Schools
BAVTS Budget Reduction to Pay Off for SVSD
A revised budget, requested by the Bethlehem Area School District, will reduce the Saucon Valley School District's funding share for the vocational-technical school by almost $68,000.
The Bethlehem Area School District (BASD), and Northampton Area School District (NASD) will each gain a financial boon from a few cuts in the Bethlehem Area Vocational-Technical School (BAVTS) budget, executive director Brian Williams told the Bethlehem Area School Board during their finance committee meeting May 9.
The board had previously requested that Williams go back over the institution's budget and make reductions to help it close a more than $2.1 million gap caused by a reduction in state and federal funding in its own budget. The district funds the lion's share of the vocational-technical school's expenses.
A total of about $700,000 was eliminated from BAVTS expenditures for 2011-12, Williams said. Funding is derived from the three member districts based on the number of students that attend from each.
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The reduction in expenditures means a $455,983 savings for the BASD.
The SVSD will save approximately $67,700 and the NASD will save a little more than $192,000.
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To reduce spending, a vacant teaching position, a custodial position and four support staff positions were eliminated, Williams said.
He added that the school has been trying to cut costs for several years and will continue to do so.
“In the past three years, we have reduced costs by $600,000 through staff reductions,” Williams said. Future reductions to underenrolled programs are also likely, he added.
The BASD savings will be used to offset the costs of restored programming that had been threatened by budget shortfalls, district officials said.
