2008-2009 Budget Highlights

Mohonasen’s 2008-2009 budget maintains all current programs and includes new funding for some key areas.

High School additions:

• A part-time (.6) business education teaching position to meet programmatic and enrollment needs;

• One full-time social studies and one full-time English teaching position to meet state mandates, growing enrollment and programmatic needs; and

• Expansion of a social work position from .7 to full-time to meet state mandates and programmatic needs.

Middle School additions:

• One part-time (.3) computer literacy teaching position to meet programmatic and enrollment needs; and

• Expansion of the existing alternative education teaching position from half-time to full-time.

Pinewood Intermediate School:

• Expanded Academic Intervention Services in the form of after-school sessions plus addition of a teacher assistant to work with AIS math students during the school day;

• An additional third grade section to accommodate enrollment increases; and

• One part-time (.5) special education teacher to support additional special education students who are not assigned to collaborative classrooms (consisting of special education and regular education students).

Bradt Primary School:

• Expansion of the school counselor position from part-time (.5) to full-time;

• Reorganizing and expansion of the school’s summer program through additional screening days for kindergartners who register late and an additional three-week transition session for incoming kindergarten students; and

• Addition of a part-time (.5) kindergarten position to pilot a full-day kindergarten classroom for students at risk.

Districtwide:

• A full-time academic administrator for social studies to address programmatic needs;

• A part-time (.6) English academic administrator. Currently, the district has one academic administrator for humanities (English 7-12 and K-12 social studies). Since English/Language Arts is an area of ongoing focus, the proposal splits the position in two with a .6 administrator for 6-12 English with supervision of the administrators implementing Language Arts at each elementary school;

• Possible realignment of the aquatics director position to include teaching physical education;

• A shared part-time monitor (.5) at the middle school and high school during after-school hours for enhanced safety;

• A part-time Web master position staffed through BOCES to strengthen the content and timeliness of the district’s Web site; and

• A full-time technology specialist/integrator to facilitate the rapidly changing needs of classrooms and students to prepare for the future.

Bus proposition

Mohonasen residents approved a proposition to purchase two 66-passenger school buses and four 22-passenger, wheelchair accessible school buses at a cost not to exceed $430,000. The state will pay for nearly 78 percent of that cost, reducing local taxpayers’ share to approximately $18,920 per year for five years. The cost of buying the school buses will be bonded and paid back over a five-year period.

Mohonasen is on a regular bus replacement schedule based on mileage, age of the vehicle, repair history and condition.

The bus proposition will not have any tax impact until the 2009-2010 school year. And since the district is also paying off old bus bonds, the new purchase would have a minimal increase on the district’s debt.

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