BOE Approves Extracurricular Appointments, but With Upcoming Budget in Mind

The Board of Education approved the extracurricular appointments for the current school year, but a number of members are looking to make changes for 2011-12.

The appointments filled the stipend positions that were built into and approved in the budget for the current school year. Several board members, including Linda Gilbert and Sam Cavaliere, were interested specifically in taking a deeper look at the assistant sports coaching positions.

It is not the first time the subject has been brought up at a meeting.

Member David Arthur, who was not at this Tuesday's meeting, has previously asked for a closer look at the positions looking ahead at the upcoming budget season.

"I think we continue to need to look at the coaching staffing," said Arthur on June 15 after the activities fee was approved. "We're going to ask the public for $55,000, then I think it's incumbent on us to continue to cut. I do not believe in some of these sports that it is a safety issue, I think it's more a practice of having someone in a special position or coaching position. And they may not be luxuries we can afford going forward."

Arthur was one of five board members to vote for the activities fee at that meeting, but wanted to make sure it was understood that he also wanted to look at the possibility of saving money through the sports coaching staff. Cavaliere and James Novotny were the two members who voted against the activities fee in June.

"I have also asked if the ECA positions could be reevaluated," BOE President Lisa Ellis said on Tuesday. "What we're voting on now isn't the creation of positions, but people who will fill them this year."

Athletic Director Sean Dowling stood before the board to answer any questions about the positions and appointments. When he was asked to go over the recent history of the stipend positions, Dowling said that at the beginning of the previous contract, which has since expired at the end of last school year, there were a number of varsity assistant coaches added.

Last year, Dowling said former Superintendent Dr. Richard Noonan asked him to cut a number of coaches, at which point Dowling let go of the newest coaches, or the last ones who were hired.

"It wasn't necessarily the most strategic thing to do, but I felt it was fair given their years of service on the job, in that regard," Dowling said.

Dowling said that last year he was given the directive to cut from the sports budget, but was never given a dollar number. In fear of giving the administration a number that was higher than necessary, Dowling said he cut the budget in other ways than laying off coaches.

The examples Dowling gave were cutting sub-varsity busing, games for sub-varsity teams, venue time–which costs money in some cases–for sub-varsity teams, and sub-varsity tournaments.

"The measuring stick we've used is other NJAC schools," Dowling said in reference to the coaching staff. "We're in better shape than many schools. The number is right in line if we have the same levels."

Cavaliere said that he still feels the staffing needs to be looked at harder during this budget season.

"Considering the discussion–we're asking for teachers for sections–I think the reality is we need to take a hard look in the budget at these," Cavaliere said. "We have to figure out what we can afford and what we can't."

The extracurricular appointments were approved, 4-1, with the lone no vote coming from Gilbert. David Arthur and Kevin Blair were not present at the meeting.