Dozens Of Jobs On Chopping Block In South Orange-Maplewood Schools

SOUTH ORANGE-MAPLEWOOD, NJ — Dozens of jobs are on the chopping block in the South Orange-Maplewood Public School District under the tentative 2024-2025 budget, administrators say.

Board of education members unanimously approved a $182.62 million preliminary budget at their meeting on Thursday evening. There is a $2.7 million deficit that will require the district to cut between 30 and 40 positions, school officials said.

For now, the exact jobs that are endangered aren’t known. The district’s business office will be meeting with department heads and school officials to determine how the reduction in workforce will be implemented.

“There are some very tough decisions that need to be made in the days and weeks ahead,” acting superintendent Kevin Gilbert said.

“Our goal will be to distribute the burden as equitably as possible, keeping a close eye on the impact on classrooms and instruction,” Gilbert said.

Other details about the proposed spending plan include:

TAX IMPACT - If adopted, the proposed spending plan would result in an overall tax levy increase of 1.88 percent, from $141,440,784 to $144,103,039.

COST INCREASES – Contributing to the deficit are increases in salaries and the cost of health benefits for employees. The district is also facing increases in the cost of contracted services such as custodial services, paraprofessionals, and lunch monitors. A projected rise in transportation costs stems from busing students to schools outside of the district, and there is a comparatively modest increase in tuition costs for special education students who are placed outside of the district.

REVENUES – Revenues are projected to be affected by the phasing out of federal funding that was made available during the pandemic. For example, the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funding program ended last year. ESSER had significantly contributed to the $5.6 million in total funding the district received for the current year. Total federal, state, and local funds for next year are projected to be $1.9 million.

Business administrator Eric Burnside and assistant business administrator Andrea Del Guercio gave the board a presentation about the budget prior to their vote. See it online here.

The proposed budget is due to be submitted to the Essex County Superintendent’s Office by March 20. A public hearing on the budget is scheduled to be held on Thursday, April 25, at which time the board is scheduled to vote on the final budget’s adoption.

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