Riverhead School Budget Approved By Voters

RIVERHEAD, NY —The voters have spoken, and the Riverhead Central School District's budget for the 2024 to 2025 school year passed by a wide margin of 1224 to 745.

The proposed $201,464,530 budget reflects a 4.93 percent spending increase and a tax levy increase of 3.34 percent.

"The Riverhead Central School District’s proposed budget for the 2024-2025 school year has been developed to maintain the high-quality programs and services offered to our students while remaining sensitive to the tax impact on residents," the Riverhead Board of Education said. "The proposed budget stays within the property tax levy cap for our district of 3.34 percent."

"As has been presented and outlined at several Board of Education meetings, the district is encountering significant fiscal challenges coming into the 2024-2025 school year," the BOE said.

"The end of state and federal COVID relief funding placed the district in a situation where reductions had to be made in staffing and programming to ensure a balanced 2024-2025 budget and to preserve the district’s financial stability in subsequent years. The spending plan developed by district administration and Board of Education trustees preserves the core of our academic programming, maintains our pre-K program and nine-period day at the high school, and keeps intact the majority of electives and other services and programs that are essential components of a comprehensive, well-rounded education for all our pre-K through 12th grade students."

The running out of COVID relief funding left many districts scrambling. According to Newsday, Riverhead school officials said the plan would excise 33 faculty positions and 18 teacher assistants; the district faces a “fiscal cliff” of nearly $20 million, officials said.

However, the BOE added: "Most notably, elementary class sizes will not be increased and there will be no reductions in the core instructional academics, non-instructional academics, arts, athletics, or extracurricular programming. Under the district’s new leadership, significant strides have been made in stabilizing and streamlining district operations, there is a renewed sense of purpose and enthusiasm across our faculty and staff, and new opportunities continue to open up for our students."

BOE candidates Brian Connelly and Kelly Freeborn ran unopposed; Freeborn received 1497 votes and Connelly, 1322.

Voters also weighed in on a proposition to elect a student as an ex-officio, non-voting member to the BOE; that measure passed, 1418 to 523.