Taxes to increase by 2.23% under $81.7M spending plan
By Kelly O’Hara, Correspondent, The Times
Bancroft Elementary School Principal Leah McComsey presents 12 students with certificates honoring them for winning a national online poetry contest, during Monday night’s Kennett Consolidated School District Board of Education meeting.
KENNETT SQUARE —The Kennett Consolidated School District Board of Education approved a final $81.7M budget Monday night as part of a packed end of the year agenda at its meeting at Kennett High School.
Other agenda items of note included an update on a recent risk and vulnerability assessment, the expanding STEM program, the results of a Chester County student forum dedicated to exploring the delay of the start of the school day for middle and high school students, the approval of the hiring of Kevin Bridges as the Supervisor of Information Systems and the presentation of poetry by 12 students from Bancroft Elementary School.
The board unanimously approved the 2016/2017 district operating budget of $81,793,364.
Included in this approval are the adoptions of the following tax resolutions for 2016/2017: Earned Income Tax – 1% levied on salaries and wages, Real Estate Tax – 29.2408 mills levied on real estate, Act 544 Tax – tax of 29.2408 mills levied on interim real estate, Act 511 Tax – ½ of 1% on real estate transfers. These tax resolutions translate to an increase of 2.23% annually.
Some factors contributing to the increase in the bottom line of the budget versus last year is the state mandated increases to retirement pension benefit program (PSERS) contribution, increased tuition for charter schools and the increasing special education budget and approval for two new teaching positions. The budget also included a new teacher contract and a new 5-year transportation contract with Krapf.
On June 3, a Risk and Vulnerability Assessment was conducted at Kennett High School. The assessment included a 100 question checklist requiring a walk through of the school to evaluate safety and security protocols and conditions such as door locks, security systems and emergency communication systems. A written report with the results of the assessment is expected the end of June, however, during a question and answer session at the end of the assessment, when asked how the high school compared to other schools, the answer was “better than most.”
The highlight of the Curriculum Committee report was an update on the district’s continued commitment to enhancing and expanding the STEM program offerings. New programs will offer programs to students as young as kindergarten. The district held it’s first Family STEM Night at Kennett Middle School on June 7th that was a huge success, district officials said.
After attending the monthly CCIU/CATS meeting, board member Rudy Alfonso gave an update regarding a student committee report recommending the delay the time of the start of the school day for middle school and high school students.
This committee was comprised of students from several Chester County area high schools. Their recommendation came as a result of evaluating the research on adolescent biological sleep cycles and also included surveys of Chester County high school students. The research suggests that an 8:30 or later start time has a positive impact on, among other things, academic, social, physical and psychological development. The committee plans to travel throughout the district to the school board meetings to present their findings.
Superintendent of Schools Dr. Barry Tomasetti acknowledged that the research is out there and commented that the recommendation is interesting and warrants exploration. He noted that several things would be impacted including bus schedules, sports programs and staff schedules, but it is something to look into in the fall.
A highlight of the meeting was the recognition of twelve Bancroft Elementary school students from Mrs. Spahr’s fifth grade class. These 12 students were all selected as winners of a national online poetry contest and will have their poems published as a result. Each student read their poem for the board and Bancroft Principal Leah McComsey presented each student with a certificate of recognition.
Important upcoming dates include the last student day of school on Wednesday June 15th and the KHS commencement ceremony on Friday, June 17 at 6:00pm. The next School Board Meeting will be held on Monday, July 11th at 7:00pm at Mary D Lang Kindergarten Center.
For additional district information and board meeting minutes, visit www.kcsd.org
