Nahant officials seek common ground on school budget issue

NAHANT ?School officials and members of the Advisory and Finance Committee both said they sought collaboration but anticipated tough decisions in 2013 school budget discussions as the school continues to wrestle with mandated costs and trying to restore services cut after last year’s failed override.”My primary interest are the Johnson School students and my job is to look at every different way to fund an item,” said Superintendent Philip Devaux Wednesday night. “We’re in survival mode now.””I don’t know what experience has been in the past, but we’re not the enemy necessarily,” Finance Committee Member Laurie Giardella responded. “We just have to review the numbers.”Nearly 20 community members, the School Committee, and Finance Committee met as Devaux presented a proposed 2013 budget without transportation that totals $3,073,000 and restores funding for programs and supplies cut after the override’s failure last June.The budget – which Devaux said analyzes costs, not expected revenue – is a projected increase of $414,501 from the 2012 budget without transportation, according to budget materials previously distributed.But the major issues facing the Johnson School remain the same this year as last.Devaux said that state-mandated special-education costs continue to rise. The schools are also obligated to pay approximately $1.2 million in tuition to Swampscott for educating its middle-school and high-school students, according to budget materials.”The only thing we can do anything with is Johnson School,” said Finance Committee Member Robert Vanderslice, summarizing Devaux’s presentation. “And we’re at the point now where we can’t squeeze Johnson School more.”Devaux said that was correct – the schools could not survive another year of cuts similar to those after the override. He said financial and volunteer support from Nahant Education Foundation, the Parent Teacher Organization and individual donors were becoming exhausted and they were running out of supplies and deferring maintenance on the school building.Cyrus Moulton can be reached at [email protected].