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APPROPRIATION COMMITTEE REPORT TO 2008 ATM —March 19, 2008 Grades FY2008 Actual (as of 10/01/07) FY2009 Projected Change % Change K-5 2,649 2,592 -57 -2.15 6-8 1,552 1,501 -51 -3.29 9-12 1,994 1,999 +5 +0.25 Total 6,195 6,092 -103 -1.66 The original FY2008 budget projected that 30 students in grades K – 5 would come from Avalon at Lexington Hills, the partially complete new development at the former Metropolitan State Hospital Site. However, as of November 1, 2007, less than half that number of students had materialized in those grades. Enrollment projections for FY2009 and beyond, when the new development will be fully occupied, have now been revised downwards. Grades Avalon Bay FY2008 Actual Students (as of 11/01/07) Projected Student Count on Completion of Avalon Ba K -5 14 23 6 -8 5 9 9 -12 6 9 Toad 25 41 The School Administration, with the support of the School Committee, has created a proposal for full day kindergarten in Lexington that would be funded by a Department of Education kindergarten implementation grant, some money from the town's annual METCO Grant, and fees to be paid by parents. The operating budget could be impacted by the financial assistance program, which School staff estimate will likely not exceed $30,000. However, the actual impact on the FY2009 budget, if any, cannot be known until the program is implemented and the number of families requiring financial assistance is determined. In an ongoing effort to track the volatile special education out -of- district tuition and transportation costs and minimize their impact on the rest of the school budget, the School Committee met with the Burlington School Committee and Board of Selectmen to understand their budgeting technique of carrying these costs as a line item separate from the rest of the school budget. While this seemed viable in theory, the `Burlington Plan" was not adopted because of questions about the legality of a separate line item for school expenditures. Per request of the School Committee, however, the School Administration has delivered a new report that reflects the school budgets for in- district and out -of- district program expenses separately. (See below for more information about Special Education expenses.) Special Education Expenses Because Special Education expenses are such a significant and challenging part of the school budget, we have elected to discuss these expenses in a separate section. This section deals in particular with three elements of the Special Education budget – out -of- district tuitions, transportation, and new programs. Out -of- district tuitions When the Town is unable to meet the needs of a Special Education student within the Lexington Public School system, State law requires that the student be sent to a program outside of Lexington to receive services and the Town must pay for these services. Tuition for students requiring out -of- district services is projected to increase by $226,977 in FY2009 compared to the FY2008 budget, an increase of 4.6 %, net of reimbursement received under the circuit breaker program (discussed below). Since the budgeted Page 13 of 50