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Other Peabody News:
School officials plan to train volunteers to staff elementary school
libraries
More new faces join race for City Council
School board OKs
reserves to offset fee hikes
by Janelle Randazza and John Castelluccio
PEABODY – Relief will come to families struggling to pay school
user fees in Peabody, at least for next year.
As a result of changes made to the school budget by the City Council last
month, the School Committee voted to accept a proposed increase in the
2010 budget of $225,000 last week, which puts the schools at $60.24 million
next year.
Mayor Michael Bonfanti offered to spend additional money from the city’s
free cash reserves after city councilors heatedly criticized the larger
burden of proposed user fees on parents. Bonfanti had already agreed to
spend $314,430 from reserves in the school budget. This increase will
expunge planned increases in bus, athletic and extracurricular performing
arts fees by giving $200,000 to transportation, $21,000 to athletic, and
$4,000 to performing arts costs.
“It’s been a tough year for everyone. The $225,000 will give
taxpayers some relief,” said Bonfanti last week. “I hope people
feel as though we were able to treat everyone…fairly.”
Bus fees were scheduled to jump from $100 per student with a $200 family
cap to $200 per student with a $400 family cap this year. The School Committee
had planned to implement a two-tier structure that raised athletic fees
to either $200 or $300, depending on the sport, with a family cap of $500.
Now the existing fees of $150 per sport with a $300 family cap will remain
in place. This also means that high school students participating in certain
extracurricular performing arts can wait at least one more year before
seeing the proposed $50 fee imposed for such activities as the school
musical and dance teams.
While the added funds will help lighten the load for many parents, not
all committee members were enthusiastic about accepting the money, in
fact, Edward Nizwantowski voted against adding the $225,000 to the budget
on “principle.”
“Someone at City Hall is listening to us… still, I won’t
vote for this if it means we still charge kids to play sports and ride
the bus,” said Nizwantowski. “Public education should be free.
It is our duty to take the burden off the parents.”
Committee member Brandi Carpenter voted in favor of adding the additional
funds to the budget, but not without speaking up for the 73 employees
cut from next year’s budget.
“I do appreciate it, but…I wish we were putting back five
or six teachers with this money,” she said.
Fellow committee member Beverley Griffin Dunne thanked city councilors
for allowing the schools to make use of the added funds.
“I would like to thank [them] for putting this money forward. It
will help a lot of people, she said. |
