VOL. 53, NO. 12
Friday, March 19th, 2021
thelawrenceledger.com
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Lawrence school board approves tentative budget By Lea Kahn Staff Writer
The Lawrence Township Public Schools Board of Education has approved its tentative $79.6 million operating budget for 2021-22, sending it on to the Mercer County Department of Education for review. A public hearing and final action on the proposed budget, which was approved at the school board’s March 10 meeting, has been set for the board’s May 5 meeting. The district’s total operating budget for 2020-21 was $75.7 million. The 2021-22 budget carries a 2-cent increase in the school district tax rate – from $1.57 per $100 of assessed value to $1.59. The school district tax applies to residential and non-residential properties. A 2-cent increase in the school district tax rate means the owner of a house assessed at the township average of $282,395 will pay $4,490 in school district taxes, or about $68 more than last year. Turning to the revenue side, the property tax levy to support the 2021-22 budget is $70.9 million. This compares to the $69.7 million tax levy to support the 2020-21 budget. The $1.2 million increase in the tax levy for the 2021-22 budget is 1.7%. It is under the 2% cap by $192,585, school district officials said. Other sources of revenue include miscellaneous revenue, such as tuition and interest on savings, and state aid. Miscellaneous revenue declined by $70,000, from $328,000 to $258,000.
State aid increased by $630,445 to $4.8 million. This reflects the trend of increased state aid for the Lawrence Township Public Schools. The district received $4.2 million in state aid in the 2019-20 budget, and $4.3 million for the 2020-21 budget. Thomas Eldridge, the business administrator for the school district, said people have asked about what the district has done with the money it has saved during the pandemic when the school buildings were closed. The perception is that there is a surplus, he said. “It is true that there is an available balance in transportation. It is true that positions have not been filled immediately,” Eldridge said. But it is also true that the school district has had to pay the bus transportation companies, even if the school buses are not running, he said. The school district lost $165,000 in rental income because the afterschool program had been suspended because of the pandemic, Eldridge said. The district also lost $125,000 in tuition because the preschool program has been closed. Diving deeper into the budget, Eldridge said the cost drivers are basically the same – salaries and benefits, and enrollment fluctuations and shifts. Salaries and benefits, which account for about 80% of spending in the budget, increased by $1.2 million. The budget for general education increased by $429,977. The cost for the special education program grew by $360,565. Tuition for special schools outside of the district, which are needed for cer-
tain special education students, increased by $306,857. Working to shape a budget during the COVID-19 pandemic was challenging and a “monumental task,” said Ross Kasun, the superintendent of schools.
Kasun praised Eldridge, who he said worked tirelessly to prepare a budget that is fiscally responsible. Eldridge acknowledged the challenges presented by the pandemic. “The way we approach all of
these problems is as an opportunity. With everything we do, we approach it with a level of resilience,” Eldridge said. “There are things we are learning and things that are disappointing, but there are good things happening as well.”
Scouts collect thousands of pounds of food to benefit Lawrence Community Center
PHOTO COURTESY OF KEVIN BULLARD
Scouts from Lawrence Township Boy Scout Pack 28 and Troop 27 collected approximately 2,500 pounds of food and a few hundred pounds of assorted hygiene products to support the Lawrence Community Center with a “Scouting for Food” drive on Feb. 27. Pictured from left: Cody, Kaylee, Kristi Reading (committee chair, Pack 28), Shane and Kevin Bullard (assistant scoutmaster, Troop 27) deliver the items on March 1 to the Lawrence Community Center’s pantry.
Dozens of Lawrence High students qualify for international DECA competition
PHOTO COURTESY OF LAWRENCE TOWNSHIP PUBLIC SCHOOLS
Lawrence High School DECA officers hold a banner honoring LHS Principal Dave Adam. Pictured from left: Adam, Suraj Kura, Eric Maest, Olivia Szela, Arjun Agarwal, Emet Baria, Matthew DeMott and Neel Revankar.
Historically, Lawrence High School’s (LHS) DECA (formerly Distributive Education Clubs of America) chapter does very well at regional, state and international competitions. This year, despite the pandemic, is no exception. Thirty-one LHS DECA members qualified at the New Jersey DECA Conference March 1-3 to advance to the international conference beginning April 24, according to information provided by the Lawrence Township Public School District. LHS garnered additional accolades at the state conference: the organization named LHS Principal David Adam the 2020-21 NJ DECA Administrator of the Year and recognized Diane Schneck, LHS business teacher and DECA co-advisor, for her 35-year mile-
stone of dedication and service to students and to the organization, according to the statement. John Tees, LHS business teacher, is also a chapter co-advisor. “This is a great honor for Adam, Schneck, Tees and Lawrence High School,” Superintendent Ross Kasun said in the statement. “It demonstrates leadership and a focus on students. DECA members receive a chance to develop skills they will need to succeed as adults.” DECA is an international association of more than 10 million members and 3,700 high school chapters. For almost 75 years, the association has prepared emerging leaders and entrepreneurs in marketing, finance, hospitality, goal setting, consensus building and project management, according to the statement.
Westminster Choir College alumni win multiple Grammy Awards Seven Westminster Choir College alumni were featured in Grammy-winning recordings this year. The awards were presented on March 14. In the Best Choral Performance category, the Grammy Award went to the recording of Richard Danielpour’s oratorio “The Passion of Yeshuah,” which features the Buffalo Philharmonic Chorus and Orchestra. Adam Luebke ’04 is chorus master for the Buffalo Philharmonic Chorus, tenor Timothy Fallon ’03 is a soloist, and Ryan Russell Brown ’14 and Stephen Karr ’04 sing in the chorus on the recording, according to information provided by Rider University. Additionally, Makeda Hampton ’09 is a member of the Metropolitan Opera Chorus in the recording of Gershwin’s “Porgy & Bess,” which took home the Grammy in the Best Opera Recording category. Dominic Inferrera ’94 and Linda Lee Jones ’08 sang in the Experiential Orchestra and Chorus on a recording of Ethel Smyth’s
“The Prison,” which won for Best Classical Solo Vocal Album. The winners were announced at the 2021 Grammy Awards ceremony on March 14, which was delayed because of the pandemic. This year’s ceremony was notable as well because, for the first time, a Westminster Choir College graduate participated in each of the five recordings nominated in the Best Choral Performance category, according to the statement. “Hearty and well-deserved congratulations are in order for all of the outstanding achievements of our Grammy-nominated alumni, most notably the winners,” Dr. Marshall Onofrio, dean of Rider University’s Westminster College of the Arts, which is composed of Westminster Choir College and the School of Fine and Performing Arts, said in the statement. “While brilliant recordings such as these always enrich our lives, the work of our alumni is all the more resonant in this time of great challenge to society and the arts.” This was a milestone year for
Westminster and its nominated alumni, which dominated the Best Choral Performance category. The Crossing received its sixth nomination for Best Choral Performance for the recording “Carthage,” an album featuring six pieces by composer James Primosch. Donald Nally ’87 conducts The Crossing, which is composed of many Westminster alumni, including Katy Avery ’18, Ryan Fleming ’93, Steven Hyder ’12, Lauren Kelly ’16, Rebecca Myers ’02 and Daniel Spratlan ’05. The group won the 2018 and 2019 Grammy Award in this category.
Soprano Laquita Mitchell ’99 is a soloist on the recording of Paul Moravec’s “Sanctuary Road,” a nominated oratorio about the Underground Railroad based on the documentary writings of African American civil rights activist William Still, according to the statement. On the recording of Alexander Kastlasky’s nominated “Requiem,” Benedict Sheehan ’01 is the chorus master and Elizabeth Peters Frase ’99 sings with The Saint Tikhon Choir and Madeline Apple Healey ’13 sings with the Clarion Choir. Additionally, Charles Bruffy,
who serves on the faculty for Westminster’s Summer Conducting Institute, and Joseph Charles Beutel, a CoOPERAtive Program alumnus, are part of this recording. Chris Jackson ’11, Fiona Gillespie ’10, Madeline Apple Healey ’13 and Rebecca Myers ’02 are members of the Skylark Vocal Ensemble, which was nominated for the recording “Once Upon a Time.” In addition, Emily Magee ’89 sings the role of Ghita in Deutsche Oper Berlin’s recording of Alexander von Zemlinsky’s Der Zwerg, which was nominated in the Best Opera Recording category.
Publication of Time Off section temporarily suspended
The publication of the Time Off section has been temporarily suspended. Articles that run in the Time Off section will be published in the main section of this newspaper.
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