New Britain Board of Education Saves All Day Kindergarten
By Robin Vinci at May 16, 2024 | 9:04 pm | Print
Using a two percent set aside available from the state, the board of education set aside $1.478 million Monday night, which would give the school board over $3 million in funds from it for the 2011-12 budget.
The two percent set aside saves 18.5 all day kindergarten positions allowing an unemployment saving realization of $490,000; the ability to fund 10 all day kindergarten teachers will come from $800,000 in grants and the unemployment savings from teachers would add an additional $250,000.
“The cumulative effect of the two percent set aside is a savings of $3 million from our budget which reduces our need to further lay off staff,” said Sharon Beloin-Saavedra, school board president. “A $1.4 million dollar loss to the City revenue stream is a $3 million gain to our budget that helps a tremendous amount of staff.”
The state of Connecticut allows certain districts to have their school board vote to take two percent of their overall ECS and receive that as a direct grant.
“We were designated as one of those communities. We voted to take it last budget cycle and we are using it this year to save all day kindergarten,” said Saavedra. “It has a $3 million impact to our budget in a positive way at a $1.4 million expense to the City. It basically doubles the value to the district.”
Other cities given the right to use the two percent set aside include Bridgeport, Hartford, New Haven, Waterbury, New London and Windham.
New Britain has had all day kindergarten for five years.
“We don’t want to backslide on the importance of this,” said Saavedra. “It is a critical component of the whole grade level reading campaign.”
