Budget Update #1
January 14, 2020
The Cape Elizabeth School Department administrators and department heads have been working on the FY21 budget since early December in preparation for their budget presentations which will take place beginning on January 21, 2020 at 5 PM in the library at Cape Elizabeth High School. They have been asked to develop budgets based on what they believe they need in order to run their schools and departments in FY21.
Budget requests were submitted to Finance Manager Marcy Weeks before the winter break and she has been busy inputting the data into our budget software. Marcy and I have spent much of the last two weeks meeting with administrators and department heads individually to review their requests for supplies, equipment, staffing, etc. We have analyzed budget requests line by line, discussing needs and plans in order to prepare for the presentations to the School Board.
At the January 14, 2020 School Board meeting the FY 2020-2021 Budget Review Schedule was shared with the Board. This schedule outlines the budget meetings that will be held as we proceed through the budget development process, including the dates, times, and locations of the meetings. I encourage citizens to attend these meetings whenever possible in order to understand the budget development process. Meetings will also be streamed and videotapes whenever possible and viewing will be made possible through a link on the district website.
In addition to the budget schedule, several documents were shared with the Board in order to provide background for FY21 budget discussions. The FY20 Budget Expenditure Pie Chart shows a breakdown of the FY20 Budget. 83% of the planned expenditures occurred in salaries and benefits, which are negotiated items.
The State Education Subsidy graph shows a history of the amount of state education subsidy received by Cape Elizabeth since 2009-2010. We have not received notice of the expected subsidy for next year. Hopefully this information, in the form of our ED 279 will arrive during the first week of February.
Enrollment compared to Professional Staffing Levels shows a comparison of the number of professional staff as compared to student enrollment. Enrollment counts on this chart could have been taken any time during the school year. Student Enrollment based on October 1st Data represents the official count of students in each district. The state uses the student enrollment number on October 1st as an important factor in determining state subsidy.
During the January 14, 2020 School Board meeting the Board reviewed the School Board Budget Goals from FY19-20 and adopted goals for FY21.The goals are as follows:
1. Maintain and improve the high quality of education for every student.
2. Careful examination of line items and consideration of the success and effectiveness of the expenditures in order to provide a fiscally responsible budget.
3. Support the current strategic plan goals.
4. Clear and continual communication throughout the budget process.
I will be posting budget updates following budget meetings throughout the FY21 budget development process. Again, I encourage all citizens to attend budget meetings and to provide input throughout the process.
Sincerely,
Donna H. Wolfrom
Superintendent