JPS Finance and Budget Director Brittnay Spry presents proposed 2023-24 school budget at public hearing (May 9, 2023)

The Jamestown Public Schools District has made its final presentation on the proposed $101 million 2023-24 budget ahead of the budget vote on May 16.

The budget has no tax levy increase and a 16.5% increase in State Foundation Aid. Because the increase is over 10%, the district was required to submit a Foundation Aid Plan to the state for how that money would be spent. That plan can be viewed at jpsny.org.

Finance and Budget Director Brittnay Spry said Governor Kathy Hochul‘s proposed set aside in Foundation Aid for use for High Impact Tutoring was rejected by the State Legislature. Had that been passed the district would have been mandated to use $900,000 in foundation aid toward tutoring.

The budget does include the hiring of 18 new teachers, most of whom will staff new Student Support Centers. A new Assistant Principal for Fletcher Elementary School is proposed as well given that Fletcher has the second highest student enrollment in the district, only behind the High School.

Besides the budget, a proposition will also be on the ballot to fund a new Capital Improvement Reserve Fund with up to $5 million.

The vote on the budget, capital improvement reserve fund proposition, and school board candidates will take place Tuesday, May 16 between 12:00 and 9:00 p.m. People may go to Jefferson or Washington Middle Schools; or Lincoln Elementary School to vote.

For more information on the budget and school board candidates, visit jpsny.org

JPS Finance and Budget Director Brittnay Spry presents budget to school board (April 19, 2023)

The Jamestown School Board has approved the $101,475,987 2023-24 School year budget that includes no tax levy increase.

The biggest increase in revenues came in a $9.5 million increase in State Foundation aid.

Finance and Budget Director Brittnay Spry said total state aid funding is $83,706,514, which is 82% of all revenues received by the district.

She said since the foundation aid proposed to be received by Jamestown represents a 10% increase in aid received, the state requires the district to put together a plan on how the increase in aid would be used, present it and get feedback from the community; and then submit it to the state in July.

Spry said the new paraprofessional positions created for the 2022-23 budget as well as the new positions proposed in this budget make up the bulk of the Foundation Aid Plan, “We are proposing creating Student Support Centers to address literacy and math. We are addressing learning loss through our student through our students. We are providing access to a school based health center, addressing infrastructure needs across the buildings, providing student support for social-emotional needs, we’re using that for annual and inflationary increases, providing supports for other district-wide needs, as well as continuing operations and programming district wide.”

Spry said the Foundation Aid plan is available on the district’s website at jpsny.org.

A public hearing on the budget is now scheduled for 6:00 p.m., Tuesday, May 9 at Jefferson Middle School’s auditorium.

The public will then go to the polls between 12:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m., Tuesday, May 16 to vote on the budget, a proposition on funding a new Capital Improvement Reserve Fund with up to $5 million, as well as voting for three school board members.

Jamestown Public Schools Budget and Finance Director Brittnay Spry presented the preliminary 2023-24 School Budget to the Jamestown School Board on Tuesday, March 14, 2023.

Jamestown Schools Budget and Finance Director Brittnay Spry presents preliminary 2023-24 Budget to the Jamestown School Board (March 14, 2023)

The proposed $101 million Jamestown Public Schools budget for the 2023-24 school year includes no tax increase and the hiring of 18 new teachers.

District Director of Budget and Finance Brittnay Spry presented the budget to the board of education at a workshop Tuesday. Total projected revenues come in at $101,419,866. Spry said Foundation Aid increased by $9.5 million, for total state aid funding of $83,706,514.

Capital expenditures of $2 million are being proposed to continue HVAC work at Persell Middle School, replacing the scoreboard at Strider Field, reburbishing the tracks at Persell and Washington Middle Schools, and creating a new health center at Washington Middle School. Changes to remove the “Red Raiders” nickname from campuses is also included in capital expenditures.

Superintendent Dr. Kevin Whitaker said the budget is focused on helping students with English and Math skills with the creation of student support centers, “For example, at the middle schools and high school you would have two full time teachers, one ELA certified, one math certified, potentially special ed certified as well, with paraprofessionals. In a student support environment, students who are in need of AIS, which is Academic Intervention Services, can go and get that extra help needed in intervention in math and ELA and continue to catch up while they’re not missing any of their regular classes.”

Whitaker said at the elementary level, the focus will be on reading intervention with two full-time reading teachers being added to each elementary school.

If approved by the school board, voters also will vote on funding a new Capital Improvement Reserve Fund with up to $5 million. Whitaker said that fund is to help hedge against costs to taxpayers for future construction projects, “I do want to clarify, while the cap, the size of it may be $5 million, it doesn’t necessarily mean that $5 million goes into it right now. It just means we can only add a total of $5 million over the course of the next few years and then use it as it’s appropriate and needs to be taken out.”

The school board is expected to vote on budget resolutions at its March 28 meeting with the budget vote coming before the public on Tuesday, May 16, 2023.

JPS Director of Budget & Finance Brittnay Spry

The ballot is set for the 2022-23 Jamestown City School District Budget vote on May 17.

JPS Administration and School Board held a public hearing Tuesday night at the Jamestown High School Auditorium on the $93.8 million spending plan. No one from the public chose to speak at the hearing following a presentation by Budget and Finance Director Brittnay Spry.

Five items are on the ballot for voters to consider including the budget plan, a Capital Improvement Reserve Fund, a Vehicles, Machinery, and Equipment Reserve Fund; Acquisition of Real Property; and Board member elections. The budget has no tax increase.

Spry said there is a contingency budget prepared in the event that the district’s budget is voted down by residents, “It is from the proposed budget to the contingency budget, it’s a reduction of $745,000. It is taking out all of the equipment that is included within the budget, so it would be buildings and grounds; athletics, music equipment, and other smaller equipment lines that other departments have access to throughout the year.”

Polls will be open from noon to 9:00 p.m. on Tuesday, May 17. Voting locations in Jamestown include Washington Middle School, Lincoln Elementary, and Jefferson Middle School. The budget proposal can be viewed on the Jamestown Public Schools’ website at www.jpsny.org/budget

Jamestown School Board budget workshop

Jamestown Public Schools‘ proposed 2022-23 budget includes hiring 40 additional staff members and no tax levy increase.

District Director of Budgets and Finance Brittnay Spry presented the budget to the board of education at a workshop Tuesday. Total projected revenues come in at $94,030,000; with state aid making up the bulk of that at an anticipated amount of $75,680,000. That state aid amount is $4.8 million more than in the 2021-22 budget.

Jamestown Public Schools Proposed Hiring in 2022-23 Budget

The 40 proposed positions include hiring 15 additional paraprofessionals, 3 social workers, 5 school counselors, 2 Community Navigators, 5 Teachers on Special Assignment (TOSA) or Dean of Students, 5 elementary reading teachers, and 5 academic intervention specialist (AIS) teachers. Spry said the total cost of the positions is $2,495,000. While $519,000 of that cost would come from American Rescue Plan or other federal funds, the rest would be funded under the regular budget.

School Superintendent Dr. Kevin Whitaker said he applied asterisks to 38 of the 40 proposed new budget vote positions, saying they are necessary due to what has happened in schools with the pandemic, “Meaning, that we have a crisis in literacy and reading. We have a crisis in mathematics. And we have extreme social emotional needs that is coming out kind of sideways in behavior related issues.”

Whitaker said adding these positions are a “drop in the bucket” with what the district actually needs, “What I’m hoping down the line, in the future, is that the result of the Maisto case, the Small Cities case, that was won against the state will provide us far greater resources in order to add far more AIS, reading, and support personnel.”

Finance Committee School Board Members Shelly Leathers and Pat Slagle echoed their agreement that more positions are needed in the district with Board member  saying this is part of developing a five to ten year budget plan, “And along with that plan is hiring people to fill the gaps where they’re needed the most. And as Dr. Whitaker has pointed out, there’s some big needs out there right now. And as we fill those needs, as we fill those gaps, hopefully we can taper down over the next five to ten years. But we’re not rushing out to spend all this money in a short time frame. Right now, what we’re trying to do is put together a long-term plan so we can hire these people and keep them on board as long as we need them.”

The school board will vote on budget resolutions at its March 22 meeting with the budget vote coming before the public on Tuesday, May 17, 2022.

Brittnay Spry Presents to the Jamestown School Board

The Jamestown Public School District is working on developing a multi-year financial plan.

District Director of Budgets and Finance Brittnay Spry made a presentation to the School Board Tuesday on the plan. She said the district is in a much different place than a year ago when they were facing the state withholding 20% in aid and anticipating having to make staff and program cuts.
The signing of the American Rescue Plan Act in March by the Federal Government instead led to more revenues coming into the district on top of an anticipated increase in Foundation aid from New York State.

Spry gave a list of current challenges for the district, “Learning loss, social emotional support, reading and literacy, attendance, high school graduation rates – And I’m sure there are plenty more that if we sat around that we could come up with. But there are plenty of challenges to address for our students and our staff and we’re trying to do so in a sustainable manner.”

She said the goal is to create future budgets that are sustainable while addressing student needs. Spry said reserve fund planning is one of the parts of the multi-year financial plan being discussed, “Funding those reserves at an appropriate level that are sustainable through the tough times. Fund balance usage, if certain costs and expenses end up being less than anticipated, we can use that money to offset it and it’s there for us when we need it.”

Spry said long range capital planning and planning for the time when Federal funds are done being expended are part of the multi-year plan as well.

District Director of Budgets and Finance Brittnay Spry said of that $21.1 million, the District must reserve 20%, or $4.2 million, to combat learning loss.

She said the district has three categories of allowable use of the funds, including the return to in-person instruction, operations and technology; and addressing the impacts of COVID-19.
Spry said part of the money has already been used to get children back into the classroom, “A lot of the funds that have been spent so far have been used for things such as PPE, which is our masks, thermometers; accommodations for social distancing we needed to purchase – additional tables and chairs to meet the three foot mark and to be able to provide students an opportunity to eat at the social distancing requirements.”

Spry said the district also used funds to replace technology, purchase technology stations for classrooms, extended the Summer LEAP, JUMP and Bridge programs; hired additional staff to meet COVID-19 requirements for pool testing, and hired a literacy coordinator.

She said there are unique opportunities for future uses of the funds including coordinating social and emotional mental supports, “Instruction and professional development; equity, diversity and inclusion efforts; community engagement, additional technology and equipment upgrades; focusing on air quality and HVAC upgrades; general school operations, technical and career pathways; providing school supplies, extended school day support, tutoring and AIS; talent outreach, and support and development.”

Superintendent Dr. Kevin Whitaker encouraged parents to visit the district’s website at jpsny.com to review further information and take surveys on the use of funds.

Whitaker said while the categories on where to spend money must be finalized this month, the funds must be encumbered by September 2024 and spent by January 2025.

The School Board was treated to a special performance by the Madrigal Singers before the start of the meeting at Jamestown High School.

And School Board members also were recognized ahead of National School Board Recognition Week with a video presentation featuring JPS staff and students from all the different schools. Each school chose books to donate to their library in honor of each board member.

District Director of Budgets and Finance Brittnay Spry said New York State Aid will account for $70,104,000 of the budget with monies from the Federal government being reclassified,

“We will now be seeing the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act Funds and the American Rescue Plan Act Funds flow through the special aid fund rather through the general aid fund as we had originally anticipated for that to go through there.”

Dr. Kevin Whitaker said this budget represents a focus on kids,

“Both in program and in support for mental health and some of the struggles that all of our students will face when they return to school, whether that’s in the Spring and certainly in the Fall. I’m just grateful that the board has committed so much time to this in terms of the Budget Finance committee, so many questions along the way, and we’ve come to a place where we’re all in agreement with moving forward at this moment.”

School Board President Paul Abbott said this was the most complex budget the board has dealt with and that prior to the influx of state and federal aid, things had looked very dire,

“We were all laboring over that and then the view has improved a little bit, but I know still a lot of work went into it and I know a lot of discussion went into it. So I want to thank everyone for their efforts in putting this budget together and I’m encouraged by it. I like that it has plans for the future and we are looking beyond just the 2021-22 budget.”

The budget includes the new position of a community navigator, which Whitaker says will help provide a connection between the district and Latino population as it relates to the technical aspects of schooling,

“How many credits do I need? What programs should I be making sure my child gets in? What are the testing requirements? Are there any issues with my student? How do I resolve whatever it is? And now they have a person, or they will have a person, who has some credibility within the community, some trust within the community, and is a native Spanish speaker.”

Other highlights of the proposed budget include 2 new school psychologists, an increase in contracted social workers, a reading and literacy coordinator, music equipment, music travel, athletic equipment and uniforms, and technology equipment.

A public hearing on the budget will be held on May 11th at Persell Middle School. The School Budget and Capital Improvement Project Vote and School Board elections will be held on Tuesday, May 18th.

Democrat Eddie Sundquist addresses his supporters on Election Night 2019 after learning he will be the next mayor of Jamestown.

JAMESTOWN – Jamestown’s next mayor will be Democrat and local attorney Eddie Sundquist. Sundquist was announced the winner of the 2019 mayoral election Tuesday night, defeating both Republican and Chautauqua County legislator David Wilfong and Libertarian and current Jamestown City Councilman Andy Liuzzo.

Sundquist took 49.8% of the unofficial vote total, bringing in 2519 votes, while Wilfong came in second with 1959 votes, which was 38.7% of the vote. Meanwhile, Liuzzo came in a distant third with 11.4% of the vote (574 votes). Approximately 204 absentee ballots remain to be counted.

Following the victory announcement at Democratic Headquarters inside the Jamestown Brewing Company, Sundquist thanked those who helped to make him mayor elect.

“We fought long and hard, starting way back in the winter months. I can tell you that I am probably the proudest that I have ever been to see all of you here gathered to support what we are going to do for the future of the city of Jamestown,” Sundquist said. “I just want to say from the bottom of my heart ‘thank you’ to each and every single one of you who made this happen. Family, friends, volunteers, countless hours on the phone, knocking on doors, on social media – we could not have brought the city of Jamestown into the future without each and everyone of you. So for that, I thank you.”

Sundquist also said that in the coming weeks he will be working to prepare for the transition into the mayors office when he replaces current Mayor Sam Teresi, who decided not to run for a sixth consecutive term, on January 1, 2020.

“We have a long road ahead but we are going to do this and hopefully, we get through these four years and then work four more,” Sundquist said.

It was Sundquist’s second run for office in as many years. In 2018 he made an unsuccessful bid for Congress, failing to get the Democratic Party’s endorsement in that year’s primary.

CONTROL OF CITY COUNCIL TO BE DECIDED BY ABSENTEE BALLOT COUNT

While Sundquist was able to win the Mayor’s office, it’s not yet known if he will be working with a Democratic or Republican-controlled Jamestown City Council. That’s because the council is split with four Republicans winning and four Democrats also winning, with the ninth and deciding race still too close to call.

Brent Sheldon (left) and Tim smeal

In Ward 1, Republican incumbent Brent Sheldon (355 votes) leads Democratic Challenger Tim Smeal (348 votes) by just 7 votes. The outcome of that race won’t be known until absentee ballots are counted and according to the Board of Elections, 70 absentee ballots are left to be counted on Monday, Nov. 18.

City Democratic Chairman Jim Walton said he and the rest of the party are anxiously awaiting the results for the Ward 1 race.

“It looks like the fight for control of the council will come down to absentee ballots because we’re within several votes there. That Ward has always lived and died by the absentees that have come out of the Aldren Avenue area,” Walton said. “We’ll look forward to counting those and hopefully Tim Smeal did his work there and we’ll come out victorious. That will be the difference in who controls the city council.”

OLSON, RUSSELL WIN FIRST TERM ON CITY COUNCIL

Meanwhile, one of the ward races featured a challenger defeating an incumbent. In Ward 5, Republican Grant Olson (495 votes) was able to defeat Democratic incumbent Maria Jones (397 votes). Jones was first elected to the city council in 2011 and since then she’s served as chair of the council’s Public Safety Committee and has also served on the Jamestown Board of Public Utilities.

In the only other contested ward race, Democrat and current City Council president Marie Carrubba (630 votes) defeated Republican challenger Brittnay Spry (576 votes).

In the race for the council’s three at large seats, it was newcomer Republican Jeffrey Russell (2483 votes) joining fellow Republican and incumbent Kim Ecklund (2721 votes), along with Democratic incumbent Tamu Graham-Reinhardt (2173 votes) winning.

Those failing to get enough votes to be elected to the at large seats were Democrats Greg Rabb (2026 votes) and Taylor Scott (1985 votes) along with libertarian Raven Mason Thompson (293 votes).  Republican Greg Lindquist, who withdrew from the race earlier this year, also appeared on the ballot and was able to garner 1966 votes.

Winners of the 2019 contested Jamestown City Council races on election night (from left to right): Marie Carrubba (D-Ward 4), Grant Olson (R-Ward 5), Kim Ecklund (R-At Large), Jeffrey Russell (R-At Large), and Tamu Graham Reinhardt (D-At Large)

Candidates running unopposed this year were Tom Nelson (D) in Ward 6, Vickye James (D) in Ward 3, and Tony Dolce (R) in Ward 2 – although another person, Democrat Thomas Vitale, also appeared on the ballot for that office. However, Vitale had announced his withdrawal from the race earlier in the year.