Basic Facts
· State aid to Rye has been reduced by $333,941, or 11.2%. The state's support as a percent of the 2011/12 budget is down to 3.7% of total funding.
· The budget-to-budget increase is 3.14%.
· Over 90% of this 3.14% increase comes from state-mandated pension increases and transfers from the fund balance approved by the Board to respond to infrastructure needs, especially at the middle school and high school.
· The estimated tax rate increase is 2.52%.
The most important item to be considered in developing a budget is student enrollment. In the fall of 2010 the District had 3,175 students, 40 more than had been projected. By February, another 32 students had registered and enrolled. According to District records, this is the highest enrollment in the history of the District and the projections for October 2011 - October 2016 show continued growth.
With enrollment growing, the next element to consider is the provision of staffing that will preserve class size. The District projects 77 elementary school sections with an average class size of 20. We are also adding teaching positions to the middle school to respond to some of the largest classes in more than 30 years, with an average core subject class size of 23 in grades 6 and 7, and a class size of 24 in grade 8.
Our K-12 core curricular and elective programs will be maintained with special emphasis on improving K-12 math results, Spanish (as the program develops into grade 5 and the middle school), K-12 English/Language Arts with a focus on reading, K-12 science, and program evaluation and assessment.
The District's extra and co-curricular activities will be maintained at their current levels, with broad opportunities in athletics, theater/drama and clubs.
In this budget, the Board approved an allocation of $1.3 million for infrastructure improvements, with the highest priorities designated as projects at the middle school and high school, including one more portable classroom unit with two classrooms.
The tax levy increase for this budget is 1.78%. The remainder of the tax increase is caused by an estimated decrease in taxable assessments of $902,000. This decrease, one that the Board has no control over, pushes up the estimated tax increase to 2.52%.
