Schools

Pelham Schools Superintendent Published in Newsletter

Dennis Lauro, superintendent of Pelham Schools, had an article published in the Council Gram, an online newsletter for the New York State Council of School Superintendents. In the article, Lauro calls for his colleagues to think outside the box for ways

Dennis Lauro,  superintendent of Pelham schools, had an article appear in the July/August edition of Council Gram, an online newsletter published by the New York State Council of School Superintendents.

Lauro’s article, which is titled “New Approach to Planning Your Next School District Budget,” calls for his colleagues to think outside the box for ways to remain within the state property tax cap while maintaining and improving instructional programs.

“Reducing expenditures, in the end, often results in decisions that are not always in the best interest of the students we were employed to serve,” Lauro wrote. “What we need now is to be creative about maintaining and improving instructional programs and still remain within the tax cap.”

Lauro believes contract negotiations need to reflect changes that have occurred in the teaching profession during the last 50 years.

“Developed in the 1960s and early 1970s, the goal was to improve teacher compensation in order to attract the best possible candidates into the profession,” Lauro wrote.  “At that time compensation was amongst the lowest professional salaries in the country. In the second decade of the 21st century, however, teacher salaries are more competitive and in line with other public workers. We need to slow down the rate of salary increases by realigning today’s contracts with the public’s expectations of a fair salary and benefits package that is comparable to what other professionals receive.”

He pointed to contract renegotiations with the Pelham teachers union, that took place last year. He said the negotiations not only led to reductions in projected salary increases, but to other changes that are advised in his article.  

Lauro also advises school districts to take advantage of the economy by re-bidding contracts with more favorable terms, instead of continuing with business as usual. He also suggests a careful review of software applications.

Lauro, a former math teacher with more than 15 years of experience teaching school finance at the college level, was asked to present a workshop on this topic at the state Council of School Superintendents’ winter conference.


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