How Did Cinnaminson School District Spend Your Money?

Per pupil spending for the Cinnaminson School District jumped from 2011-12 to 2012-13, driven largely by significant increases in special education, employee benefits and maintenance, according to Superintendent Salvatore Illuzzi. 

According to information provided by the state Department of Education in its "Taxpayers' Guide to Education Spending," the budgetary per pupil cost in Cinnaminson climbed from $13,269 in 2010-11, to $13,373 in 2011-12, and to $14,463 for the 2012-13 school year.

Illuzzi pointed to a $900,000 increase in special education costs, a more than $400,000 increase for employee benefits and a $500,000 increase in maintenance and operations—among other factors—to explain the jump in per pupil spending from 2011-12 to 2012-13.

The increase is less dramatic under "Total Spending Per Pupil," which factors in state expenditures on behalf of the school district, such as pensions and social security payments and debt service. According to the state, Total Spending Per Pupil went from $17,572 in 2010-11 to $17,850 in 2011-12. 

According to Illuzzi, per pupil spending should level off next year, increasing by just $250 from the 2012-13 school year.

Of the $13,269 per pupil spending in 2010-11, $7,591 was for classroom instruction, which includes salaries and benefits of teachers; school supplies; and professional-educational, technical and other services purchased for classroom use, such as amounts paid for occupational, speech, and physical therapy, assembly speakers, and standardized subject exams. Spending on classroom instruction came to $7,688 in 2011-12 and $8,233 in 2012-13. 

Cinnaminson's projected 2013-14 enrollment is 2,366, up from 2,345 at the beginning of the 2012-13 school year. 

A few other highlights from the report:

• Cinnaminson spent $7,843 per pupil in 2012-13 for Classroom Salaries and Benefits, which includes the amounts paid to district personnel "for the provision of the district's instructional programs"—not including administrative and support staff.
• Per pupil spending for administrative costs was $1,551 in 2012-13.
• Legal services cost the district $23 per pupil in 2012-13.

To see more information on how the district has spent taxpayer money over the last few years, visit the Department of Education website.