BELFAST - The 2013-14 budget approved by the Regional School Unit 20 board of directors on this Tuesday seemingly left little for anyone to be happy about — $1.7 million in cuts to the budget drew cries of too much from residents concerned about the effect on education, and too little from those concerned about taxes, which are expected to increase despite the cuts.

The no-win situation wasn't helped by an additional wave of anxiety that rippled through the district this week when it was revealed that roughly $1 million of those cuts were added to the chopping block during the three days before the final approval meeting. These included numerous staff cuts that were, according to Superintendent Brian Carpenter, intentionally not brought to the attention of school principals and others who had previously been part of the painful process of cutbacks.

"I always like to be part of the solution but I didn't know there was a problem," said Jody Henderson, principal of Captain Albert Stevens Elementary School in Belfast. Henderson had attended a board meeting the previous week but did not go on Tuesday in the belief that she knew the extent of the proposed cuts.

The morning after the meeting, she learned that she would be losing her front office secretary, Donna Parks. The news was made especially jarring because she heard it from Parks, who only knew because she had received a call from a citizen who learned of the cut at the previous night's meeting. No one from the central office or board of directors had contacted either Henderson or Parks. 

Superintendent Brian Carpenter on Friday said the district's principals were included in talks that produced a list of nearly 60 cuts across the district, totaling around $700,000. But after receiving orders from the board on April 25 to find "additional cuts," he said he intentionally kept them out of the process.

"You don't have everybody involved in everything you do because some people won't make tough decisions," he said. 

Carpenter added that there was very little time to complete the budget and said he said he didn't want to put the burden on the principals to make what he viewed as the more painful cuts of staff positions that had been mostly avoided until that point.

"We've already taken everything else away: supplies, professional development [and other non salary expenses]," he said. "They gave it all up and it wasn't enough."

The roughly $33.5 million bottom line is up just $118,000 from last year, but Carpenter said a drop of over $1 million in General Purpose Aid from the state combined with the LePage administration's proposal to shift half of the tax-funded portion of teacher retirement to local districts forced the RSU 20 board and administration to make cuts they had considered in past years but previously managed to avoid.

The state proposal on teacher retirement funding is not final but Carpenter said he added that expense of roughly $400,000 to the budget as a precaution. Realistically, he said, if the pending bill fails, the cost would likely be passed down to the local level through a curtailment later. Carpenter said he'd rather have the option of giving the money back to municipalities than having to find it later.

RSU 20 budget, important dates Public Budget Meeting: May 30, 7 p.m. Troy Howard Middle School auditorium. Referendum vote: June 11

Among the 15 full-time equivalent teacher and staff positions approved by the board on Tuesday was the district's School Resource Officer, a Belfast police officer serving in the schools under an agreement between the city and the school district.

Belfast Police Chief Mike McFadden said he heard from a citizen that the position was eliminated more than a day after the vote, and as of Thursday afternoon had not anything from the district officials. McFadden said did not want to jeopardize the possibility that the position might be reinstated, but he seemed dumbfounded that he was hearing the news first from a citizen and then from a reporter. He said he'd spent part of that day wondering if the phone would ring —  a call from the district.

"I understand there are some serious budget issues," he said, "but for us not to be brought into the huddle on this is kind of surprising."

McFadden said the current SRO, Greg Stearns, is "one of the busiest officers in this police department," and someone who has made a noticeable difference in the schools. 

"He's got his finger on the pulse of the security needs of that school [BAHS]," he said. Stearns also works in Troy Howard Middle School and the Belfast Area elementary schools. In the summer, he works as a patrolman for the Belfast Police Department and his salary is paid accordingly, two-thirds, one-third by RSU 20 and the city.

McFadden who recently returned to the Belfast Police Department after working for the Maine State Police Computer Crimes Unit recalled the days before the SRO when he would get calls from the school about a wide range of issues, from arson, to drugs and guns. With the addition of the SRO, he said, the severity of issues in the schools has noticeably less.

"If that cut goes through, we will be handling all the complaints of the SRO," he said. McFadden explained, this would mean a return to a reactive approach instead of the proactive work that Stearns has been able to do through his relationships at the school.

Other staff cuts included two full-time and all substitute custodians, 3.5 library ed techs, the wellness position affiliated with Waldo County General Hospital, a reduction in an unspecified secretary's hours, middle school teacher leader stipends.

Teacher and staff cuts by school include the following additional positions:

Belfast Area High School - 1 art teacher, 1 science teacher, 1 English language arts teacher
Troy Howard Middle School - 1 art teacher, 1 secretary, 1 world language teacher
Searsport District High School/Middle School - .5 art teacher, .5 world language teacher

Carpenter proposed several additional cuts that were reinstated by the board, including one elementary school guidance position, funding for middle school extra- and cocurricular activities (stipends for coaches were cut) and a $168,000 line for technology, which Carpenter said was necessary in part to prepare for a shift to a new state assessment system that does not run on the current computers.

The public will have two more chances to weigh in on the budget. A Public Budget Meeting will be held on May 30, 7 p.m. in the Troy Howard Middle School auditorium in Belfast. Here citizens will be able to comment and vote on 11 "cost centers" of the district budget, including: regular program instruction, regular education, transportation, special education and others.

Carpenter said he was not happy about any of the cuts he proposed, but felt he had no other choice. He paraphrased a comment by Charlie Grey of Belfast at Tuesday's meeting that quoted in a report in the Bangor Daily News. 

"He said, you're taking everything away from the kids," Carpenter said. "And we are."

The final budget that emerges from the Public Budget Meeting goes to a referendum vote on June 11.

Should the RSU 20 withdrawal question appear on the same ballot as the district's 2013-14 budget, both would be relevant to all voters. The withdrawal, if approved, would not take effect until the 2014-15 school year. 

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Ethan Andrews can be reached at news@penbaypilot.com