BCS Passes Budget; Tax Levy Increase Held To 1.94%

by Thaddeus Flint
The Berlin School Board, in a last minute session April 25, approved a 2013-2014 budget of $17,861,948 and a tax levy increase of 1.94%.
[private]The meeting lasted about 12 minutes and was attended by exactly two residents. Three of the seven Board members, John Nash, Bev Stewart and Alan Webster Jr., were not present and as such there was almost no discussion at all on the budget which is $423,000 more than the current year’s. The rest of the Board voted unanimously in favor of the budget.
A Real Library?
Board Member Gina Goodermote did bring up one issue, which is the new librarian position at the elementary school. If there is going to be a real librarian, there should also be a real library. Apparently the library at that facility had been removed, and only a shadow of its former self now exists. At the Board meeting on April 24, Nash had voiced some exasperation at the request for the new position, one requiring a Masters of Library Science, when “there is barely a library.”
“If it doesn’t look like progress is being made,” said Goodermote, “they [the librarian] will be eliminated next year.”
The District’s Superintendent, Dr. Stephen Young, agreed that there certainly should be a library for the Masters educated librarian to work in.
“I want accountability,” said Goodermote. Young agreed that there would be accountability.
“This is a one shot deal,” added Goodermote. Young seemed to get the idea that Goodermote was serious about the library and the librarian.
While the exact cost of the new librarian was not mentioned, salary expenses for the District will climb 2.34%, and benefits will jump by 16.79%. Nash had stated at the previous meeting that “we cannot sustain the District in that way.”
School Safety
At the Thursday meeting Board Member Katie Fiske also looked forward to some accountability for the extra $50,000 the District will be spending next year on safety updates. This expenditure is a direct result of the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, in December.
Young hoped that an update could be provided “maybe by July.”
Electronic Devices In Education
Board Member Frank Zwack asked for clarification on an expenditure of $25,000 for text books. “Maybe there should be e-books?” asked Zwack.
Young explained that the amount in question is for “curriculum materials” and that it could also include software and even e-books. The question harkened back to the discussion at the Tuesday meeting when the Board was trying to come up with the wording on a policy for electronic devices. Fiske and Nash leaned toward a policy of zero tolerance for outside devices. Goodermote wanted a policy with “no grey areas, no wiggle room.” But Board President Jim Willis had a broader outlook. “What if someone is just reading a book on their Nook?” he asked. He worried that a zero-tolerance policy could yield negative effects, as the future of books is certainly pointing toward the e-books Zwack was looking for in the budget. “I’m all for encouraging learning,” pointed out Willis.
The imminent future, however, will be up to the residents. A public hearing on the budget will be held at the High School on May 14 at 7:15 pm. The budget vote will take place May 21 at the Elementary School.[/private]