Marblehead High accreditation postponement frees up $4G to help reduce kindergarten budget

MARBLEHEAD – The accreditation process for Marblehead High has been pushed back for a year – and that’s actually good news for kindergartners as well as the high school.The New England Association of Schools and Colleges approved Marblehead’s request for a postponement, to give new Principal Ken Weinstein a chance to make the transition into his new duties.The NEASC decision frees up $4,000 in the school budget and Superintendent of Schools Paul Dulac lost no time finding a use for that money.Dulac wants to use it to help offset a $113,000 deficit in next year’s $1 million kindergarten costs. With 220 kindergarten pupils expected next year, the town expects to spend $1.07 million in salaries, leaving the schools with a $524,124 deficit.Two weeks ago School Committee members followed Dulac’s recommendation and doubled the tuition for kindergarten sessions from $1,368 to $2,600. The hike will add $410,204 to program receipts, leaving a deficit of $113,920.Dulac told the committee he would squeeze another $113,000 out of his budget to make the numbers work. “We should not be subsidizing all of this on the backs of the parents,” he said.Thursday evening he showed the committee how he proposes to do it: $38,000 from a study skills program at the high school, $2,500 from training for the high school International Baccalaureate program, $25,000 from Grade 7-12 athletics programs, $20,000 from kindergarten-Grade 12 Creative Classroom training and $23,500 from an elementary reading program.The athletic cuts include reductions in the middle school basketball program and a part-time equipment manager position, and a $20 increase in the individual student fee for participation in a sport.With the exception of the accreditation money, “These are all hurtful cuts,” Dulac said.Dulac justified his choices with his contention that quality kindergarten programs ensure that children learn to read at an early age. He called early literacy a district priority for all students.Committee member Jonathan Lederman proposed a further reduction in the athletic director’s salary as an alternative cut but received minimal support.