Gov. Tom Wolf’s budget address this week was of particular interest to local school districts.

At one time, school districts relied on the state to provide roughly 50 percent of their funding. Those days are long gone, but the budget address gives an early indication of what programs will receive increased funding, and which ones could be cut.

On Monday, Gov. Tom Wolf proposed a modest increase for basic education funding, a cap on the cost of charter school education, and increased funding for pre-kindergarten programs.

The biggest proposed investment would be a $1 billion fund aimed at addressing hazards in aging school buildings, such as asbestos and lead paint.

Officials say that the governor’s proposal will help, but how much is yet to be seen.

“We appreciate the steps forward over the past few years. That being said, we are cautiously optimistic that ed. funding will be addressed for the less fortunate school districts,” Panther Valley superintendent Dennis Kergick said.

The final budget will no doubt be different than the governor’s proposal, but districts are encouraged.

“I was pleased to see that he is asking for increases, but what he is asking for is before negotiations begin and will likely be reduced prior to passing the budget,” Weatherly superintendent Terry Young said.

Funding increase

The basic education funding increase is needed, but may not go far enough in the eyes of local school districts.

At least three Carbon County school districts: Jim Thorpe, Lehighton, and Panther Valley, are facing budget deficits.

Jim Thorpe Superintendent John Rushefski said the increased funding will help his district close a projected deficit of $2.9 million.

Northern Lehigh Superintendent Matthew Link said his district’s proposed increase in funding would make up less than 1 percent of its overall budget.

“These amounts, although helpful, would do very little overall to increase our revenue when you consider this year we are operating on a $35.7 million budget, of which only 38% comes from the state,” Link said.

Weatherly’s Young said the 3 percent increase in the basic education subsidy won’t cover the district’s annual increases in wages, health care and pension costs.

Panther Valley’s funding increase, approximately $68,000, will barely cover its increased pension costs for 2020-21.

Tamaqua superintendent Raymond Kinder said he and his staff are still working through the proposed budget, but is unsure whether the increased funding will make a difference.

“Often, we receive increased funding in one area, only to have it reduced in another one. That results in no new funds,” Kinder said.

Cyber charter reform

A growing portion of local school budgets is going toward charter school education.

Jim Thorpe budgeted $2.2 million for cyber charter expenses in 2019-20.

Superintendents said cyber school tuition costs more than it would to educate a student in a normal classroom. They would like to see the system of funding cyber schools completely changed.

“Charter school funding reform is long overdue,” Tamaqua’s Kinder said.

The governor’s budget does offer some charter school relief, capping charter school tuition costs at $9,500 per student per year. That would save districts $2,000 to $4,000 per student attending cyber charters.

If a student has special needs, the cost of attending a charter is at least twice that.

The savings would vary by school district. Weatherly will save about $50,000 — $100,000 if the cap extends to special needs. Jim Thorpe’s Rushefski estimated that the new rate would save them $328,000.

“A mil at Jim Thorpe is approximately $600,000, so this change would free up more than half a mil in the budget,” he said.

Early childhood

The proposed budget calls for universal all-day kindergarten. More than 80 percent of school districts in Pennsylvania already have all-day kindergarten, including all districts in Carbon County.

Districts are encouraged by the proposal to increase funding for Pre-K counts and Head Start programs.

Link said Pre-K education has become more important to teaching kids to read on time. Many students are entering kindergarten with special needs, or dealing with some kind of trauma, which impacts their ability to succeed in kindergarten compared to other students.

Panther Valley’s Kergick said many students arrive in his district lacking fundamental skills.

“We need a strong support system to bring in our youngest children with the prerequisite skills,” he said.

Teacher salary

Most of the districts in the area have a starting teacher salary over $45,000. Panther Valley, Lehighton and CCTI have teachers who make less.

Panther Valley Superintendent Dennis Kergick said he’s in favor of the increase.

“Teacher recruitment and retention is a major issue here. Increasing teacher pay needs to be a priority,” he said.

School safety

Some districts are concerned about Wolf’s proposed cuts in funding for school safety. That includes $15 million in proposed funding for school safety, as well as funding for trauma-informed education — which helps students who have experienced adverse childhood experiences. Northern Lehigh’s Link said he’s concerned that the recent progress made in those areas could be lost.

“Safety and security along with mental health support are areas of focus for us in Northern Lehigh, as in most school districts across the commonwealth. We are uncertain if he plans to support these areas in other ways and do not want to see the recent progress fade,” Link said.

Not finalized

The budget is still subject to negotiations between legislators. The state’s fiscal year ends July 1. By law, the state and all school districts are required to pass a budget by that date. However during the Wolf administration, the state has missed that deadline multiple times.

“We are very aware that it is early in the process and the proposed budget will change many times between now and July 1, if they can actually pass it by then as all school districts are required to do,” Link said.