News from the Superintendent of Schools:
March, 2019
On February 20, 2019, the Ledyard Board of Education approved the Proposed 2019-2020 Board of
Education Budget in the amount of $32,548,569 - an increase of 1.89% over FY 2018-19. The proposed
budget upholds the efforts of the BoE to continue seeking all savings possible while meeting contractual
obligations and ensuring high-quality programming for all students; Ledyard ranks 155 out of 166 in funding
per student.
Budget development is a highly collaborative process. I thank all Board of Education members, school
administrators and Town Council representatives for the time and talent they dedicated to present the best
possible fiscal plan for our community. (To view documents related to the budget visit www.ledyard.net)
A Town Hearing and a Town Meeting on the 2019-2020 Budget are scheduled Monday, April 29th and
Monday, May 20th, respectively. The meetings will be held at Ledyard High School beginning at 6:30 p.m.
The meetings are open to the public, as is feedback and discussion.
On March 20, following extensive review, discussions and the presentation of its commissioned study
(available on Ledyard.net), the Board of Education will vote on a plan for redistricting, mainly involving
Ledyard Center School students. While we anticipate most students from Ledyard Center School will
transition to Gallup Hill School, there are several neighborhoods proposed to move to the Gales Ferry/Juliet
W. Long enrollment zone. As a district we must plan for current and future enrollment, while meeting our
overarching goal to ensure balanced class sizes and quality educational programming at both schools.
This Spring, construction at Ledyard Middle School and Gallup Hill School will be complete. These two
projects encompass 95,000 square feet of modernized learning space and complete, like-new renovations.
Both projects are expected to be completed on time and below budget, thanks to the hard work of our
building committee. At the end of this school year, our facilities team will begin orchestrating the move and
preparing each building for staff and student arrival in August.
We have an exciting and busy year ahead of us!
Jason S. Hartling
Superintendent of Schools