May 18, 2015 Budget Sub Meeting

Agenda

Quincy School Committee
Budget and Finance Subcommittee
Mrs. Kathryn Hubley, Chair
Coddington Building
Monday, May 18, 2015, 5:00 p.m.

  1. Review of Subsidized Services - Mr. Mullaney
    (Athletics, Building Rentals, Food Services, Transportation)

  2. FY2016 Budget Options & Priorities - Dr. DeCristofaro

  3. Adjournment

Minutes

Quincy School Committee
Budget & Finance Subcommittee Meeting
Monday, May 18, 2015

A meeting of the Budget and Finance Subcommittee was held on Monday, May 18, 2015 at 5:00 pm in the Coddington Building. Present were Mr. Paul Bregoli, Mr. Noel DiBona, Ms. Barbara Isola, Mrs. Anne Mahoney, Mr. Dave McCarthy, and Mrs. Kathryn Hubley, Chair. Also attending were Superintendent DeCristofaro, Deputy Superintendent Kevin Mulvey, Mrs. Kathryn Clancy, Mr. Michael Draicchio, Mrs. Mary Fredrickson, Ms. Beth Hallett, Mrs. Joanne Morrissey, Mr. James Mullaney, Mrs. Maura Papile, Mrs. Erin Perkins, Ms. Madeline Roy, Mr. Keith Segalla, Mr. Kevin Segalla, Ms. Judy Todd; Ms. Allison Cox, President, Quincy Education Association; and Ms. Laura Owens, Clerk.

Mrs. Hubley called the meeting to order at 5:05 pm and introduced the Review of Subsidized Services. For Food Services, minimum meal charges are set by the Federal School Lunch Program. Projected receipts are $2,860,000 for FY2015, with projected ending free cash of $1,619,466, which is within the mandated limit. Purchased meals and federal reimbursements fully fund the Food Services program, with the exception of lunch attendants, who reside in the Quincy Public Schools budget. The Superintendent’s Leadership Team is recommending that all breakfast and lunch prices stay the same for 2015-2016 school year.

For School Building Rentals, the fee structure is established by School Committee policy; projected FY2015 receipts $554,000. Expenses of $680,000 (custodial and utilities), plus a transfer of $126,000 to assist with electricity costs will leave a balance of $170,487. 92% of custodial services are funded through the QPS budget; the remainder is paid from the revolving account.

The recommendation is to leave all building rental rates as is for FY2016. Mr. Bregoli asked if there was any change in rental volume; Mr. Mullaney said the revenues are consistent from year to year and timely collection is key. Mr. Kevin Segalla said there is a slight decline this year in youth sports rentals due to the many snow days.

For the Transportation account, the funds generated have been used for fleet maintenance and repairs. Projected FY2015 revenues are $150,000 with 133 students paying for transportation and expenditures are the same. Transportation fees are set by School Committee policy and no changes are recommended for the 2015-2016 school year.

Mr. Bregoli thanked Mr. Mullaney for including the undercarriage storage option in the new buses recently purchased. It is much safer for students not to have their equipment in the passenger area. Mr. Bregoli asked if there was a significant difference in the cost of buses with this option and there was not a significant difference. Mr. Mullaney noted that the new mini-buses have integrated seating with seatbelts for students.

Mr. Bregoli asked about the age of the bus fleet. Mr. Draicchio said that thanks to School Committee, we have been able to replace aging vehicles and hopes this will continue in future budgets.

Mr. Mullaney then reviewed the Athletics revolving account, for FY2015, projecting receipts of $241,000 and expenses of $282,379. The difference will be made up of the balance of free cash, leaving a cash balance of $93,867.

Fees are set by School Committee policy and currently stand at $100 per sport, except $150 for football and lacrosse and $350 for hockey. There is a $750 per family maximum. 91 high school students participate in three sports, 238 participate in two sports, and 606 students participate in one sport. At each high school, about 35% of students participate in at least one sport.

Mr. McCarthy asked about the schools’ ability to field teams in all sports, there were some concerns expressed at the Coaches Summit in January. Dr. DeCristofaro said that the boys hockey coaches are seeing a drop in participation at both high schools, in the future, there may be a cooperative team.

Mr. DiBona asked about moving to the Greater Boston League. Dr. DeCristofaro said that at the Coaches Summit, most coaches expressed the desire to stay with the Patriot League. Dr. DeCristofaro said there was not an overwhelming interest in changing leagues.

Mrs. Mahoney asked if there are other sports that have participation concerns. Mrs. Mahoney asked if softball has eliminated levels; neither school has a freshman team. Mr. Mullaney said the impact would be a slight reduction in coaching costs. Mrs. Mahoney asked that any changes be reported to School Committee; Dr. DeCristofaro suggested an AdHoc Subcommittee to review athletic participation by sport.

Mr. Bregoli said that the Greater Boston League was going to formally invite both schools to join the league, because of proximity and similar demographics, but he has not heard anything further about this. Mr. Bregoli is concerned about North Quincy High School and their ability to recruit enough students to field teams freshman, junior varsity, and varsity teams.

Mr. DiBona said this starts at the middle school level; we have targeted swimming and the impact is being seen with the high school collaborative team for girls expanding into two teams.

As there were no additional issues relating to the FY2016 Budget to be discussed, Ms. Isola made a motion to adjourn the meeting at 5:35 pm. Mr. Bregoli seconded the motion and on a voice vote, the ayes have it.