Continuing a trend, the Vineyard schools superintendent’s budget is up again this year.

Superintendent Dr. James H. Weiss unveiled a $5.8 million draft 2016 budget last week before the All-Island School Committee, an increase of $456,000 or 8.4 per cent over last year. Last year’s superintendent’s budget came in at an all-time high of $5.4 million, an increase of 21 per cent over the previous year. Much of the added spending was tracked to special needs education.

Staffing needs make up the bulk of the superintendent’s budget, which covers the cost of many shared services in the elementary schools, from the strings program to special needs education. Since there is no regional school district for lower grades on the Vineyard, shared programs are paid through Mr. Weiss’s budget.

“It’s higher than people would have liked and it’s higher than I would have liked,” Mr. Weiss told the Gazette Thursday. “But I’m trying to keep it as lean as I can,” he said.

Salaries make up 67 per cent of the budget.

“Almost 90 per cent of the budget is people, staffing,” Mr. Weiss said. Along with salaries, fixed expenses include benefits, payroll obligations, longevity and other contractual agreements.

Mr. Weiss said the increase in salaries includes the only added position to the proposed budget. That position is in Project Headway, a preschool program that serves primarily children with special needs.

“This year in Project Headway we have 14 slots for identified youngsters, that’s two classes with seven in each class. Right now those slots are filled and we have about seven to nine more kids coming next year,” Mr. Weiss said.

“We’re recommending next year that we add a half teacher position, a partnership with a preschool, meaning we have an extra half teacher there — and teachers cost money,” he said.

Mr. Weiss said efforts also were made to accommodate the growth in the English Language Learner program, which has been trending upward in the past few years.

Other budget items include $15,000 for maintenance on the superintendent’s office building on Pine street in Vineyard Haven. “That is to keep the building from falling apart,” Mr. Weiss said.

He has actually drafted two budgets; an alternative budget, or what he is calling the “want” budget.

“That includes all the things people said they wanted,” the superintendent said. That budget proposes a 14.05 per cent increase and would include money to create a new cafeteria/food service manager department and a facilities manager department. Mr. Weiss has been arguing the need for a school-wide facilities manager for a number of years, but each year the money has been cut as school leaders try to keep costs under control.

School committee members are scheduled to discuss and vote on the budget at their monthly meeting on Nov. 20.

“I don’t know if it’ll fly,” said Mr. Weiss, “But it’ll bring a big discussion.”