The budget is nearly final. Business chief Dr. Georgia Gonzalez presented a near-complete draft built around the full tax levy cap, which she's recommended all along. For a $100,000 home, that's roughly $48 more a year. The plan still has a couple of moving pieces, but the board is set to adopt it April 1. After that, the district will take it to the public at three community forums: April 27 at Lee Town Hall, April 28 at Jervis Library, and April 29 at Gansevoort. A formal budget hearing May 11 before the May 19 vote.

Voters will get a second question. The board voted to place a separate proposition on the May 19 ballot to buy two new diesel buses, at a cost not to exceed $420,000. Because the state reimburses about 90% of bus purchases, most of that money comes back to the district.

Fewer half-days next year. The board adopted the 2026–27 school calendar, and the headline change is a response to a long-running complaint from parents and staff. Now there are noticeably fewer half-days, down from 13 this year to about nine. The district also spread its conference days across separate Fridays rather than one full week, after families said the week-long version was hard to manage. The calendar builds in 182 student days, leaving six emergency days for snow or extreme heat.

BOCES laid out its budget, and career training keeps growing. Leaders from the regional BOCES presented their spending plan. Rome is BOCES's largest member and that cost is already folded into the district's budget. The bigger story is what BOCES and the district are building together. Welding and electrical programs are set to open this fall at MVCC's Rome campus, aimed squarely at the jobs expected to come with Micron and Chobani.

More veteran teachers are retiring. The board accepted five more retirements on top of the dozen approved two weeks earlier. Most have decades in the district and leave this summer.

The district is looking for new ways to bring in money. Gonzalez said the district plans to start charging other agencies that use its buses for student transportation, and to charge nominal fees when outside groups rent district facilities. This is something it hasn't done in years, even though it pays for custodial and security coverage during those events.

A parent questioned the new "incident" emails. During public comment, a resident raised concerns about the district's practice of emailing families when there's an incident or fight at school, arguing it's vague enough to worry parents while still putting the students involved in an uncomfortable spotlight. The district said someone would follow up with him directly.

Routine business and what's coming. The board approved a few cooperative purchasing and bidding agreements, a banking-name correction, a $50 music donation, several policy adoptions, and a conference for the superintendent at no cost to the district.