The Westport Board of Education spent today discussing the 2007-08 school budget proposed by Schools Superintendent Elliott Landon.
Landon has proposed a $89.3 million budget, which is a 8.9 percent, or $7.3 million, increase over the current budget.
The discussion today ranged from insurance to class size to guidance counselors.
The budget discussions will continue during the board’s next meeting on Tuesday at 8 p.m. at Staples High School.
The biggest increase in the school budget would be in the benefits account, which is a 25 percent increase.
Landon said last spring the Board of Finance cut $1 million from the insurance account with the expectation that a certain amount of money would be spent by July.
In reality, that amount of money was spent by the end of December, he said.
“We’re spending (the insurance money) much faster than we thought,” he said.
Nancy Harris, assistant superintendent for business, said the insurance fund needs to be at least $2.3 million, and going into the school year it was at $3.5 million.
Now the fund stands at $2.5 million, she said.
“Our spending is a lot higher than we thought,” she said. “It’s a month to month thing and we can’t assume trends.”
Landon said Wilton officials cut the insurance fund to almost zero, and the Board of Education ended up needing $1 million more than expected to cover the costs.
“We’ve always decided here to have a healthy balance,” he said.
Landon said enrollment increases have significantly affected the budget, and there would be a 7.5 percent increase before the insurance costs in order to maintain class sizes.
Most of the needs, he said, are at the high school, and some of the costs were offset at the elementary schools.
The budget proposal includes three reserve teacher salaries that would only be used only if student enrollment warrants it.
The current budget had nine reserve teacher salaries, and school officials used all of it in order to cover unanticipated enrollment increases.
Landon said when classes at a school have 24 and 23 students, another section would be created.
That problem happened at King’s Highway Elementary in fifth grade, but not until after school started this year, he said.
School officials offset the problems by using teacher aides and academic support in those classes, he said.
Michael McGovern, a board member, said he feels comfortable with the teacher reserve number, which the board increased last budget cycle from what Landon had proposed.
Don O’Day, a board member, said how classes are split and how many teachers are hired depends on where the students attend the schools.
All of the classes are anticipated to have around 20 students, he said, except at Long Lots and Saugatuck elementaries, which have 23 projected students in fifth grade.
Board Chairwoman Mary Parmelee said unless there is a multi-family housing complex with hundreds of people that is constructed in the next three months, there should not be a problem.
