Schools
How Much? MV High School Budget Goes Public Monday Night
One year ago, the high school presented a $17.6 million budget for fiscal year 2014, 5.5 percent higher than the FY13 budget, the Martha's Vineyard Times reported. How much will it be for next year? Find out Monday night.
What does it cost to operate the Island's only comprehensive high school, with more than 700 students?
We'll find out Monday evening, when the Martha's Vineyard Regional High School public budget presentation is scheduled for 7 p.m. in the school's performing arts center.
Among the elements we can expect to see affecting the budget for fiscal year 2015:
- $180,000 a year, for 10 years starting in 2014, to pay for the new roof installed on the school this year ("Martha's Vineyard Regional High School Committee votes bond for new roof," Martha's Vineyard Times).
- A 14 percent drop in cafeteria revenues, attributed to the state's stern new nutritional guidelines banning teens' favorite fatty foods and sugary drinks ("Sales of Healthy Snacks Drop at High School," Vineyard Gazette).
- Increasing special education costs, which reportedly account for much of the more than 21-percent increase in the Island-wide public school budget ("School superintendent presents $5.4 million draft budget," Martha's Vineyard Times).
According to the Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center (MassBudget), the majority of funding for public schools in the Bay State — 53.8 percent in 2010 — comes from local property taxes, making us seventh in the nation for local funding of schools. (Connecticut is #1, with taxpayers furnishing 57.5 percent of the money for public schools.)
The state chipped in 38.8 percent of Massachusetts public school funding in 2010 and the federal government pitched 7.4 percent into the budget pot, according to MassBudget.
With these figures in mind, will you be attending Monday night's budget presentation? Tell us in the comments.
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