KCSB okays another no-tax-hike budget
BALD EAGLE TOWNSHIP, PA – With no fanfare and no comment other a unanimous “yes” vote from its seven present members, the Keystone Central School Board Thursday night approved an $82.467 million budget for the fiscal year beginning July 1. The document had been first announced in March and formally unveiled at the board’s April meeting; it keeps all levels of taxes unchanged in the 2022-23 fiscal year. As noted earlier, the amount is almost half a million dollars less than the current year.
The bulk of the Thursday voting session was devoted to an extensive report on improving student behavior, a presentation titled “Multi-Tiered System of Support for Behavior School-Wide Positive Behavior Support.” Presenters said the program is a system redesign not yet at goal, but one that has “the tools and right people” which should continue to get better. Superintendent Jacquelyn Martin said a majority of district students do the right thing a majority of the time.
The superintendent renewed word on the “desperate need” for support personnel at all levels within the district and said a new hiring program will be introduced shortly. She said Susquehanna Transit also remains in the need for new bus drivers.
Dr. Martin offered a favorable report on an Intermediate Unit 10 Wednesday discussion with area legislators. She said she was accompanied to the session by school board president Tracy Smith and members Jeff Johnston and Roger Elling.
The superintendent said some previous sessions with legislators had “fallen on deaf ears” but the Wednesday meeting was more positive. She specifically mentioned state Sen. Cris Dush and state House Rep. Kerry Benninghoff as “advocates for public education.” Topics discussed, she said, were staffing needs, construction trades funding and charter school funding.
