Pictured are the GCSD school board members. The Gowanda Central School District will hold a public hearing on the proposed 2024-2025 District Budget preceding the next regular Board of Education meeting at 6 p.m. on May 8.

GOWANDA — The Gowanda Central School District will hold a public hearing on its 2024-2025 District Budget at 6 p.m. on May 8, prior to the next regular meeting of the Board of Education.

The District Budget is proposed at an amount of $37,653,573, which represents an increase of $1,235,761 (3.4%) from the current school year’s budget. The 1% increase to the tax levy amounts to an additional $53,059 of revenue to the District.

The Budget vote will take place on May 21, at which point open Board of Education seats will also be voted on. The District plans to host a “meet the candidates” event on Facebook in the coming weeks leading up to the election.

At a recent meeting, the Gowanda Board of Education approved the BOCES administrative budget of $3,818,064. The Board also approved Gregory Cole, Sylvester Cleary, Nancy Renckens, and John Waterman, Jr., to serve on the Erie 2 BOCES Board of Cooperative Education Services. Waterman, a Gowanda Board of Education member, thanked the rest of the Board for its support.

The Board also directed the District to further pursue the addition of a second School Resource Officer to the District. The Board did not specify which agency the District must pursue an agreement with, instead electing to give the District freedom to interview candidates of its choosing. The District currently employs one officer, Ben Shields, who is a member of the Cattaraugus County School Resource Officer program.

The Board also appointed Savannah Randolph as a Teaching Assistant through the Healthy Kids Program; Jessica Bean was appointed as a Substitute Food Service Helper; and Nikolas Ondus was appointed as a Substitute Cleaner and Substitute Custodian. The District accepted resignations from Substitute Food Service Helper and Substitute School Monitor Ronee Emerson and from Automotive Mechanic Carl Racinowski.

Ronald Wight was named as an Assistant Advisor for the Gowanda Trap Team. The District also accepted a donation for the Trap Team from the Gowanda Rifle Club in the amount of $200.

The emergency pool repair project continues to progress. The pool remains on schedule to be open for the start of the next school year.