Ridgefield Board of Ed Panel Advances Budget, Health Policies; Seeks Legal Review

RIDGEFIELD, CT — The Ridgefield Board of Education’s Policy Committee on May 1 advanced a sweeping set of policy updates, including a major overhaul of budget procedures and new guidance on student health and safety, with several items headed to the full board for first review.

The committee meeting was called to order at 11:01 a.m. and adjourned after roughly 90 minutes.

Budget Policy Rewrite Highlights Oversight, Flexibility

The committee’s most extensive discussion focused on a proposed new Policy 3100, which would merge existing rules on budget procedures and line-item transfers while incorporating updates required by state law and model policies from the district’s legal counsel.

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Co-chair Jonathan Paradiso said the revision was prompted in part by a state law change transferring authority over non-lapsing accounts from the Board of Finance to the Board of Education.

Consultants’ model language also consolidates budget procedures and transfer authority into a single policy, he said.

Debate centered on how much operational detail should be codified in policy versus handled administratively. Ridgefield Director of Finance Jill Browne cautioned against rigid thresholds for budget transfers, calling them “more of a regulation” that could “handcuff you from doing what needs to be done in the moment.”

Superintendent Susie Da Silva agreed, saying flexibility is important when responding to unexpected costs.

Committee members also discussed whether to retain a 2.5 percent cap on emergency transfers or align with a higher statutory ceiling. No final decision was made.

Non-Lapsing Account Proposal Draws Scrutiny

A key component of the draft policy would establish a framework for creating and using non-lapsing accounts — allowing unspent funds to be set aside for future needs.

Paradiso described the concept as a way to “mitigat[e] potential risk,” such as volatile costs for utilities or special education.

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Board of Finance Chair Mike Rettger, invited as a subject matter expert, urged caution in structuring the policy.

"What is your purpose here? If it is ... a way to create a contingency for the very specific areas of volatility we're most concerned about, that's one thing," Rettger said. "If the intent of this is … to take advantage of the statute and create a rollover year to year of our budget, that's a whole different thing, and it's going to be looked at very differently by the Board of Finance."

He suggested limiting the fund to specific contingency purposes and aligning the policy with how surplus funds are accounted for at the town level.

Rettger also recommended removing language referencing “notwithstanding” state statutes and ensuring the policy reflects existing budget practices and reporting requirements.

Committee members signaled they would refine the language before sending it to legal counsel for review.

Student Health Policies Updated

The committee also reviewed updates to Policy 5141.21 on administering student medications, driven by recent legislation allowing a broader range of delivery methods.

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Director of Nursing, Health, and Wellness Andrée Fitzgerald said the revisions reflect current practice, including the use of nasal sprays for medications such as epinephrine and glucagon.

The policy also addresses the use of naloxone (Narcan) in schools. Fitzgerald said the district already stocks naloxone in secured cabinets and has trained staff to administer it when needed.

Members discussed optional language allowing naloxone vending machines. Da Silva recommended keeping the provision for flexibility, noting the policy states the district “may” adopt such measures in the future.

Fitzgerald said naloxone has been used “very infrequently” in Ridgefield schools.

The committee also clarified that while staff and bus drivers can be trained to administer medications, they may decline to do so under state regulations.

Committee Recommends Eliminating Outdated Policies

Several items were recommended for removal or consolidation. A regulation regarding juvenile diabetes management was deemed unnecessary, with relevant procedures already covered elsewhere. Another policy on communicable diseases was considered outdated and redundant with current health protocols and online guidance.

Both recommendations will go to the full board.

New Policies Introduced

The committee advanced two new policies required by legal review:

• Chemical Health for Student Athletes: A Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference requirement addressing substance use by student-athletes.
• Pledge of Allegiance: Updated to reflect current state statute and streamlined to remove prescriptive language about student participation.

Next Steps

All discussed policies are expected to go before the full Board of Education for a first reading, with further revisions anticipated based on board feedback and legal review.