Bethlehem Central School District announced during its Tuesday, Oct. 14, board of education meeting that it would be initiating a non-essential spending freeze.
Superintendent Michael Tebbano said the district is taking a proactive approach in monitoring its finances during a time of national and global economic woes. Tebbano said the school would take a series of precautionary measures to limit spending and identify areas of savings and cost avoidances.
He said all essential operations, particularly the core academic program for students, would continue without being affected. The superintendent emphasized that the district is not on the brink of a financial crisis, but he wanted to take precautions to alleviate as much of the financial burden as possible.
Tebbano said the district is putting a freeze on additional hiring and certain supply requests, as well as discontinuing professional programs outside of the district and holding other professional programs after school hours so that substitutes will not have to be used.
`We also closed off the concept of paid field trips,` Tebbano said in a telephone interview, but added that field trips paid for by student fundraising would continue, as well as athletic trips and other programs such as the science lab trips.
After consultation with the board of education and district administrators, Tebbano announced the `non-essential spending guidelines` in a memo to all staff members on Friday, Oct. 10. The restrictions in the memo included moving curriculum development sessions after school and making them voluntary; close scrutiny by the superintendent and assistant superintendent for educational programs of any new hires, equipment or supplies, and conference requests, with only the most essential being granted; and the cancellation of field trips, with certain exceptions.
`In the current economic crisis, business, families and governments at all levels are making difficult financial decisions. BC is no different,` Tebbano wrote to staff. `We must take proactive and precautionary measures to hold down spending and identify cost avoidances wherever possible.`
The Bethlehem Board of Education agreed with Tebbano’s action and said that taking financial precautions was necessary.
`We support Dr. Tebbano’s decision to take this difficult but important step,` said Board President James Lytle. `Although the board fully expects that the governor and the legislature will keep their promises to our students and to our taxpayers and will not consider any mid-year reductions in the state’s commitment to our schools, the freeze is a prudent decision that will place the district in the best position to address whatever fiscal challenges lie ahead.`
The restriction that will be the most apparent to students and families is the cancellation of a number of field trips, according to district officials.
There are certain exceptions to this restriction: Nature’s classroom, grant-funded trips such as Elementary Children’s Theater, athletics; select Lab School field trips; and previously scheduled and paid for trips will be held as planned at this time.
The current economic climate combined with the fiscal uncertainties at the state and federal levels mean the district must be extra cautious, Tebbano said.
`We don’t want to jeopardize our core academic program because we failed to be proactive right now,` he said. `It is the first phase of complete budget freeze ` but we’re OK. I don’t want people to think the sky is falling.`
Tebanno said other area schools have begun to, or are planning to, take similar measures.
The district said it will continue to closely monitor the economic climate and its budget implications, particularly at the state level ` an approach Tebbano called a `wait and see` process.
In the memo to staff, Tebbano wrote that further spending restrictions may be necessary. “