LYNNFIELD — The town’s School Department is asking for a 3.38 percent budget increase for fiscal year 2022, bringing the total proposed budget to $27,551,605.
Superintendent Kristen Vogel presented the school budget at last Monday’s Select Board meeting.
“Our most precious asset is our students and it’s important to keep our focus on our students. We also kept our eyes on our mission and vision statements to drive our decisions,” Vogel said. “I can say this as an educational leader of this district that we got here without laying off any teachers in spite of the circumstances this last year brought.”
Vogel’s presentation was well-received by the members of the board.
“You and your staff have done a tremendous job this year in spite of the circumstances, especially compared to a lot of districts,” Select Board Chair Dick Dalton said. “You got kids back in much sooner than other districts. You put up with a lot of parent frustration, so kudos to you. I appreciate you having kept an open line of communication with Rob (Town Administrator Dolan) and me so we better understand where we are coming from.
“It’s a difficult process to come out on the right side and I look forward to continuing to work on this through the Town Meeting.”
Board member Phil Crawford said he admired the way the department has gotten through the pandemic “without missing a beat.”
“You did a wonderful job the first time presenting the budget,” he said. “It’s amazing how well you and the Emergency Management Team (have) gotten through this and I appreciate you getting us ready to present at a number we were looking for.”
“Your presentation was dead on,” added board member Joe Connell.
The budget makes no allocation for capital expenditures for technology.
“Moving to hybrid was expensive, requiring a significant amount of investment in our technology, which wasn’t a bad thing,” Vogel said. “We didn’t have the bandwidth, we had to purchase things like document and web cameras for teachers to live stream, which we did successfully until March and April.”
Vogel highlighted the district’s academic distinctions. U.S. News and World Report ranked Lynnfield High School as the 11th best high school in Massachusetts in May 2020. Three students have been recognized as National Merit Commended Students, while 20 students were named AP scholars in 2020 with 17 AP Scholars with Honor; 21 AP Scholars with Distinction and three as National AP Scholars. A total of 176 students took 382 AP exams last spring.
Vogel said she is recommending adding two more elementary positions — a part-time elementary physical education teacher and one middle school reading specialist. The adjustment counselors would be created by reallocating resources from open high school positions.
The middle school specialist would replace a current reading tutor position that services special education students at the middle school, and would be able to partner with the special educators to better support students’ access to the general curriculum.
“It will expand our ability to address our most significant reading needs at an age when it is critical to narrow the gap for students to be successful in middle school and high school,” Vogel said.
Vogel said, in determining the budget, three considerations were at play: whether the proposed budget supports the district strategy, mission and tentpoles; whether the budget meets the ongoing academic, social-emotional and mental health needs of students, and whether the budget is fiscally responsible.
“The most important thing is to continue to provide our students with an excellent education, and (it is) important to be reminded that we keep our mission and vision statements in our focus when making budget decisions,” Vogel said.
School Committee member Rich Sjoberg was supportive of the superintendent’s budget presentation.
“I’ve counted and believe it or not, there are 38 days left in the school year; we’ve hit the home stretch,” he said. “I am so proud to have Kristen as our new leader and look forward to finishing strong.”
Dalton echoed Sjoberg’s sentiment, saying, “let’s get to the goal line on this.”
The presentation ended on a light note when Dalton declared that Dolan had nominated Vogel for the Rookie of the Year award.
Vogel asked what comes with the award, then answered her own question.
“A T-shirt? It’s not in the budget,” she joked.