June 5, 2008
From the information I have on file for B-R, the following are years, teaching staff, total staff:
2002-03, 393, 688
2003-04, 367, 601
2004-05, 323, 567
2005-06, 370, 650
2006-07, 373, 647
2007-08, 376, 652
So, for 2004-05 there was a tremendous drop-off in teachers and overall total staff for the B-R School District. Also in that year, both communities provided "gift/grant" funds not included as part of the operational budget. Thus, as I look back, it is not clear if these "gift/grant" teachers that were re-hired are included in those numbers for 2004-05. Because the teachers were not paid from operating funds, but from directed "gift/grant" funds, it is conceivable that they were on B-R staff but not included in those calculations.
I do recall in early 2005, B-R needed to recalculate the way positions and those "gift/grant" funds were handled. The Towns did not want them considered as part of Operations, and thus perhaps a baseline for future years. The State Dept of Ed, in reviewing numbers, determined that one or both Towns dropped below required Net School Spending. B-R therefore shifted some or all of the "gift/grant" funds back to the Operational Budget (to keep the two communities in legal compliance).
I know, it sounds convoluted and confusing. I was on the Board at the time and it was hard to track it all back then. Staff was laid off, and over time many were re-hired. That leads to other mathematical calculations where if a teacher is re-hired for half a year (December) , they only count as 0.5 FTE (full-time equivalents) when determining annual staffing.
However, for 2005-06, the number of teachers was back to 2003-04 levels (although still slightly off form 2002-03).
While the over-ride failed in 2004, additional funds from both communities were sent to the B-R Schools via the "gift/grant"
(I think I have the dates and dollars correct - newspaper archives might be able to assist)
Aug 2, 2004, Raynham votes to send $1,240,000 to B-R for Raynham K-8
Oct 5, 2004, Bridgewater votes to send $520,000 to B-R for Bridgewater K-8
Dec 14, 2004, Raynham votes to send $92,233 to B-R for shared B-R High School
Dec 14, 2004, Bridgewater votes to send $184,464 to B-R for shared B-R High School
So, while Bridgewater's 2004 $2.2M over-ride, with $1,776,714 failed - it triggered a matching reduction in Raynham. Therefore, the B-R budget would have been reduced by about $2.6-$2.7M (estimate - will need to research to find precise amount) based on the proportional share of funding. However, the "gift/grant" funds totaled $2,036,697 - thereby restoring many of the "lost" positions.
As far as Bridgewater's failed over-ride in 2007 with $1.495M to B-R Schools, the money was ultimately funded to the School District by the action of Special Town Meeting on July 30, 2007. Thus, there was no change in operations.
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