Full Day Kindergarten Off the Budget Table

Highlights from the Tuesday night Mansfield School Committee where they worked on the FY12 budget:

-Made continued cuts from their $40,029,221 budget request.

-Decided not to pursue full-time kindergarten for next school year. There was no cost associated with this in the budget.

-Kept an assistant principal position at Qualters Middle School for a budget salary of $85,000.

-Voted to keep all of the special education position requests in the budget as a priority.

-Voted to add 9.2 positions to the Qualters Middle School, including four academic teachers at a cost of $279,000-

-By a 4-1 vote, with Jean Miller voting against, the board decided to keep the $110,000 Curriculum Director/Data analyst position.

-Superintendent of Schools Brenda Hodges included two paraprofessional position and teacher with special education certification that might be needed depending on the numbers of students that need those services. The school committee decided not to put the $87,000 request in the budget. Hodges just wanted them to know the possibility exists of having to add the positions in the 2011-12 school year.

-Decided to fund a library media assistant at the Jordan-Jackson School at $45,000 a year.

-Voted to keep two full-time teaching requests for the high school in English and science and add two half positions in social studies and mathematics in the budget at $135,000.

-Added a school psychologist /counselor to the Jordan-Jackson School and the Robinson School for $45,000. The schools will share the position.

(Check back later for more coverage of the school committee meeting at Mansfield Patch.)