NEWFANE — Newfane Central School District’s proposed $41 million budget for FY 2025-2026 is going to a public hearing Tuesday. The spending plan calls for a 2.11% increase in the school tax levy.
The budget maintains all existing programs for students while “right-sizing” instructional staff, district Superintendent Jay Lupini said.
Ten teachers will retire at the close of the current year and three of them will not be replaced. The number of instructional positions in the ’25-’26 budget is 128.6, down three from 131.6 this year. Students will not be affected by the reduction, Lupini said.
Letting posts go by attrition “fits along with our (downward) enrollment trends,” he said. “We are trying to right-size the (ratio) of students to staff.”
A social worker and a full-time athletic trainer hired in the summer of 2024, following school board and public approval of the 2024-2025 budget, will be retained, and the district athletic director’s post is full time. Previously the AD was also an assistant principal who worked each post on a half-time basis, Lupini said.
The budget accommodates digitalization of the elementary school library, that is, computerization of its card catalog, so that books can be checked out via scanner. This $50,000 project is eligible for BOCES aid, according to Lupini.
The proposed budget forecasts a year-over-year total spending increase of $894,000 (2.2%). The projected tax levy is $14.6 million, and the year-over-year levy increase, $302,500, is equal to the state-set cap, 2.11%.
“We are presenting a fiscally responsible budget… that maintains all of our services for students, and our programs,” Lupini said.
The public hearing on the proposed budget will be held at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at Newfane Early Childhood Center. It’s in advance of the May 20 public vote on the budget, election of district trustees and voting on Newfane Public Library’s ’25-’26 tax levy and board members.
According to district clerk Crystal Frank, three of six school board seats are up for election and three candidates are on the ballot: Michael MacEvoy and incumbent trustees Rob Dunn and Anthony Casinelli. MacEvoy will fill the seat recently vacated by 10-year trustee James Schmitt.
Proposition No. 2 on the ballot asks for a yes or no vote to authorize Newfane Public Library’s ’25-’26 tax levy, $130,047. Library director Gretchen Schweigert said the year-over-year levy increase is $5,047 (2%).
Also, three of seven seats on the library’s board of trustees are to be filled by election. Four candidates are on the ballot: Connie Kyle, Laurie Hall, Ellen Bitner and incumbent trustee Janet Morrow. The two who secure the most votes will fill three-year terms of office and the third-highest vote getter will fill a one-year term, Schweigert said.