MADRID – Madrid-Waddington Central School District officials will be sitting down for breakfast with community leaders Saturday in an effort to gauge public opinion on and solutions to the school’s budgetary issues.

Invitations have already been sent for the school’s first roundtable conversations with community leaders to be held at 9 a.m. Saturday in the high school cafeteria.

After a presentation by Superintendent Lynn M. Roy, participants will break into small groups to discuss issues facing the district. Board of education members will facilitate.

Board members are hoping for a productive discussion leading to long-term planning and budget development.

The event is by invitation only, targeting elected state, St. Lawrence County, town and village officials, and leaders of local faith-based organizations.

“They have the knowledge of their constituencies; therefore, they are an appropriate audience for this event,” school board President Michael “Mickey” Miller said. “This is in essence another form of ‘shared services’ between municipalities and the school. We are having a joint discussion regarding the resources and needs of the community.”

The board hopes to receive feedback on what is valued at Madrid-Waddington, and what appears to be the “tipping point” regarding support as in tax levels, Mrs. Roy said.

“We are hoping that feedback from the community will assist us in determining the community’s needs and current resources,” she said.

The meeting was intended to be held after Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo’s budget proposal was announced.

“Traditionally, I withhold comment until I have time to run the numbers that are announced,” Mrs. Roy said. “It sometimes takes a couple days to have a complete analysis.”

Mrs. Roy previously stated that if the district was unable to replenish its reserves due to continually increasing the amount of fund balance that is applied to the budget, the district would reach insolvency within four years.

“The board is interested in gauging what type of consolidation is most supported by the community,” she said. “If the format garners valuable results, another similar forum may be planned for business leaders and community members in the future.”

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