001(upbeat music) I will note that all board members are present, with the exception of President Karen Ceske, who unfortunately cannot be with us here this evening. Also, all members of the cabinet are present. Thank you, Stuart, Jeff, and your team, along with the rest of the cabinet, for all of your hard work in putting together this budget and the presentations we have seen at our budget study sessions. I will turn things over to Stuart for the next item on the agenda, a brief overview of the proposed budget for the 2022-2023 school year. Okay, thank you very much, Amber. And I know Jerry is hurriedly rushing through to find the presentation to get it up. 30 seconds. No pressure, Jerry. That's code for pressure. (people chuckling) You've got this. There we go. Ready to roll. All
002right. Very good. Thank you. Yes, this is the 22-23 Budget Forum. Great to see everyone out in the audience. And again, thanks to, certainly, Jeff, who does the budget book on an annual basis, which is an incredible document, but certainly all of cabinet. Increase of 3.45%, and that's below the tax levy limit, by five basis points, or about $75,000. When that translates into a tax rate increase, you can see, the Town of Scarsdale, 2.43%, Mamaroneck, 3.68%. The difference there was the change, slight increase in Scarsdale's equalization rate, which pushes a slightly larger piece of the levy pie over to the Town of Mamaroneck. And if you look at the budget plan from year to year, this gives you our total expenditure budget and revenues. So the first row, year to year, the budget $6.428 million
003increase or 3.85%. That is what our district residents will vote on, if they're by the board of education. It's offset by our other revenues, predominantly state aid, county sales tax of $11.1 million. That's an increase of $1.458 million, largely driven by taking away that pandemic deficit adjustment that we've held the last two years. So that helps offset the levy. Transfer from other reserves, $548,000. Assigned fund balance of $1.95 million. $500,000 to that is that COVID or inflationary contingency. And it's $300,000 less than what we held in previous two years. Overall, when you take away those revenues from the total budget, you have a levy of $159,697,444. And there's that 3.45% increase. And again, what does this budget accomplish? It maintains high quality teaching and learning, consistent with our strategic plan. It continues to support our
004study and development of DEI initiatives. Advances in-district instructional opportunities for students with disabilities. Improves our wireless connectivity and communications. And it improves and upgrades our facilities. And you can see we've made it to the, or just about to the end of our budget calendar or budget discussion timeline. We have our Budget Forum tonight, of course, and the board is scheduled to adopt the budget next Monday, and the budget vote is on May 17th. And with that, we'll open it to comments. Thank you, Stuart. The next item on the agenda is the opportunity for community response to the preliminary proposed budget. Members of the community are now invited to speak. We will take comments from the audience first, and then from those participating via Zoom. Please state your name and address, and if you represent an
005organization. Unlike at our business meetings, there is no time limit on time, but we ask that you be mindful of the time so that everyone who wishes to speak has an opportunity. For those commenting remotely, when it is your turn to speak, please mute the livestream voice, turn on your camera, and then unmute yourself. We will let you know if we cannot hear you. We would also appreciate that all speakers mail your comments to [email protected]. Hi, good evening. I am Mayra Kirkendall-Rodriguez, PTC Budget Study Co-chair, together with Laura Liu, and we're going to alternate reading our statement. The PTC Council Executive Committee and the Budget Study Chairs are pleased to support this year's Scarsdale school budget, particularly because it addresses the need for in-house mental health resources. We thank the district administration and the board
006of education for scheduling this budget forum for the community to comment on the proposed budget. We commend the administration for responding to the over 60 questions that we submitted in November, January, and February, which we've included in the PTC Budget Study page. We are appreciative that the administration responded to community feedback and improved the budget process transparency by making more information available to the public in a timely fashion. At the Budget Priorities Forum in November, the PTC shared priorities that PTC officers, PTA budget liaisons, and PTA presidents had identified at our seven schools. Mental health resources, improved Wi-Fi access, continued support for diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, district-wide transportation study, and flexible multi-use outdoor spaces. The PTC CEC fully supports the addition of in-house mental health and special education positions in the proposed budget. Even
007before the pandemic, Scarsdale School District, as well as Westchester County and national data show, there have been significant increases in mandated counseling and hospitalizations of students due to a wide array of heightened expectations and pressure, mental and emotional needs, and various risk factors, especially in the middle and high school demographic. The resources that the district requests are absolutely necessary to meet immediate student needs that have been exacerbated by the pandemic, as well as to deliver programs and services aimed at long term wellness and resilience. We thank the district for allocating funds for a Wi-Fi coverage heat map study, and for additional Wi-Fi equipment to improve coverage inside the school buildings. In addition, there are high usage areas on the high school campus, including Butler Field and the pickup circle, as well as in the area
008of Fox Meadow Elementary, where Wi-Fi coverage is just as urgently needed to ensure students are reachable in space, especially during the dark winter months. We recommend that the district consider expanding the Wi-Fi coverage to these campus areas in this budget. We support the continuation of the district's diversity, equity, and inclusion focus in the curriculum and the budgeted funds for professional training and classroom materials. We urge the district to maintain this active focus on DEI initiatives. And we would like to respectfully request including parent programming in the budget, because parent education and engagement are critical to the success of DEI work. While the transportation study and the multi-use outdoor spaces were not prioritized in this budget, we would like to reiterate their importance to our students. We encourage the district to include these two items in
009future budgets as early as possible, and to also consider several other projects that are valuable to our school community, including the high school auditorium, as well as sustainability initiatives. We thank you for staying within the New York tax levy cap of 3-1/2 percent. We appreciate the attention to minimizing spikes that would impact taxpayers. With inflation at a 40 year high and rising, especially in the metal and energy sectors, as well as the economic impact of geopolitical uncertainties, these items are very important for current and long term Scarsdale school budgets. That was the Executive Summary. PTC identified priorities. We'd like to provide more detail about three of the five priorities that the PTC identified at our seven schools. And we thank the seven PTA presidents and budget liaisons for their collaboration in the last six months.
010First, mental health and special education resources. The PTC EC and Budget Chairs fully support the addition of four full-time employees, in-house professional positions and student social emotional support, and the addition of two FTE special education teaching positions. These in-house resources will meet the pressing need for student mental health services and fill the painful gap that affects many students and families. They will also work closely with faculty to deliver programs and services to teach healthy habits and improve long-term wellness. Data from the district show that the Scarsdale High School community needs more social emotional support. Even without the COVID crisis, the individual mental health needs of students, families, and staff have dramatically increased. Since 2018-2019, the district has seen the following increases. 38% increase in mandated counseling. 42% increase in tri-annual evaluations, 133 increase in hospitalizations,
011and this particular increase only represents the number of hospitalizations through November. There are also other students temporarily in out-placement due to eating disorders and anxiety disorders as well. Good mental health is critical to children's success in school, and later in life. According to data cited by the mental health associations in New York State, "Half of all chronic mental health conditions "begin by age 14. "Further, half of all lifetime cases of anxiety disorders "begin as early as eight. "And one in four youth, aged 13 to 18, "experienced serious mental disorders in a given year." The pandemic has taken a significant toll on the wellbeing of our students and faculty. However, even prior to the pandemic, concerns have been raised in this district about the increase in mental health needs in our schools. Recent research shows a
012rise in mental health issues in children in Westchester County, especially in girls and minorities, predating the pandemic. The Westchester East Putnam Region PTA has made mental health resources a priority in its advocacy work. Increased demand for mental health resources is also a nationwide phenomena that has been widely reported. The PTC fully supports in-house mental health resources dedicated to our students. The in-house model is advantageous, because these better credentialed career professionals can work cohesively with teachers and social psychologists to deliver long term programs and interventions, not just react in issues and cases. In the appendices, we refer you to mental health resource advocacy statements made at the February 14th Board of Education Meeting by our Scarsdale High School and Scarsdale Middle School PTA presidents. At that meeting, they both stated that it is necessary to add
013both district employees, mental health professionals, as requested by the high school principal, and as well, our Middle School Principal Troy previously explained at a January 10 Board of Ed meeting, "We have seen a rise in the number of students "managing depression, anxiety, "and other mental health issues, "which limits a student's ability "to access an equal education." The support and structure that the High School Emotional Support Program has given students for six years is a model for the Middle School. Bringing this program down to the Middle School will give students who are struggling to access the general education curriculum, due to emotional difficulties, the support necessary to succeed. Thank you. Thank you, Mayra. So I'm gonna start with the Wi-Fi reception. Improving Wi-Fi reception is a significant safety and security issue that needs to be addressed
014promptly. We noted that the district earmarked $125,000 in the 22-23 budget for this purpose. We thank the district for budgeting a heat map study of areas with poor reception, and for purchasing necessary additional Wi-Fi equipment to improve coverage inside the school buildings. However, there are high usage areas on the high school campus, including Butler Field and the pickup circle, as well as at Fox Meadow campus, where Wi-Fi coverage is just as urgently needed to ensure students are reachable and safe, especially during the dark winter months. We strongly urge the district to consider expanding the Wi-Fi coverage to these campus areas in this budget. With the upcoming leadership change in the technology department, we hope the district will ensure continuity in the Wi-Fi improvement project. We also encourage the district to collaborate with the village on
015issues surrounding improved cellular reception in and around the schools and to reinstate the discussions that had been put on hold this past year. We are aware that the village needs to remedy issues with cellular coverage and the district can continue to enhance internet access in our buildings and the immediate surroundings through Wi-Fi. The next item is diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives. The PTC EC fully supports the district's sustained commitment to DEI work as a strategic priority, as reflected in the proposed budget to continue, with a district consultant, and to include or reallocate funds for professional training and curriculum materials. We are pleased that a portion of the American Rescue Plan Grant will help support DEI initiatives. In the past year, the district has engaged in the meaningful implementation of the new Board Policy Number 0105,
016Equity, Inclusivity, and Diversity in Education, as guided by the New York State Culturally Responsive Sustaining Education Framework. Curriculum units that invite multiple perspectives and affirm multiple identities are being integrated into existing curriculum. The DEI lens is applied to professional development and hiring. We commend the district for this important work it has done so far, and we encourage the district to continue to develop DEI expertise through training and hiring. Parent education and engagement are also critical to the success of DEI programs. We ask the district to add parent programming as an integral part of overall DEI initiatives. DEI work will better prepare all students for the diverse and interconnected society they will inhabit. As you evaluate existing DEI initiatives in the district, we also ask you to consider, in a future budget, whether a full-time DEI
017professional would be required. Additional projects for next year and beyond. The PTC EC and Budget Study Chairs recognize that some projects are not prioritized in this budget due to financial constraints. However, we would like to reiterate that these remain valuable projects to improve instruction, student services, and other district strategic goals. We respectfully request that these items stay on the district's radar and be funded in the earliest possible budget and or bond. A transportation study to optimize routes, increase safety, and improve service. Flexible multi-use outdoor spaces to increase outdoor lunch and class time. High School Auditorium Phase 3. Sustainability practices and curriculum. Athletic and extracurricular activities. Building improvement projects, including air cooling solutions in general, and building specific items, such as traffic barriers at Quaker Ridge. Additionally, we would like to provide feedback on the budget
018process and macroeconomic factors impacting budget planning. The budget process. As we have expressed, we thank the board and the administration for making agendas and materials available on the Fridays prior to the board meetings and budget study sessions on Mondays. This process improvement allows sufficient time for community groups and residents to digest and reflect on the information and craft a thoughtful process for Monday evening's public comment period. It fosters a more informed and measured public response from all those wishing to be heard. Currently, the 2022-23 budget document webpage on the district's board of education site lists links to budget presentation decks, and responses to questions from community groups. We suggest that the board also add links to budget presentation video recordings next to the presentation decks. The video recordings are valuable resources for the public to
019understand the thought process going into the proposed budget. Archiving the presentation decks and recording links together will facilitate information access and public engagement. We encourage the board to continue meeting with the village board to work collaboratively on issues of common interest, such as cellular coverage and traffic. Lastly, macroeconomic factors and risk mitigation. Although the PTC is focusing on the significant mental health priorities addressed by staffing in the 2022-2023 budget, we acknowledge the aging infrastructure of our buildings and that many capital projects needs should continue to be included in future budgets and should not be continually deferred. However, we had acknowledge the administration's and board's prudent approach to budgeting for the many unknowns of the coming school year. By increasing the school budget by 3.85% to 173.3 million, you are staying within the New York State
020tax levy cap of 3.5%. We appreciate the attention to minimizing spikes and dips that would impact tax payers. We're cautiously resuming a near normalcy in school operations and resource requirements for COVID mitigation have decreased from the past two years. At the same time, inflation is at a four year high, and is rising, especially in metals and energies that do impact our budgeting, both long and short term. We also have tremendous geopolitical uncertainties that need to be monitored and considered in budget planning. As the District stated in its February responses to PTC questions, and I quote, "The district is already experiencing "the impact of increased energy costs. "Unlike past years, we're unlikely to see a surplus "in these categories in the current year. "Depending on weather and prices, "we might actually have a deficit. "The 2022-23
021budget for utilities has been increased "by $300,000 to taken to account these escalations." We support the continued use of fund balance only for non-recurring surprises and the calculated decision to discontinue past practice of relying on surplus to fund anticipated or annual costs. We encourage the district to restore the unassigned fund balance back to recommended levels of close to the 4% limit as soon as practicable. The district presently has a Moody's AAA Rating, which is important to preserve in order to keep borrowing costs as low as possible the next time the district has to issue a bond for upcoming capital projects. Thank you in advance for taking our comments into consideration as you finalize the budget. And we do appreciate your openness to feedback, your increased focus on community engagement, and your thoughtful efforts in budgeting
022for an uncertain economic environment. So undersigned, Mayra Kirkendall-Rodriguez and Laura Liu, as Council Budget Study Co-chairs, Megan Simon as Council President, Lauren Grossberg, Meredith Kent, Stephanie Stern, Joey Silberfein, Leah Dembitzer, Yoko Hayashi and Sammantha Furniss, Anna Blake, Courtney Allen, Beth Keyser, and Emily Hira. Thank you very much. Thank you, Mayra and Laura. A hard act to follow. I'm Joey Silberfein, from 5 Oak Way. I'm here on behalf of the High School PTA Executive Committee and Budget Study Chair. The Scarsdale High School PTA Executive Committee appreciates the efforts of the district administration and board of education in preparing a budget that is fiscally responsible while facing the complexities of stewarding our schools through the past two years facing a pandemic. We thank the members of the board of ed for their dedication and for giving us
023this opportunity to comment on the proposed 2022-2023 school district budget. We understand that the board of education needs to identify those items and expenses that should be prioritized over others, while keeping the tax cap and other fiscal limitations in mind. We, as the High School PTA EC, would like to advocate that the following items that impact the daily lives and education of our high school students remain a priority for the district. Mental health resources. As we've mentioned during last year's budget study process and again at the board of ed meetings in February and March, the pandemic has left its mark upon the wellbeing of our high school students and faculty. Health experts have identified an alarming increased incidence of mental health disorders, including anxiety, depression, substance abuse, and post-traumatic stress disorder. Parents in the community
024were concerned about mental health prior to the pandemic, and those concerns are only heightened. We encourage the board of ed to maintain appropriate resources for the high school to address this increased demand on the mental health with mental health professionals. We see it a priority to create a budget that allocates adequate human and financial resources to both address the immediate needs of students struggling with mental health and enable the delivery of schoolwide programs and services, fostering growth and resilience for the future. We believe that this is best achieved with the current draft budget that identifies two district employee mental health hires, as well as maintaining the youth outreach worker program, which we see as two separate and very distinct roles. The auditorium. We would also like to take this opportunity to once again urge the
025district and the board to keep the continuation of the high school auditorium renovation at the forefront of future budget planning until it is fully completed as envisioned. The auditorium has taken a backseat for far too long. While we are delighted to see that so much of the renovation is completed, there's still much that needs to be done. Safety concerns. We believe that the lack of and weak Wi-Fi in and around the building is a huge safety and security concern. To bring better Wi-Fi into the building and to complete a heat map, we feel strongly that Wi-Fi needs to be extended to the high school field and parking lot for the safety of our students. And we encourage this to remain a priority in future budgets until it's completed. Secondly, during heavy rainstorms, which often occur
026without advanced warning, the overflow from the Brewster Road Creek bed floods and causes thousands of dollars worth of damage to cars parked by the creek lots. This has been going on for many years. Students and staff are forced to quickly leave school when notified of a flooding creek. This causes stress and unproductive class time. It is not just the time needed to move the cars, but the time spent looking for alternative parking. It is also a safety concern with so many harried drivers trying to back out of a flooded parking lot. Though not for this year's budget, we would like the administration to do a study on how to remediate the flooding and consider adding this to future budgets. Once again, we appreciate the time and attention taken to create this year's budget and appreciate
027the opportunity to participate in the process. Please do not hesitate to reach out to any of us with any of your questions. And again, it's from the High School PTA EC and Budget Study Chairs. Thank you, Joey. Hello, I'm Alissa Baum. President of the League of Women Voters of Scarsdale. I first just want to acknowledge Suzie Hahn, who is our School Budget Portfolio Chair. She can't be here today, but she put in a lot of work and deserves some credit. The League of Women Voters of Scarsdale thanks the members of the board of education and district administration for participating in a panel at the League's general membership meeting and school budget information session, and addressing on the preliminary proposed school budget. The following statement reflects the consensus of League members at a consensus meeting held
028immediately following the information session. The League supports the preliminary proposed Scarsdale School District budget for 2022-23, and recommends that, barring any significant revisions before its adoption, the community vote yes to approve the proposed budget on Tuesday, May 17th, at Scarsdale Middle School. The League offers its comments and recommendations regarding certain budgetary items, as well as the budget process, which we hope will be considered as next year's budget is revised and finalized, and in future budgets. Commendations. The League acknowledges, with appreciation, the substantial time and effort that goes into developing the proposed budget, and particularly appreciates the challenge of formulating a budget inclusive of contingency allocation in these continued uncertain times. The League thanks the administration and board for their additional effort spent preparing for our March 24th information session and responding to our written questions.
029The League commends the panel for participating in this year's information session. Additionally, the League commends the administration for making the budget book available early in the budget development process. The budget book allows a comprehensive view of the myriad components of the budget, and through this tool, there's an enhanced understanding of the budget itself. The League is also appreciative that the administration continues to include league budget questions and administration responses on the district website as a public resource. Finally, the League commends the board for adopting Policy 1230, which allows for public participation, either in person or via remote means, during the two public comment periods at board meetings. Comments and recommendations. Staffing in support of social emotional and mental health of students. The League strongly supports the proposed increases in mental health staffing as proposed in
030the budget. The League believes that the proposed support staffing at the middle and high school levels can provide critical services for students in crisis, such as school avoidance and suicidal ideation. The data presented at the information session demonstrates an identified need, with classified mental and social emotional cases trending higher, even before COVID 19. The League has in past statements expressed concern for student social emotional wellbeing, and continues to encourage the administration to continuously reexamine and provide adequate resources to address the social emotional needs of all students. The League notes that the administration continues to support the elementary class size policy and the middle school house structure. The League continues to recommend supporting traditional class sizes and norms at all levels in order to ensure a classroom environment most conducive to student learning and the achievement
031of the administration's educational goals as outlined in the strategic plan. In addition, the League continues to recommend that the administration and board continue to provide appropriate staffing to protect the high academic standards of the high school. The League believes staffing should be reflective of an underlying high school culture that supports academic choice, allows each student to forge a personal connection to an educator, and provides a safe, healthy environment in which students can develop and grow. The League also appreciates the special education presentation to the board on January 24th, and continues to encourage the administration to communicate proactively and clearly with the parent community and the community at large, regarding the importance of supporting special education students in Scarsdale schools. We would like the administration to continue to address appropriate staffing and other resources needs as
032special education students move up within the Scarsdale school system. Plant and capital improvements. The total plant capital improvement budgets for 2022-23 is 1,115,000. This sum is equal to the prior year combined capital and maintenance plant improvement budgets, 374,000 less than the prior year and 1,429,000 less than the 2019-20 year. The League looks forward to the building conditions survey being completed and shared with the community and would encourage the administration to formulate a long term facilities master plan. We'd like to reiterate from past statements that given that several of our schools were built over a century ago, thoughtful facilities planning and capital improvement are of upmost importance to ensure that our buildings maintain and enhance student learning and are safe, sustainable, and flexible enough to support 21st century innovation and future programs. In particular, the League
033encourages the administration to consider the completion of the high school auditorium renovation a priority in the 23-24 budget. Technology. The League strongly supports the proposed expenditure to study and implement improved Wi-Fi and cellular service in and around our schools, such as our playing fields, as a safety and communication issue. We encourage the administration to continue to advocate with the village to address the dead zones in our cellular coverage. Curriculum, instruction, and assessment. The League notes that a Scarsdale education has long been regarded as a leader amongst its peers, and we recommend that the administration continue to aspire to educational leadership. The preservation of educational leadership requires a strong and proactive commitment to continuously enhance our educational program, K through 12, while keeping the community informed. The League appreciates the administration's work process, assessing student performance,
034and adapting curriculum to meet student need, particularly in light of potential learning gaps due to COVID 19. We support the review and adaptations of new curriculum and ideas to maintain Scarsdale as a leader in education. The League encourages the administration to communicate clearly and proactively its assessments and plans to the school community. As new curriculum is introduced, such as the Next Gen Math Program, the League supports the addition of the proposed temporary math district coordinator position in the budget to ensure the success of the new program for both teachers and students. The League also supports the addition of a middle school technology teacher as the STEAM curriculum expands and evolves in our schools. The League encourages the administration to continue to pursue goals and wellness and sustainability, and especially commends the work being done to
035incorporate values of diversity, equity, and inclusion into the curriculum. Advocacy. As per the board vice president, the board has liaisons to both the New York State School Board Association and the Westchester Putnam School Board Association. Board members, including the board president, have discussed and voted on NYSSBA resolutions and amendments and participated in the Area 10 Director Election. Locally the board made a statement regarding the proposed introduction of marijuana dispensaries in Scarsdale. The board is not currently engaged in advocacy at the federal level. The League appreciates the board's efforts to increase its level of advocacy this year. However, the League continues to strongly encourage the board and the administration as a whole to be leaders in advocacy at both the state and local levels. More specifically, the League urges the administration and board to advocate with
036regulators, local advocacy groups, and elected officials, regarding the rising utility prices that greatly impact our school finances and continue to be an ongoing concern. Budget process community engagement. Last section. The League thanks the board for creating opportunities for public input into the budget, though the League appreciates that the community will have additional opportunities to engage with the board and administration regarding the budget after the budget is adopted by the board. The League encourages a greater community outreach with all stakeholders earlier in the budget process and encourages the board and its Community Engagement Subcommittee to explore additional means and methods of expanding such engagement throughout the year. Also, and particularly with regard to the budget calendar, the League notes that the one week turnaround time between the final budget study session and the community budget forum
037is problematic for individuals, but particularly for community organizations wishing to study the budget and reach agreement on a collective statement. The League requests that future budget calendars be adjusted according to allow for a more detailed study and understanding of the budget and greater opportunity for discussion and the formation of a consensus statement or other community feedback. The League strongly encourages the board to continue to work to be proactive and transparent to ensure community trust in the board process. We thank all members of the administration and the board for consideration of our statement. The League looks forward to the release of the board's final budget iteration, resulting from having considered community comments. Thank you, Alissa. Hi. My name is Harriet Langsam Sobol, and I live at 50 Popham Road. I'd like to address the new positions
038for social worker in this school budget. I understand that the mental health needs of our students have grown beyond the services we have presently. Although I am a former board member of Scarsdale Edgemont Family Counseling, and presently a director-at-large, I speak only for myself, not for Scarsdale Edgemont Family Counseling Service. That's a long one. I believe the students do need more social workers. But I don't think that their salaries should be in the school budget. For more than 40 years, the mental health needs of our students have been well answered, fall, winter, spring, and summer, by the Scarsdale Community Youth Services Project, a program of the Scarsdale Edgemont Family Counseling Service. Why change now? Better to ask the question, why not change? Whatever the original goals of the Youth Service Project were at its formation,
039like most good programs, it has grown richer and has more depth than when it first began. Jay Genova, the Executive Director of Scarsdale Family Counseling, knows the community well, and is a go-to person when there are problems in the community. He works well with other Scarsdale organizations and is often asked to speak. He has put his own stamp on the Youth Services Project. Before COVID, 475 parents attended groups led by the Scarsdale Community Youth Services' social workers. The numbers are lower now because of the pandemic, but will probably rise again once everyone feels comfortable about meeting in person. The summer tasks for youth workers are training Scarsdale Village camp counselors in child abuse identification and reporting. Scarsdale youth worker services support the day camps further by providing crisis assessment when called upon, for children and
040counselors alleging abuse or making suicidal statements. Some students, although few, continue with the family counseling service over the summer. Otherwise the youth worker social workers are in their offices and on call. There's also a matter of cost. A board of education social worker would make between $110,000 and $120,000. The current salary for existing youth outreach social workers from the Youth Services Project is $63,000, about half. Because of the schools' share-paying for the youth outreach social workers, half of $63,000, compared to 110 to 120, would be what the cost would be to the schools. The social workers hired by the school board works 10 months per year, compared to youth outreach workers from family counseling who work 12 months. Although the Youth Services Project social workers do not get tenure, their youth appears to be an
041asset for their work. They know the students' world and have been able to connect with the students. Clearly, whatever you decide, and I know it's late in the game, there will be two more social workers in the halls of the High School and the Middle School next year. That's a good thing. And I applaud that. For more than 40 years, Scarsdale has had a unique bond among the village, the school, and the excellent agency, the Scarsdale Edgemont Family Counseling Services. Our students, who are really just kids before and after school, benefit by that partnership. People in other communities, when they hear about our partnership, envy it. Why not continue to use it? Thank you very much. Thank you, Ms. Sobol. Good evening. Leah Dembitzer, 354 Mamaroneck Road. I'm the Scarsdale Middle School PTA President. And
042I'm speaking on behalf of the Middle School PTA Executive Committee, the Budget Study Chairs, and our Legislative Advocacy Chair. The Scarsdale Middle School PTA Executive Committee, Budget Study Chairs, and Legislative Advocacy Chair, support the current preliminary proposed Scarsdale schools budget 22-23. Highlights of the budget as related to SMS include additional mental health staffing and a computer science teacher, needs identified by Principal Troy at the January 10th Board of Education Meeting. This budget provides a psychologist and a special education teacher in order to create an emotional support program and allocates funds for an in-house social worker. Furthermore, the addition of a computer science teacher will fulfill the need to have a five day per week computer science class, quarterly. Rationale for the mental health staffing requests was discussed by the district throughout the budget process, as
043well as in response to PT Council questions, and was reiterated again at the League of Women Voters Scarsdale information session last week. As per the district, quote, "The trend of increasing mental health needs "predates the pandemic. "The pandemic has been a catalyst for these requests. "As we move forward, the increased focus, "both on specific interventions with students "and the ongoing positive psychology and wellness work "across the district, should address many of these needs. "We do feel these additional resources will be sufficient "for the foreseeable future." And that's in response to PT Council Budget Study questions from January 10th. As Principal Troy explained at the January 10th Staffing Recommendation Presentation, quote, "We have seen a rise in the number of students managing "depression, anxiety, and other mental health issues, "which limits a student's ability "to access
044an equal education. "The proposed creation of a middle school "emotional support program will aim to give students "who are struggling to access "the general education curriculum "due to emotional difficulties "the support necessary to succeed." An in-house social worker was requested by the Middle School as well, as a result of the significant rise in students currently struggling with mental health issues. Through this in-house staff member, the middle school will be able to foster a more consistent touchpoint, greater familiarity, and continuity for both students and families. This year, our students require more mental health staff time and support than is currently available to them. The SMS PTA EC, SMS PTA Budget Study Chairs, and Legislative Advocacy Chair, strongly support the addition of the staff member in order to meet the student needs that are currently not being
045met. Thank you to the board and administration for the immense time, work, and community engagement that is part of your annual budget process. Thank you, Leah. Is there anybody else in the audience? Ron, anybody on the Zoom? We have no attendees right now on Zoom. Okay. Why don't we give it just a few seconds? (people speaking distantly) Okay, I will go ahead and close the opportunity for public comment on the proposed budget. Thank you to everyone who spoke this evening, and we hope that you will consider sending your comments to the board in writing. I will turn to the next item, which is a board discussion on the budget. Does anyone have any questions or comments on what we have heard tonight about the proposed budget? I do. Oh, go ahead. I think it's important
046to reiterate the consistency, one of the consistent messages, that I heard across the public comment, which was the appreciation for the detailed efforts that Stuart's office made to respond to all of the many questions that community groups had this year. And I wanted to, again, thank you, for the time you put in to those efforts. The one question that seems to have resurfaced is the question for Eric of what the best way to fund the additional mental health supports that are widely agreed to be needed is? And I was wondering if you could take just a very short moment to explain the rationale for having those social workers be in-house versus through SEFCS, and how you will continue to maintain the district's partnership with SEFCS after implementing the new social worker system? Sure. Thank you,
047Jessica. I think it's important to start off with, everything that we heard about as far as Edgemont Family Counseling is correct. I think they do an absolutely wonderful job doing outreach, prevention, intervention for substance abuse, engagement with the town camps and the town camp counselors, and that they are a connection point between parents, the community at large, the counseling, the village, and the school. That is absolutely correct. I think they provide an excellent and needed service to the school district. We really are looking for a little bit of a different role with what we're asking for this year, including really a focus in on some of our more intensive cases that include families that are in crisis, families who are experiencing school avoidance from their children. Some of these things, our Scarsdale Edgemont Family Counseling
048social workers over the past few years have had to step in and start to deal with. But what we found is it really takes away from all of those other things that we were just talking about with the partnership. So really what we're focusing on is bringing in a social worker who has a little bit different training than a psychologist, often around family systems and interagency. And when I say interagency, I mean state agencies, the Office of Mental Health, the Office for Peoples with Developmental Disabilities. State Crisis Center. So they have a kind of facility in making those interagencies connections for families, and then working with school teams and the psychologists to really focus in on those families in crisis. I agree that our parenting groups will probably increase as COVID really dies down. And
049I think that's wonderful. And I think our youth outreach workers have to be available to pick that back up, to restart things like Men and Women in Leadership, and to focus in on getting out into classes to reach out to those students who may not have large or intense social emotional issues going on at the moment, but who might need kind of some acute interaction to help them through a developmental stage, a particular thing going on at home, that gives them that preventative care that stops it from becoming a medium to large size problem where they'll need some more concerted effort. So, in a nutshell, that's really what we're looking at. I would encourage anyone who has questions on it to look at the PTC questions. Similar questions have been asked. They've all been answered
050in fairly lengthy detail there. So I would encourage anybody to go take a look at those. Thank you for such a thorough answer. I just had a very quick comment, and that is, after the last couple of years, going through COVID budgeting, it is just really nice to be back to sort of the pre COVID times of discussing forward looking educational initiatives, staffing, and all the things that we do. So thank you to Stuart and your team and the administration for helping us get back to that point. It's just very exciting to go through that budget. Anyone else from the board? Stuart, I actually have a question for you. Joey mentioned the High School parking lot that overflows. What is the status of that right now? I know it hasn't been discussed this year, but
051where are we with that? Yeah, honestly, we have not engaged any sort of study in that. I jotted that down because I think that's something we should look at. I think it's a bigger issue than just the school district. It's what's upstream, it's what's downstream, and coordinating all of that. So it definitely deserves a conversation. Okay. Thank you. And Rachel, there was some discussion about expanding the Wi-Fi outdoors to the parking lot and to Butler Field. Is that part of what we're looking at for next year? It's part of the study. We will perform some analysis outside. I'm pretty sure that... I'm not sure that the whole of the parking lot will be covered, but I know for sure that we're looking at the surrounding areas, where essentially our students congregate during... Graduation. Thank you.
052During our graduations. And I know that Butler Field is something that's on the discussion. Okay, great. Thank you. (Ron speaking distantly) We can't go back, unfortunately. Does anybody else have any questions? Okay. With no more questions, let's move on to wrap up. Are there any items for wrap up? I don't believe there are. Okay, hearing none, let's move on to upcoming meeting dates. Ron? Thanks, Amber. The Board will meet on Wednesday, March 30th, for a Board Special Meeting Executive Session at 5:00 PM at the High School in Room 170-172. The Board will then meet on Monday, April 4th, first for a meeting with a designated group at 5:00 PM in the Learning Commons at the High School. The Board will meet to adopt the budget at 6:30 PM at the High School in Room 170-172.
053And immediately following will be a business meeting, again in this room, 170-172 at the High School, followed by an executive session, if needed. Tuesday, April 19th, there will be a special meeting for the Southern Westchester BOCES vote at 9:00 AM at the High School in Room 170-172. On Thursday, April 21st, there will be the first of this year's Board Coffees. It will be the outdoor Board Coffee, from 3:30 PM to 5:00 PM at the High School picnic tables. On Monday, April 25th, there will be a special meeting and or executive session at 5:30 PM in Room 170-172 at the High School, followed by an education report and business meeting, again in this room at High School 170-172. And lastly, Wednesday, April 27th will be the second Board Coffee. This will be the indoor Board Coffee
054at the High School, Room 170-172, from 5:30 PM to 7:00 PM. Thank you, Ron. We need to return to executive sessions. So Thomas, do we adjourn the Budget Forum, and then do another motion to go to, or do we just do a motion to go executive? You can just do one motion. Okay. Can I get a motion to adjourn the Budget Forum and go to Executive Session. So moved. Second. All those in favor? Aye. Any opposed? Okay. Thank you everyone for joining us tonight. Do I need to do.