NEW SEWICKLEY TWP. — Two teachers in the Freedom Area School District were expected to be laid off as part of staffing changes that are being made to deal with declining enrollment, Superintendent Jeffrey Fuller said.
The move, which Fuller “anticipated” would be approved by the school board, is one of several the district is making as it finalizes its 2018-19 budget, which also includes a 4 percent increase in property taxes.
They are “not easy decisions to make,” Fuller said.
The budget is expected to be adopted at next Tuesday’s school board meeting.
“The board of school directors and the administration take the process of developing the annual school district budget and the associated decisions very seriously,” a prepared statement posted on the district’s web site reads. “We have an educational responsibility to our students and community and a fiscal responsibility to our taxpayers. These are sometimes difficult to balance. We appreciate the support of our community while we take on this important task.”
The district is eliminating “instructional coach” positions, teachers who advised and assisted other teachers. Two teachers, who haven’t yet been named, will be laid off, Fuller said.
The move is being made to “address the most effective use of resources,” according to the prepared statement from school officials.
Five paraprofessional positions are also being cut, but three of those have been vacant for a year and one is a retirement, Fuller said. That move was approved in May, he said.
The staffing reductions shouldn’t affect students as class sizes will remain about the same because of declining enrollment in the district.
A retirement incentive is also being offered to administrators, two of whom are eligible, which could also help decrease spending, Fuller said.
The district’s 2018-19 budget will total $23.59 million and will include a 2.4 mill property tax increase to bring the rate up to 61.3 mills. The 2017-18 budget totaled $23.25 million.
Any budget issues are separate from two capital-improvement projects underway in the district, Fuller said. A $1.4 million improvement of the stadium and replacing the doors and windows of the high school are being funded through a reserve fund.
The moves aren’t being made without some public dissent. A group called Freedom for Excellence formed on Facebook in 2017 and mounted an unsuccessful slate of school board write-in candidates that year, garnering about 2,000 write-in votes that were spread over four candidates.
The group has tried to rally support for people to attend school board meetings to oppose the proposed actions.