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Date: 3/22/2018
CHICOPEE – Chicopee School Budget Review Committee has released its suggestions on how to improve the efficient use of the school funding in the city.
Mayor Ricgard Kos told Reminder Publications, “I’m looking forward to reviewing the recommendations with the School Committee as a whole and working with the superintendent as we partner with the City Council in a plan that will include reductions in the current school budget with additional funding from the city.”
Kos had assembled the group late last year to study the School department’s budget and try to develope strategies that would save money as the department has been facing a deficit.
The following are the recommendations:
• Explore the advantage of combining the city’s IT departments. (This study will be done by Jeffery Trask).
• Explore the advantage of combining the city’s Human Resource Departments.
• Explore the advantage of combining the maintenance departments throughout the city. Have flexible scheduling to reduce overtime.
• Explore the advantage of combining secretarial departments throughout the city.
• Consider reducing the number of Special Ed Coordinators from five to four.
• Consider having elementary schools share vice-principals.
• Explore the advantage of having the students from Streiber Elementary School attend Fairview Veterans Elementary School and converting Streiber Elementary School into the Administration Building.
• Consider eliminating one vice-principal from each of the middle schools.
• Consider having the middle schools share one Math Coach and one ELA Coach.
• Consider eliminating one Team Chairs/School Psychologist from Dupont Middle School (Bellamy Middle School has three Team Chairs/School Psychologist and Dupont Middle School has four Team Chairs/School Psychologist).
• Reduce the amount of money for Advance Placement exams in both high schools from $10,000 to $5,000.
• Eliminate the requirement of having all students enrolled in Advance Placement courses take the advance placement exam (the amount per exam is $93)
• Consider eliminating the consultant “Administrative Coaching for Evaluation Process-- Ribas Associates.”
• Consider the feasibility of replacing the consultant “Negotiator/Labor Relations – Sullivan, Hayes & Quinn” with qualified in-house council (currently Rebecca Bouchard).
• Consider eliminating the consultant “Grant Facilitator.”
• Examine consultants that are paid by grant funds to see if that money could be better used for direct student services.
• A thorough review and restructuring of all grant writing and a more proactive approach and organization be implemented. The School Department should be aggressively pursuing grants that are available for Gateway Cities (26 across the state) and look at best practices used by other Gateway Cities.
• Explore the financial advantage of acquiring a full time grant writer.
• A review of vocational offerings for students with emphasis on writing grants for new programs in areas where there is increased state demand.
• Consider making the school budget process more transparent and accessible to the general public and encourage public input on where the money is spent.
• Implement a more user friendly budget structure and display the budget on the school’s website,
• Consider prioritizing Chicopee Public Schools within our city’s budget by increasing the Net School Spending and maintain it as a constant percentage above the minimum requirement.
• Explore other options for providing substitutes other than Kelly Services.
• Explore the advantage of a vendor managed inventory for the school system.
• Provide online courses for low enrollment courses.
• Restrict the advancement on employees’ pay scale to July 1 to help in the budget planning process,
• Inform employees on better ways to effectively use their health insurance i.e. preventive care
• The School Department develop a three year strategic plan to forecast future district budget needs as they relate to the following:
a. Financial impact of future contract negotiations (all bargaining units) based on a 3 percent aggregate increase over the life of the next contract.
b. Accommodations for increasing insurance premiums at the rate of 15 percent each year.
c. Project for a flat Chapter 70 allocations for the next three years.
d. Accommodations for increases in Special Education spending at 5 percent per year.
e. Increase school spending as it relates to increases in district attendance of 4percent for the next three years.
• Update all Jobs descriptions:
a. Timing – this school year.
b. Subsequent updates – 1/3 (one-third) per year (no job description older than three years).
c. Focus on separating “what we think the job is” from “what is actually done” from “what the job should be.”
d. Evaluate existing positions based on skills required.
e. Create new job descriptions if needed (e.g. – a vice principal becomes a dean).
• Create a continuous improvement program:
a. Start with two locations.
i. Pick team of 6-8 cross functional people.
ii. Meet one hour per week and brainstorm ideas.
iii. Vote on top 3 and assign action items with due dates and owners.
b. Solutions / improvements from (a.) above are then replicated where feasible throughout the system.
• Look into consolidating smaller programs into one location:
a. Collaborate between schools, not separate.
b. Or can specialist travel between schools.
c. Can Chicopee team up with surrounding towns to form a “Collaborative” for special services.
• All individual school budgets should be estimated and broken down by the appropriate line item.
a. Some schools appear to do it, others do not.
b. No more lump sum budgeting by individual schools.
c. Current state of individual schools are too vague.
• Consider exploring best practices of school systems in other Gateway Communities.
• Consider exploring the use of “blizzard bags” as a cost saving measure to prevent adding days to the school year due to snow days.
• Consider reviewing the way school districts are drawn so that it is more efficient and cost effective.