The School Board and Budget Committee are looking at their first round of budget numbers, starting with the pre-school and elementary school budget.
During a joint meeting on Tuesday night, the boards reviewed a preliminary budget presentation from Superintendent Bryan Lane and Florence Rideout Elementary School and Lyndeborough Central School Principal Tim O’Connell. The combined budget for both schools will be up slightly from last year, said O’Connell, rising by about $14,626.
O’Connell highlighted some of the increases in the budget this year, the largest of which is non-discretionary building, which is a wide umbrella under which electricity costs, building insurance, and plowing are included. That line item is expected to increase by about $26,400, said O’Connell.
Most of that item is related to an increase in the size of the building housing Florence Rideout Elementary School, which increases both insurance costs and electricity consumption, said O’Connell. The cost of insurance is about $7,900 higher, and the cost of electricity about $10,859 higher per year.
The budget also includes the cost for purchasing and implementing a new reading program, which will replace the current reading program which has gone out of print. That will cost about $5,050 and will cover materials and training for teachers, said O’Connell. O’Connell added that next year, he would like to start a complementary writing program to better align the school’s language arts program.
The school is asking for some new equipment, including a new floor scrubber and burnisher for $6,400, and $3,100 to replace furniture in the Florence Rideout art room, as well as a new slide for pre-school aged children at Lyndeborough Central School.
Costs are offset by decreases in other line items, including fuel.
Ashley Saari can be reached at 924-7172 ext. 244.