By SANDY McGEE

CUMBERLAND — The School Committee is expected to vote on the proposed budget for the 2009 fiscal year at a special meeting to be held Thursday starting at 7 p.m. at Cumberland High School, 2600 Mendon Road.

Included in the proposed school budget, which was recently submitted by Superintendent of Schools Donna A. Morelle, is the recommendation to eliminate all freshman sports from the high school’s athletic program.
According to a recent press release issued from the school department, the district currently offers students the opportunity to participate in 50 sport teams at the middle and high school levels. The district, according to the release, currently employs a coaching staff at a total cost of $127, 512.
The superintendent is recommending the continuation of all varsity, junior varsity and middle school sports programs, while eliminating freshman sports and reducing $35,000 from the overall athletic budget. She is also recommending fundraising or other donations to obtain the $35,000 reduction, according to the release.  
The school department will complete its presentation of the proposed budget, including plans for the technology budget and miscellaneous items, at the School Committee meeting on Thursday. The school department is recommending a significant reduction in expenditures for technology.
The budget includes an overall increase of 1.83 percent more than last year’s nearly $52 million budget. The following are additional proposals included in the preliminary school budget:

Middle school schedule changes:
The superintendent is proposing that the School Committee approve a middle school schedule change to eliminate the “current inflexible junior high school schedule” as stated in a previous SALT visit report for North Cumberland Middle School.
The proposed schedule, according to the superintendent, will increase time in English, math, science and social studies by 40 hours per year and provide access to world language instruction for all middle school students. The schedule changes will also, according to Morelle, provide reading support for all struggling readers in middle school and reduce school-wide transitions.

Staff reductions:
As a result of the middle school schedule changes, reductions to staffing levels are also being proposed, according to the superintendent.
These personnel reductions will be in the areas of unified arts, music, reading and world language. “While there are significant student learning advantages to the changes in the middle school schedule proposal, its implementation will result in a reduction of eight positions,” according to the release.
Based on student enrollment, the superintendent is also proposing the reduction of one special education teacher at Joseph L. McCourt Middle School and one sixth grade teacher at North Cumberland Middle School.
The superintendent is proposing four and one-half additional positions to be cut at the elementary school level as a result of enrollment projections.
“A review of the elementary enrollment projections for September 2008 indicates a downward trend in enrollment,” according to the release. The district is expecting approximately 45 less students to enroll in kindergarten through grade 5 next year.
The superintendent is also proposing a reduction of four and one-half staff positions as a result of relocating students and staff of the Cumberland Preschool Center to B.F. Norton Elementary School.
“Based on the current recommendation of the Space Utilization Task Force, it is assumed that the Cumberland Preschool Center will be relocated to B. F. Norton School,” according to the release from the school department. “As a result of this change, several staffing consolidations will occur that will result in the elimination of a custodian, a secretary and a school-nurse teacher.”
The Space Utilization Task Force’s recommendations are still awaiting the School Committee’s approval.
At the high school level, the superintendent is recommending the reduction of a school-nurse teacher and certified teaching positions. The teaching reductions, according to Morelle, are the result of the creation of a new department called the Fine, Applied and Technical Arts Department.
A reduction in custodial staffing is also being proposed at B. F. Norton School, Community School, Garvin School, Joseph L. McCourt Middle School and Cumberland High School. Staffing levels in all other schools and maintenance departments will remain at the current levels.

District literacy coach:
The district is recommending that the School Committee hire a kindergarten to grade 8-district literacy coach to coordinate literacy instruction in schools. According to the superintendent, the recommendation is a result of the school district’s recent partnership with the Hasbro Center for Teaching Excellence and the Dunn Literacy Initiative.
The district literacy coach would work with faculty to design professional development, support teachers in designing classroom instruction and act as a liaison to Dunn Institute representatives.
The Dunn Institute was founded in 1999 in Providence as part of the Hamilton School at Wheeler’s outreach efforts, according to its Web site at http://www.dunninstitute.org/. The non-profit organization provides programs and services to address the needs of those living or working with learning differences, according to its Web site.

High school initiatives:
The superintendent’s goals for Cumberland High School in the upcoming school include two major steps that affect the budget, according to the press release. The goals include meeting the requirements of the high school diploma system to receive “preliminary approval” status and meeting the New England Association of Schools and Colleges’ recommendations to achieve accreditation status.
To meet these goals, according to Morelle, the high school administration will modify levels in order to assure heterogeneity and increase student expectations, support and develop art programs and provide more technology classes.

Special education program development:
The superintendent is also proposing a transition program for students requiring post grade 12 services.
If the school district can provide transportation for students to work sites, this proposal, according to the superintendent, would eliminate the need to provide out-of-district tuition and meet the needs of students who require transition services.