ELLENVILLE – The Ellenville Central School District Board of Education heard an earful from one resident this Tuesday night regarding the district's contractual agreements with its faculty. Addressing the board, Bob Prener said, "Teachers should take the hit along with the rest of the economy."

He said that the "whole teacher and administrative salary model is based on the concept of good times that just keep getting better."

Prener suggested revising the contract process, beginning with annual contracts rather than the current three-year contract. He also proposed that tenure not be offered to teachers with less than seven years of service. He said that a "proper salary scale model for times of declining revenue would be to try to adjust starting salaries down only slightly but to lower longevity increments severely."

Further, Prener said that faculty and staff base salaries should be based on something other than the estimated revenue at the current tax rate. He said, "In troubled times, local taxes should be decreased, not increased to support people in government jobs."

He added: "That there will be more — or even as much — money next year simply may not be true for the taxpayer, and should not be the case for those working at taxpayer expense."

Superintendent Lisa Wiles told Prener that his comments would be included in the meeting's minutes, but for clarification, added that "all schools districts across the state are bound by state laws and requirements with regard to contract negotiations, salaries, and benefits."

There will be three additional budget workshops held on March 3, March 17, and March 31, at 6 p.m. in the High School Media Center. The community is invited to attend these very important workshops and is encouraged to participate in the budget planning process.

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