The Sewanhaka Central High School Superintendent of Schools Warren Meierdirecks made his final presentation of the 2011-12 budget at Tuesday night’s meeting and the board introduced Ralph Ferrie, a veteran superintendent who will make that presentation next year as Meierdiercks’ successor.
Meierdirecks is stepping down from the position at the end of the current school year.
The final budget the Sewanhaka Central High School board will present to district voters on May 17 represents a 3.8 percent increase over the current budget to $162,257,344. The tax levy will increase by $6.2 million or 5.2 percent, according to Meierdiercks.
He cited the year-to-year rise in Teacher Retirement System costs from 8.62 percent to 11.11 percent and the increase in the Employee Retirement System from 11.3 percent to 15.7 percent are the primary reasons for the budget increase.
“These things drive the other parts of the budget,” Meierdiercks said, adding that 75 percent of the budget constitutes increase health coverage and pension costs.
Salary costs will go down by 90,711 year-to-year to $92,227,089 largely thanks to a wage freeze the Sewanhaka Federation of Teachers agreed to accept next year, foregoing a 2.9 percent salary increase that will save the district an estimated $2.1 million.
The Sewanhaka district recovered $1.1 million in state education aid restored by the state Legislature, but ultimately lost more than twice that much in total state cuts.
“The bottom line is we lost $3 million in state aid,” Meierdiercks said.
He said if the proposed school district budget is voted down, a contingency budget would prompt an additional $3.4 million in cuts that Meierdirecks said could translate into the potential loss of intramural sports teams, extracurricular activities and late bus service services, as well as special academic programs such as the Model U.N. program.
“We feel this is a responsible budget,” Meierdiercks said.
District resident Felix Procacci noted that the Sewanhaka budget had doubled over the past 13 years, from $80.7 million in 1998 to the currently proposed $162.25 million. And he said the board did not reveal enough detail about expenditures.
“It’s a lot of selling without just focusing on the numbers,” Procacci said. “Only one side is being told.”
After the budget presentation, Ferrie, who has been teaching graduate college education courses for the past two years, said he was looking forward to reconnecting with a K-12 school district.
“I really missed working with teachers and administrators,” Ferrie said.
Before teaching at Georgian Court University in Lakewood, N.J., Ferrie worked as superintendent for Three Village Central District in Suffolk County for 14 months before making the move to the college teaching position.
“I really missed public education. And I’m so happy to be given the opportunity to work in such a wonderful district like Sewanhaka. My heart’s with the students,” he said after the meeting.
Ferrie, 57, was a middle school principal for nine years before becoming superintendent of schools in the Absecon, N.J. school district where he served for three years.
He then served as superintendent of the Monroe Township School District in New Jersey from 2001 to 2008. During his tenure there, student enrollment increased from 3,500 to 6,000 students and Ferrie said he oversaw the addition of two elementary schools to the district, as well as plans for a new high school that will be dedicated in two weeks.
Ferrie said working in a smaller school district was a good way to learn all aspects of the district.
“When you’re in a smaller district as superintendent, you sort of do everything,” Ferrie said.
Before becoming an administrator, Ferrie said he taught biology for 34 years. And his resume also includes coaching football, baseball, basketball and track and field.
He said his first objective in Sewanhaka is to “get up here and meet as many people as possible and learn, learn, learn.”
Ferrie said he plans to meet with representatives of all the “satellite” elementary school districts that are associated with the Sewanhaka district.
