Retiree Council 13 News

“These cuts cannot go through.” NYSUT, lawmakers, education officials push back on proposed Foundation Aid cuts

NYSUT President Melinda Person held a roundtable discussion with education officials and local lawmakers on Friday to discuss the impacts proposed Foundation Aid cuts would have on the Schuylerville Central School District and its community.

Schuylerville stands to lose more than 17% of its Foundation Aid under the executive budget proposal, amounting to nearly 6% of last year’s budget. “There is no way you take a 17% cut and not have an impact on what you can provide students,” said Schuylerville Assistant Superintendent for Business Christine Burke.

Said Superintendent Gregg Barthelmas, “The bottom line is this: these cuts will impact Schuylerville like you wouldn’t believe.”

“These cuts cannot go through,” said NYSUT President Melinda Person. “There’s a common thread that I’ve heard in every district I’ve met with, it’s that we don’t want to go backwards, we want to move forward. To pull the rug out from districts who have done the right thing is unconscionable.”