Board Expresses Unanimous Support for Proposed 2026-27 School Budget
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- Written by: Joanne Wallenstein
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The limits imposed by the NYS tax cap, shrinking reserves and a 2026 bond proposition on the ballot made this an especially challenging year to balance the 2026-27 school budget. The board wrestled with the numbers and made some tough choices to bring in the budget below the tax cap in the hope of also garnering support for a $101.3mm bond that will be voted on the same day – May 19, 2026.
At the April 13, 2026 meeting of the Board of Education, Board members expressed unanimous support for the proposed 2026-27 school budget while acknowledging that there was more they hoped they could include and opining on the difficulties imposed on local school boards by the state tax cap.
See their statements below:
Colleen Brown
I would like to start by thanking everyone who worked so hard to develop this budget. Drew and Andrew, thank you for your leadership and guidance in this challenging process. I would also like to thank the district leadership and principals who took the time to look closely at their individual areas/ school buildings to see how we can continue to deliver our programs while staying within a limited budget. I also want to thank the community for continuing to engage with us as we move through this process.
We are fortunate to live in a community that not only values our children’s education, but continues to invest the resources needed to provide our students with every possible opportunity. Each year, as we develop the budget, we carefully re-evaluate the programs we offer and assess the evolving needs of our students.
This year, we also took a close look at our infrastructure, considering how well our buildings support the daily experiences of our students, spaces where they reflect, question, problem-solve, and think critically. The development of this year’s bond proposal is centered on ensuring that our facilities effectively support teaching and learning.
As a Board, we had to keep these priorities in mind while reviewing the school budget. We are living in uncertain times, and these uncertainties are significantly impacting both the cost of living and the cost of maintaining the high educational standards we set for ourselves. It is considerably more expensive to provide the same programming next year as it was this year, and we had to come to terms with that reality. We also remain concerned about rising healthcare costs and the continued reliance on reserve funds to cover expenses, something we have committed to reducing. Combined with inflationary pressures, these factors made it even more challenging to meet our students’ needs.
Scarsdale has long been recognized as a leader in educational innovation and excellence. We would welcome the opportunity to continue expanding our programs and enriching our students’ experiences. At the same time, we must be mindful of the broader economic climate and the financial responsibility we have to our community.
This year, we are presenting a budget at the tax cap. While there is more we would like to do, we recognize the importance of balancing our goals with fiscal responsibility, especially as we ask the community to support both the budget and the bond. I support this proposal because I believe the education we provided this past year was exceptional, offering a wide range of opportunities inside our classrooms as well as in athletics, the arts, sciences, speech and debate, and global learning experiences. Maintaining this level of programming will continue to give our students the tools they need to grow and thrive in an ever-changing world.
This year, our focus has been on investing in capital projects and addressing aging infrastructure. As we look towards the future….It is my hope that we will be able to focus more on expanding instructional programs and opportunities for both our students and our faculty.
For these reasons, I fully support this year’s proposed budget and encourage our community to keep these factors in mind when they come to vote on Tuesday, May 19.
Leah Dembitzer
Regarding the budget, I encourage the community to make an informed vote on May 19. We are at a pivotal moment in school budgeting and as has been said throughout this process, the reality of budgeting within the tax cap has tied our hands with regard to the fullness of the program that we’d like to offer.
This budget will preserve elementary class size; a hallmark of our schools. Small, manageable class sizes in the elementary schools enhance and enrich the student experience in the formative years of a child’s education. Anyone who has had their children go through the elementary schools can appreciate the importance of this guidepost.
However, as I’ve mentioned throughout this process, I’d like to highlight the importance of monitoring the size of high school math and physics classes to make sure that they’re not overly large next year and in future years. 29 or 30 high school students crammed into a math classroom and learning a complex subject, is far from ideal and not what I would like. We have heard from parents, the high school PTA, and students, specifically our student board members, on this issue. We know that many high school students are taking multiple math classes in a given year as well as unique elective offerings; part of our high school guidepost of student choice.
This is the first obvious instance of the tax cap not being able to support the program we believe is expected by the community.
Furthermore, I’d like to make sure that we keep an eye on how the reduction through attrition and the reduction in aide hours, for the second year in a row, affects the student experience in 2026-27.
This year, we are putting forth a capital projects’ bond vote, which exemplifies forward-looking investment in our district buildings and grounds; we know that the Village is moving forward with a pool bond, and in my view, it is not a year to push the cap. This shows fiscal restraint. We have made budget reductions through this process and it’s important for the community to know and understand that. All of these reductions– and the lack of additions – have been made in order to fit our budget into the tax cap. While I believe that we have done our best this year to maintain the richness of the school experience for which Scarsdale is known, I don’t doubt that these reductions will be felt; impacting the student experience.
Regarding the tax cap. While, in my view, it is important for the purpose of preventing major spikes in the annual tax levy and it compels fiduciary restraint, it is also an arbitrary calculation that is not in and of itself reflective of the real financial needs of the district. In that way, as we have clearly seen, it complicates budgeting over a period of time.
Last year, a big topic was our reliance on fund balance. I am grateful to Andrew for his early work in weaning us off use of the healthcare reserve in this budget. I think that is a very positive step for us. I noted at our last meeting and continue to note the lower level of our healthcare reserve and know that Andrew and his team will do their best to replenish it as we are able. As far as the unassigned fund balance, this year we continued to use $1.1 million toward the budget in order to alleviate the tax burden. As Drew mentioned during our process, we have, up until this point, been able to replenish that amount, year over year, through revenue. However, if you’re following, you know we discussed that due to the deeper cuts made this year –the tight budgeting– there may be a point wherein the $1.1 isn’t fully replenished. I note this because I wouldn’t want to pull an amount from the fund balance on an annual basis that is not being replenished. This is something that I'm watching and the community needs to be aware of it for future budget cycles. I’d also like to highlight the general health of our reserves as they affect our Moody’s rating, which in turn, may impact our ability to go out to bond.
A huge thank you to Andrew and his team; Drew, and the entire cabinet for your work. Andrew, specifically, you have done incredible work this year on the bond and budget. Thank you to our engaged community for your questions and comments; the exchange of thought and ideas is essential to this process. Please stay engaged, stay informed, and most importantly, vote.
I vote yes to adopt the budget and look forward to the work that lies ahead.
Robert Klein
This year’s budget has been especially challenging, given the broader context in which it was developed— including a proposed community pool renovation, a capital bond initiative, and the economic environment we face in 2026. I’m grateful to work with a board and administration that not only keep students at the center of every decision, but also carefully consider the impact of those decisions on the community as a whole.
Each year, we evaluate the budget through multiple lenses, all tied to student well-being. Our discussions reflect a thoughtful balance: maintaining the academic rigor that defines our schools, supporting physical health through athletics and exercise, addressing the condition of our facilities, and ensuring we value and support our teachers and staff through fair salaries and benefits. As we’ve noted, these salaries and benefits account for roughly 80% of our annual budget.
As an architect, I strongly believe that the physical environment matters—that well-designed, well-maintained spaces communicate the value we place on education.
But ultimately, it is our teachers and administrators who bring that value to life through their dedication, continuous growth, and commitment to our students’ success.
I also want to acknowledge that when certain items are not included in this budget, it is not because they are unimportant. Rather, it reflects the difficult choices we must make and the reality that some priorities must be deferred to future cycles.
For these reasons, I fully support the proposed 2026–2027 budget. While it cannot include everything we would wish for, I believe it strikes a responsible balance and continues our strong tradition of supporting the whole child.
Laura Liu
I’d like to start by giving gratitude to everyone who worked tirelessly and collaboratively on the budget over the past several months! That includes Dr. Patrick, Mr. Lennon, other members of the cabinet, their central office staff, and our building principals and administrators. Also making important contributions to budget work are our PTC and PTA leadership, budget-study chairs, PTA members, community groups including the League of Women Voters, the Scarsdale Forum, and individual residents who engaged in the process. Many different perspectives were discussed robustly, which led to this comprehensive budget that aligns with our strategic goals and prioritizes student learning and wellbeing, while also balancing fiscal realities, which Suzie, Leah and other board members have just eloquently summarized.
We are in a unique situation this year, with both the $101MM school bond and the $75MM Village pool bond very much on our taxpayers’ minds. The School Board and the District were aligned from the get-go that we would commit to a budget that stays within the tax cap this year. Given the high inflation and fixed costs, this posed tremendous challenges. Our school leaders had to make some hard decisions and defer several highly desirable staff additions in the area of elementary social work, middle school special education, and high school math. While these deferrals are not ideal, our administrators and teachers are committed and doing their best to optimize class sections and school operations to deliver the highest quality student experiences possible with the available resources. I’m glad that in this budget we are able to accommodate the playground renovation at Heathcote, the 8:1:2 life skills program room renovation, and several important program improvements and professional development opportunities for faculty. These are high priority items that will benefit our programs and our students directly.
Going back to the significant deferrals we had to make this year, I’d like to note that in future years, it would not be sustainable to always stay within the tax cap while also delivering the quality education the Scarsdale community desires and deserves. This topic has often been discussed at the board table and in the community. I look forward to continued community discussion and consensus building around this.
In conclusion, I fully support this proposed budget.
Amber Yusuf
As I prepared for tonight’s budget vote, I reflected on the budgets adopted during my six years on the Board of Education. Consistent with past practice, this Board has balanced its fiscal responsibilities while keeping the student experience at the center of its decisions. I appreciate the thoughtful deliberation from my colleagues—assessing priorities and making tradeoffs is never simple.
I also want to thank Drew, Andrew, Lisa, and the full administrative team for their work on this budget. Last year, several Board members, myself included, raised concerns about over-reliance on reserves. Early in this cycle, the Board made a deliberate decision to adhere to the tax cap, recognizing the broader financial pressures facing our community. Within those constraints, the administration presented a budget that meets both objectives while maintaining the District’s core values.
While not every program or idea could be included, this budget preserves key priorities: small class sizes at the elementary level, the house and team structure at the middle school, and student choice at the high school. In light of over $100 million in proposed capital projects, the Board also made prudent decisions to defer certain initiatives—including expanded social-emotional supports at the elementary level, additional middle school special education programming, and reduced math class sizes at the high school—for future consideration.
Looking ahead, I am hopeful that steps taken this year—such as engaging new healthcare consultants—will create greater flexibility for future Boards to thoughtfully expand programming and continue strengthening the student experience.
For these reasons, I fully support this budget. Thank you.
Why One-Day AP & Regents Review Classes Give Students a Real Advantage
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- Written by: Joanne Wallenstein
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(The following is sponsored content from Regents Review)
As New York students head into the high-stakes AP and Regents exam season, many find themselves overwhelmed by the sheer volume of material they’re expected to recall. A full year’s worth of content, much of it learned back in September or October, can feel impossible to organize, let alone master. That’s why one-day review classes have become an increasingly valuable tool for families looking to give their children clarity, structure, and confidence before test day.
A well-designed one-day review provides several key benefits:
A complete, focused curriculum review that cuts through the noise and highlights what students need to know on test-day
A structured, topic-by-topic approach that will provide a complete refresher, allowing students to easily put to memory the most important and heavily tested topics
Expert explanations that make difficult concepts “click” in a way students may not have experienced during their school year
Practice with exam-style questions, followed by clear explanations of right and wrong answers
Test-taking strategies that reduce stress and improve performance
A major confidence boost right before their exams
For many students, this format is the turning point, and the moment when scattered studying becomes focused preparation. One New York company has been offering this exact model for nearly half a century.
A New York Original: The Story Behind Regents Review
Regents Review began in 1976 with a simple idea: help students feel prepared. The program was created by Arnold Birnbaum, a highly sought-after math tutor known for his ability to make even the toughest material understandable. During Regents season, demand for his help became so overwhelming that he couldn’t possibly tutor every student individually. So he tried something new. He invited a group of students to his Staten Island basement and taught the entire year’s curriculum in one structured, six-hour session. The students loved it. They walked out feeling confident, organized, and ready. Word spread quickly, and soon Arnold recruited other outstanding teachers to cover additional subjects. The one-day review model was born. What started as a basement session has grown into New York’s leading one-day bootcamp for Regents, AP, SAT, and ACT exams. Still family-owned, Regents Review now offers classes in Westchester (Purchase College), Long Island (Adelphi University), Rockland County (St. Thomas Aquinas College), and online.
What Students Experience in a One-Day Review
Each class follows the same proven structure that has helped generations of New York students succeed:
Students receive all study materials the morning of the class, and there is no need to purchase extra books.
Teachers review the entire curriculum in a clear, topic-by-topic format.
After each topic, students will complete a few exam-style questions.
Instructors explain why correct answers are correct and why incorrect answers are wrong.
Test-taking strategies, tips, and techniques are woven into the day of studying.
Students take a short break every hour, and a lunch break of 30-40 minutes to reset.
All materials go home with the student for continued studying.
The classes are intensive, but they are highly effective. Many students report feeling dramatically more confident after just one session.
Adapting to Changing Exams
Regents and AP exams evolve regularly, and Regents Review updates its materials every year to match the latest standards. This year, new Regents exams in Algebra 2, Chemistry, Physics, and English Language require significant updates, and the company’s instructors are fully trained on the new formats.
Why Families Trust the Program
One of the biggest challenges students face is simply remembering material that was taught in the beginning of the school year. That gap often leads to stress and uncertainty about where to begin studying. Regents Review instructors remove that uncertainty by emphasizing the topics that appear most frequently on exams and identifying those that require less focus. Parents often share that their children learned more in one day with the program than they did all year. One mother recently reported that her son, a strong student who was struggling with test anxiety, left the class feeling calm and prepared. He earned a 98 on his exam, but more importantly, he regained his confidence.
Registration Information
Families can register for classes at RegentsReview.com or by calling 877-339-5970.
PTC Executive Committee and Budget Study Statement on the Proposed 2026-27 Budget for Scarsdale Schools
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March 23, 2026
On behalf of the PTC Executive Committee Officers, the PTA Presidents of the seven Scarsdale Schools, and the PTC Budget Study Chairs, we thank the District Administration and the Board of Education for scheduling this budget forum for the community to comment on the proposed 2026-2027 budget. Additionally, thank you to the leadership of the seven PTAs, school budget liaisons, and parents for their collaboration in this process. The PTC EC, the PTA presidents of the seven Scarsdale schools, and one of the PTC Budget Study chairs support the proposed 2026-2027 budget in order to ensure that our students thrive academically, emotionally, and socially.
The proposed budget of $197 million is at the tax cap and represents a 3.37% tax levy increase. Using a median assessed home value of approximately $1,320,000 in Scarsdale and $1,971,000 in the Mamaroneck Strip, this is estimated to result in an increase in taxes of approximately $715 in 2026-2027 for median Scarsdale homeowners and a decrease in taxes of $1,116 for median Mamaroneck Strip homeowners. We recognize the challenges associated with prior and current inflationary pressures, particularly rising healthcare costs, on the school budget.
It is important to note that this budget does not accommodate key staffing recommendations proposed by the District, such as the initially proposed addition of a high school math Full Time Employee (FTE), the expansion of ICT to 7th and 8th grade, and the additional social worker support in elementary schools for the 2026-2027 school year. These are important priorities for the Executive Committees of the PTC and the PTAs, and we are hopeful that the District and future boards will continue to focus on these requests.
PTC Student-Centered Priorities
As PTC and PTA leaders, our focus is to support meaningful growth and development for every student. The PTC Budget Study Co-Chairs have endeavored to solicit parent feedback so that the school budget reflects our community values. We have invited parents to be engaged in the budget process via PTA newsletters and local social media sites, as well as the Budget Study Co-Chairs sending out Google Forms to encourage residents to pose questions and to share their feedback with the District, the Board of Education, and the PTC Budget Study Chairs.
With District data showing that 16% of math sections exceed 25 students, the previously proposed math teacher at the high school is an important staffing need. Additionally, at the middle school, we are concerned about the potential impact of the delay in hiring a Special Education FTE on student outcomes. Also, we are concerned that withdrawing the recommended social workers at the elementary schools is a lost opportunity for enhanced social and mental health support.
Overview of Proposed Budget
The proposed 2026-2027 budget presently totals $197,098,146, an increase of about $5.6 million, or 2.92%, over the current school year. This indicates a moderation in the rate of growth from the prior year; the 2025-2026 budget reflected an increase of 3.55% over the prior year's budget. The District is growing the budget more slowly in 2026-2027 than it did in 2025-2026, because it made about $2 million in proposed staff withdrawals and other adjustments to stay within the tax cap.
The overall budget trajectory continued to be influenced by contractual salary increases and rising benefits costs. The major projected increases driving this proposed budget include $2.8 million in health insurance costs, $3 million in salary and wage increases, $400,000 in Social Security and Medicare costs, and $1.1 million in contractual obligations including student services and insurance.
In the Scarsdale School District, property taxes account for about 92% of the district's revenue. While Scarsdale receives state aid and IDEA grants, these funding sources represent a very small portion of the district's total funding.
Macroeconomic Factors and Risk Mitigation
We are cognizant that macroeconomic and geopolitical challenges have caused inflation to be at a slightly elevated level relative to the Federal Reserve’s inflation goal of 2%, which impacts some of the District’s expenditures. Additionally, it is important to acknowledge that we are in a rising taxes environment due to the proposed Village budget, approved pool bond, as well as the proposed school budget and capital projects bond. We appreciate that the District cabinet members have met with members of the PTC and PTAs to answer our questions about the education objectives and the tax impact of this proposed budget.
As other PTC members in previous years have recommended, we encourage District cabinet members and future Board of Education trustees to maintain the unassigned fund balance at the 4% limit, which presently is projected to be about $8 million at fiscal year end June 2026.
Before the Board of Education votes on the budget resolution on April 13, taxpayers would benefit from the District creating a budget tax calculator to enable them to see the impact of the budget for their specific households and so that they have an opportunity to share any feedback with the Board. Additionally, now that the scope of the bond has been finalized and that this proposed budget is nearing its final stage, it would be helpful for the community to see an updated long term financial model that shows the next five years of planned sources and uses of funds and how they influence the projected operating deficit.
Concluding Comments
Thank you for taking parents’ and our feedback into consideration as you finalize the budget. We appreciate your focus on community engagement. We encourage the Scarsdale community to continue being involved in the budget process. We reiterate our support for this proposed budget and remind everyone to please vote on Tuesday, May 19 from 7am - 9pm at the Scarsdale Middle School.
See the entire statement and appendices here.
Signed by:
PTC Officers and PTA Presidents 2025-2026
Erica German, PTC President, 2025-2026
Rokaya Hassaballa, PTC President-Elect, 2025-2026
Shilpa Spencer, PTC Treasurer, 2024-2026
Jeannie Adashek, PTC Secretary, 2025-2027
Erika Rublin, PTA President, Scarsdale High School 2025-2026
Gina Chon, PTA President, Scarsdale Middle School, 2025-2026
Chelsey Mitchell, PTA Co-President, Edgewood Elementary, 2025-2026
Jackie Nimer, PTA Co-President, Edgewood Elementary, 2025-2026
Jess Rosenberg, PTA Co-President, Fox Meadow Elementary, 2025-2026
Dorathy Sunshine, PTA Co-President, Fox Meadow Elementary, 2025-2026
Liza King, PTA President, Greenacres Elementary, 2025-2026
Saum Shetty, PTA President, Heathcote Elementary, 2025-2026
Sandra Brudnick, PTA President, Quaker Ridge Elementary, 2025-2026
Budget Study 2025-2026
Mayra Kirkendall-Rodríguez
Letter to the Community from Superintendent Andrew Patrick
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Here is a letter from Scarsdale Schools Superintendent Drew Patrick. He encourages everyone, with or without children in the schools, to read the letter to gain an understanding of the school budget.
Dear Scarsdale Community,
I am writing to you today to share important information about the work underway to develop our 2026-27 school budget. On Monday evening, the Board of Education is scheduled to meet for the third and final Budget Study Session related to the proposed 2026-27 school budget. During that meeting, the District Administration anticipates presenting a tax cap compliant budget. Arriving at this budget has required difficult choices, and I want to communicate as clearly as possible the rationale for decisions that we will present and discuss during the meeting. I know that the budget process is not something everyone in our community tunes into regularly, so I hope you find this helpful. The message is followed by several frequently asked questions in case you are interested in a deeper understanding of the situation we find ourselves in.
Members of our community who have followed school budgeting for a long time will recognize that the process has been more strenuous and difficult over the past several years. Historically, Scarsdale has been a district that has been appropriately resourced which has enabled program innovation, expansion to take place while maintaining outstanding educational outcomes. This community has shown a level of financial support that reflects the real cost and value of an exemplary public education, more so than in many (dare I say most?) 
other places. In recent years, however, our ability to do more has been restricted by the normalization of 2% growth brought about by the tax cap. In fact, in some ways we are doing the same with less, as the pace of inflation has outstripped the growth of our budgetary resources (click here for a good NYSSBA article about this). While a tax cap override is a tool available to the Board, I believe evidence suggests it is a tool to be used judiciously and prudently. An unsuccessful budget vote is a worst-case scenario. Our community did support a significant override (4.45% tax increase) in 2024. This year, we are asking the community to not only support a budget, but also a $101 million bond referendum to make much needed capital improvements to aging buildings across our district. With that as background, I invite you to read on to learn more about where we stand with respect to the 2026-27 proposed budget.
Sincerely,
Dr. Drew Patrick
Superintendent
Read the balance of the letter here:
Puffs on Stage at SHS this Weekend
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The Scarsdale High School Drama Club is proud to present their spring play, Puffs, on stage at SHS on March 13 at 8 pm and March 14 at 7 pm!
Puffs is the story of seven anincreasingly eventful years at a certain school of magic. While many people know the story of a certain boy wizard at this school, Puffs follows the lesser known characters, the ones who are sidelined far too often. This show is packed with wacky comedy and crazy shenanigans, making this a great choice for families looking to spend a night at the theatre, especially those with young kids who love the story of this magic school!
Sophomore James McNally is playing Wayne Hopkins, the protagonist of this story. When asked about his experience with Puffs, he said “The rehearsal process was a lot of fun. It took time to get used to the fast pace of the show and how we all play multiple characters, but once we got the hang of it, it really came together.” The cast has been working so hard on this show, and they are so excited for you to come see it!! Puffs at Scarsdale High School directed by Barbara Malecki performs 3/13 at 8PM and 3/14 at 7PM!
