization? It sure makes more sense to initiate same NOW, while the authority still rests in the hands of the local governing bodies and not some politicians from Trenton seeking re-election. Come on, folks, the time has come! Let's do it ourselves!
McCain Train you venomous racist scum - someone should put there foot up you ass.
"deadbanker" or should I say "class-warfare". Please explain how my above post is either venomous or racist?
Your name is extremely offensive, what is the connotation there?
It is "their" not "there", I hate to do the spelling police, but you need it.
Allways comparing our school to others to gain more pay. Why? If the teachers would use their time and effort to seek grants for what they want,they would have what they need and more. If you compare two fat people there will allways be one that is thinner than the other, but they are both fat. We all can see the teachers that should have retired years ago. why can't the administrators see them? Dead wood at top pay. If teachers change grades to fudge the numbers statewide than they should be fired and charged as a criminal. That is stealing my money to show their worth. Don't think it does not happen.
Well said "Teacher in FH", people holding onto jobs who are not still contributing to the education of the kids, should be given an ultimatum. Especially when it is teaching our children.
I believe in alot of lines of work people get to a point where they feel they have earned their pay and are now "owed" something.
There is a suprise out of nowhere. An increase? The school board did'nt know that the teachers were getting raises this year? Show us those super duper numbers of how well our students are doing. We are all mad about the banks ripping us off and getting paid, how about the teachers and the school board. They should be ashamed of themselves!
I always wondered why two little school districts that merge at the 9th grade each need a full complement of administrators and their own superintendent. It's ridiculous. But no more than each having it's own police department or not sharing public works departments.
Do you all know that a merger process is ongoing?
http://www.app.com/article/20090227/NEWS/90227134
They're talking about making a K-12 district including Rumson, Fair Haven and Sea Bright.
Yes, Dan …. and the "They.." to which you refer in that link is NOT the local school boards but an OUTSIDER political appointee, the Monmouth Cty. Superintendent….which is just my point! It make more sense/cents to take control and do this from within the towns themselves. Taxpayers should revolt about this territorial nonsense of home rule in this economy! It serves no purpose in Rumson and Fair Haven. But which school board members will take a stand? THAT is why everyone must come out for these April elections. These people control over 60% or your property tax dollars. Take a stand, residents! Enough is enough!
"Even if the taxpayers vote down this proposed budget, the Borough Council has the power to pass it, which they have done in the past."
LOL….I don't think the publicity-seeking, politically ambitious current mayor, who constantly sings his own praises about lowering the taxes, will be so quick to override the will of the people if the school budget goes down. How is he going to sell ignoring the voice of the people and giving them a tax increase when he runs for higher office? It's a new day.
He did'nt listen to the will of the people when he and his republican buddies let them screw up the police department. Soon our cops won't give a crap about anything if not already. You are all a bunch of self serving jerks.
Never thought I would say it but, I wish we could have a couple of demacrats in council. These guys give republicans a bad name. Koch wants the boro at his disposal, Rinn wants to make us Jersey City, Halfacre is using FH as a stepping stone and Leonert just votes with them as a rubber stamp. We are simple people, we want our garbage picked up, our leaves and brush picked up, our cops, fire and schools as they were.