AUBURN — After learning that Auburn schools received more state money for education than expected, the School Committee voted Wednesday night to restore some programs and put more money in savings.

Superintendent Katy Grondin said Auburn schools received $488,404 more than expected when the state budget passed several weeks ago.

Committee members approved spending about $200,404 of it restoring cuts made months ago and socked away $288,000 in the fund balance for next year’s budget.

Included in the approved spending was a K-12 instructional coach to help implement technology and customized learning ($64,000); an aspiration specialist to help more students get internships with area businesses and organizations, community service projects and early college experiences ($64,000); building budgets ($22,668); a program to help suspended students work with police personnel and stay focused on school ($22,826); and early college programs ($20,000).

Committee members voted not to pay for a pre-kindergarten teacher at Washburn school, instead funding that position with a federal school improvement grant awarded to the school.

The disadvantage is the grant will run out in four or five years, Grondin said.

Grondin acknowledged to committee members they had little time to digest the information because the numbers just became available, but she asked for approval so she could hire staff for the fall.

“It’s restoring things we have reduced from the budget,” Grondin said. “I’m not asking for new pie-in-the-sky” programs.

Initially, Grondin recommended $200,000 go to into savings; committee members increased that to $288,000.

City Councilor Mary Lafontaine said she didn’t mean to micromanage, but questioned the process and whether committee members should have more time to think about “this gift.”

Committee Chairman Tom Kendall said months ago they asked the administration to recommend how to cut. Now administration was recommending what to restore, and he trusted the administration.

And, if the spending isn’t approved immediately, it would mean missing a summer hiring window and not getting the best candidates, he said.

Committee member Bonnie Hayes said she supported the positions, that they’re necessary for Auburn schools to implement customized learning. “My granddaughter is in the second grade. If this is what her high school needs, we need to move on it. These are things we need to do for our system to finish our initiatives and goals.”

The recommendations were being fiscally responsible, Hayes said. “We’re putting $200,000 in fund balance.”

Member Chris Langis said he was glad “more money is going in the piggy bank,” but questioned spending for the positions.

After committee member Peter Letourneau said he didn’t favor restoring positions that were cut, Kendall asked for votes on line items.

The positions were approved in 4-3 votes.

Auburn Police Chief Phil Crowell shared information about how the new Youth Diversion Program is working. Police personnel work with suspended students at the PAL Center to keep them from getting into trouble, what he called “the pipeline of prison.”

In the first year of the program, there were 150 suspensions but the actual number of students participating in the program was not given. That represented 61 fewer suspensions than the year before. The program’s cost is being shared by the city, Crowell said.

Committee members vote unanimously to fund the program.

The committee also heard a presentation about a federal $1.6 million, five-year school improvement grant for Washburn Elementary School, voting to approve new positions paid for by the grant.

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Special ed director: Schools have no choice but to pay

AUBURN – Auburn schools have 640 special education students representing 11 different disabilities, Special Education Director Laurie Lemieux told the School Committee on Wednesday night. They represent 17.81 percent of the student population.

Her report was in response to committee members asking about rising costs. The $700,000 increase for special education was the biggest single increase in the budget for 2015-16.

Federal law mandates that each child get a free and appropriate education in the least restrictive environment, Lemieux said. Some spend part of their days in regular classrooms, while others have disabilities so severe they need placement in private schools, such as Margaret Murphy.

In the past year, 24 special ed students graduated and 42 went into regular education, Lemieux said.

Auburn schools have several in-house programs to help keep students in the district.

This school year, Auburn had 51 students in out-of-district private programs. Tuition ranged from $33,735 to $52,662 per student. Tuition is set by the state during the summer.

“When I build the budget in the summer I don’t know the changes until the fall,” Lemieux said. “Often times they back it to July 1. We had one school go up $60 a day. Another went up $26 a day. This is the system.”

Worse are changes in the past five years in so-called Medicaid “seed” reimbursements for specialized therapy services, “a big ticket item,” Lemieux said.

Five years ago those clinical services were bundled with tuition. Now schools have to share the costs with the federal government.

Now, Auburn pays 38.45 percent of “seed” money for therapy services, while the federal government pays 61.55 percent.

That means big bills to local school districts. The costs for therapy and behavioral services “went from nothing to over $800,000 we’re paying out. It’s huge,” Lemieux said. “We’re now having to spend a lot of money for Medicaid seed. It’s very concerning.”

City Councilor Mary Lafontaine asked what is being done to address that.

Lemieux said she serves on a state committee that has recommended changes in federal Medicaid rules that would allow school departments to bill Medicaid for more services schools are providing. “But what I’ve found it’s a very long process.”

That same committee also watches for changes from proposed state legislation, keeping an eye on impact to local schools.

Schools have no control over what they must pay, she said, but “we’re not just sitting back. We are doing the work to mitigate the challenge.”