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TO THE EDITOR The Wayland School Committee urges voters to support Wayland’s children by approving the requested operating override and debt exclusion at the polls on Tuesday, April 8, and again at the Annual Town Meeting the evening of Thursday, April 10. THE OPERATING OVERRIDE preserves Wayland’s educational program while being sensitive to tight budgetary times. In that spirit, the School Committee adhered to the Finance Committee’s long range financial plan in reaching the recent salary settlement with its teaching, clerical, food service, and custodial unions. By reconfiguring the elementary schools to a 2 ½ school model for the 2008-2009 school year, with grades one to five housed at Claypit Hill and Happy Hollow and Kindergarten housed at Loker, our requested budget comes in approximately $300,000 below the original guideline. Coupling these school accomplishments with other financial results in the town’s favor allows the Finance Committee to lower the override from its initial projection of $2.6M to its current request of $1.896M. The joint educational and fiscal successes do not come without burdens, however. In addition to increases in some of already expensive sports, elementary music, parking, and other fees, the reconfiguration of the elementary schools creates nearly full buildings for a year and adds logistical challenges to families, particularly in the Loker neighborhood and with incoming Kindergarten students. By approving the override, voters will enable the schools to avoid deep programmatic cuts and: maintain class sizes on average at their current levels; continue with the present Middle School cluster model; preserve guidance and professional development; support specials that include art, health and physical education, library, and music; retain co-curricular athletics, arts, and activities; and provide important clerical services and materials and supplies. THE DEBT EXCLUSION provides for reasonable capital needs. These items include district-wide software, hardware, and infrastructure technology; upgrading of lighting at the Middle School; addressing Americans with Disabilities Act issues at the Middle School; connection of the Middle School rooftop heating and cooling unit; improving the fire alarm and door holdback systems at all three elementary schools; and replacing worn carpeting at Happy Hollow and Claypit Hill as part of a multi-year, district-wide floor maintenance initiative. Wayland residents may find additional operating budget/override and capital budget/debt exclusion details in the Budget Book mailed to all Wayland households and on the School Committee’s web site at www.waylandschoolcommittee.org. We appreciate that we serve multiple constituencies with varying educational and financial needs. With the students that we serve in mind, we recommend approval of the operating override and debt exclusion votes as proposed and approved by the Finance Committee and the Board of Selectmen. Thank you. Barb Fletcher (chair), Louis Jurist (vice-chair), Deborah Cohen, Jeff Dieffenbach, and Heather Pineault Wayland School Committee |