Minutes
School Budget and Finance Subcommittee Meeting
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
A meeting of the School Budget and Finance Subcommittee was held on Wednesday, December
7, 2011 at 4:30 pm in the Superintendent’s Conference Room. Present were Ms. Barbara Isola,
Mrs. Emily Lebo, Mr. Dave McCarthy, and Mrs. Anne Mahoney Chair. Also attending were
Superintendent DeCristofaro, Mrs. Colleen Roberts, Mr. Keith Segalla, Mr. Jim Mullaney, Ms.
Alison Cox, QEA, and Ms. Laura Owens, Clerk.
The meeting was called to order at 4:32 pm by Mrs. Mahoney.
Mr. Mullaney opened the meeting with a review of the salary budget for the first quarter of
Fiscal Year 2012, ending September 30, 2011. Academic Classroom Teachers, Academic
Programs, Academic Support, Non-Academic Support are all in line with historical standards.
For Academic Expenses, current spending levels are also in line with historical standards.
Special Education Tuition and Transportation is traditionally an area of concern; the budget
supports the current level of placements.
In the discussion that followed, Mr. Mullaney clarified that the new buses are part of the
Transportation budget, but as the bidding process is underway, expeditures have not been
made yet. The library budget line is for the two High School libraries. Each school has a budget
for textbook purchases, including replacements and purchase orders are continuing to come in
for approval.
Mr. Mullaney then reviewed the Professional Staff reconciliation: there were adjustments to a
dozen line items, with a net result of +0.4 positions. This was funded by breakage: many of the
newer teachers are at lower salaries than the retiring teachers they replaced. Mr. Mullaney
confirmed that there is some additional funding in breakage, but he is looking at that to cover
deficiencies in grant funding.
In terms of grants, QPS started the school year with concerns about the level of Title I and IDEA
grant funding. SPED Circuit Breaker funding was higher than budgeted, helping to offset the
deficit. The current estimated deficit is $85,000, or less than 1% of the budget and should be
covered by savings elsewhere. In the subsequent discussion, Mr. Mullaney confirmed that
there are staff positions funded by these grants and as we did with ARRA money, the goal
would be to transition them into the regular QPS staffing budget.
Mrs. Roberts then presented the Quarterly Professional Development report. Many of the
Professional Development opportunities began in the summer and carried into the fall and winter. We are utilizing DSAC grants wherever possible as well as the QPS Professional
Development budget. State Street grants are being used for some of the high school
Professional Development. Other Professional Development opportunities are provided by
textbook publishers to support newly purchased textbooks and instructional technology. Many
of these Professional Development opportunities were cited in the recently-presented School
Improvement Plans. About half of the Professional Development budget has been spent to
date.
The discussion that followed focused on Go Math! and the training for teachers. Subcommittee
members have heard from parents about concerns including homework and the need for more
support. Mrs. Roberts will follow up with Principals at the upcoming Curriculum Team meeting
on December 15.
Mrs. Roberts then shared information about the additional Music department funding received
through the movie rental of the old Quincy High School building. The funding totaled $80,000
and the Music and Band teachers worked together to create a list of priorities, including new
Band uniforms; new instruments, including all new recorders for Grade 3 and portable
keyboards on carts for elementary music teachers; money for entry fees for competitions; and
musical scores for all grade levels.
The $10,000 rental fee for Veteran’s Stadium was used to purchase new uniforms for both the
Quincy High School and North Quincy High School football teams. There is also $22,500 in
rental fees for the use of the Coddington Hall building. Mrs. Roberts proposed that this money
be shared between Central and Point Webster Middle Schools to fund after school activities.
Mrs. Lebo made a motion to support this suggestion, Mr. McCarthy seconded the motion, and
on a voice vote, the ayes have it.
The meeting was adjourned at 5:26 pm on a motion by Mr. McCarthy. Mrs. Lebo seconded the
motion.