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Here’s a brief recap of the presentation and announcements from the Board of Education Meeting that took place on January 21, 2025.
25-26 Budget Preview: John Chow, Assistant Superintendent for Business, and I presented the Budget Preview for the 2025-26 budget. Please see either the slide deck and/or the video on our website: Budget Information - Business/HR Office - Departments - Pleasantville Union Free School District.
Foundation Aid: Governor Hochul announced some important information that is very helpful with budget planning. She has held true to her promise of preserving ‘hold harmless’ and, in fact, indicated that all districts will receive a minimum 2% increase in their Foundation Aid. The Foundation Aid formula has several updates, including data inputs regarding economically disadvantaged students. The impact of these decisions will be available in future iterations of the proposed budget.
Spring Athletics Season: In December, Section I made a decision to change the standard start times for weeknight games to 5 PM. This adds to the challenge we have been discussing about the need to finish games during daylight hours. For the spring 2025 season, we are anticipating the potential need to use portable lights on the high school main field to accommodate the change.
We are waiting for the spring sports schedules to be finalized and are also working to see what types of light may be available to us. We must also consider the amperage required for any lights that run on electricity. We are contacting companies to find out their availability and requirements. In response to some of the questions posed during public comment at the last meeting, I will provide an update to the Board and community as soon as I have the necessary information to advance this conversation.
Parkway Field: Another topic that became part of previous conversations about our facilities' needs was the use of Parkway. Board President Erin Ballard and I are meeting with the mayor and village administrator to continue the conversation around Parkway – specifically, the goals around using Parkway and the issues we are trying to address.
Capital Project: At our last Board meeting, I discussed how budget planning and the status of the Capital Project go hand in hand. As the administrative team prepares the 2025-26 budget, we are reevaluating and gathering additional information. Specifically, we are:
1. Looking at each component that was included in the Pleasantville Forward Capital Project and evaluating the respective details, including scope and costs;
2. Evaluating the annual capital improvement requests that accompany budget planning;
3. Monitoring capital improvements currently underway at different stages; and
4. As always, assessing the evolving needs of the district.
In this stage of reassessing needs and gathering additional information, we are aware of
the need to provide ongoing and frequent communication and involve the community.
District Communications: The Board approved my recommendation to shift our communications provider. This was in response to feedback from the community about the need for additional communication from the District. The major changes include more regular social media posts, which can be viewed by the entire community, as well as Pville Press letters that will be sent after BoE meetings to allow a better sense of what is happening during those discussions. (Please note that anyone interested may enroll to receive Pville Press by signing up here.)
Community Engagement: In terms of involving the community, I have also recommended to the BoE that we expand the district facilities committee to include a cross-representation of community members. Specifically, this would include administrators, staff and parents from each building as well as community members interested in the district’s facilities. We should have a working group of dedicated committee members who can commit to meeting on a regular cadence. I will be developing a committee charge and application and will share it as soon as it is ready. Thank you in advance to those who are interested in participating.
I will also be creating a survey so that the community can provide us with information to inform our next steps. Our role is to meet the changing needs of our students, both with budget planning and capital project planning. Further, we must adequately communicate our plans and work. I would like to know more about the larger community’s ideas about those needs and how to meet them.
It is my hope that with representative feedback from the community, we will be able to move forward to meet the needs of our students in a fiscally responsible way.
For the youth,
Dr. DeSa
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