Business

The business office manages all financial matters for the district including budget and finance, purchasing, accounts payable, payroll, transportation, facility usage, buildings and grounds, food service, record access and security.

Petition Announcement

This year’s Suffern Central School District Budget & Candidate vote will take place on Tuesday, May 19, 2026, between the hours of 6:00 AM and 9:00 PM. If any resident of the school district is interested in running for a position on the Board of Education, petitions will be available starting on Monday, March 2, 2026.

Petition Packets may be picked up at the Suffern Central School District Administration Building, 45 Mountain Avenue, Hillburn, NY, between the hours of 10:00 AM & 4:00 PM, Monday through Friday, on days when school is in session.

Two seats on the Board of Education are up for election.

Completed petitions must be received by the Elections Clerk no later than 5:00 PM on Monday, April 20, 2026. If more information is needed, please contact the Suffern Central School District Elections Clerk at 845-357-7783 x 11266 or by email at rromanowski@sufferncentral.org.

2026-27 Budget Info

Budget Calendar

Date	Activity	Participants
1.2.26-1.31.26	Admin Review	Building Principals/ Directors
2.1.26 - 2.28.26	Admin Review	Central Administration
3.1.26	Tax Levy Calculation due to NYSED	Central Administration
4.2.26 4.14.26 5.3.26 5.17.26	Legal Notice Rockland Journal News	N/A
4.2.26 4.16.26 4.30.26 5.14.26	Legal Notice Rockland County Times	N/A
2.3.26 3.3.26 4.21.26	School Budget Workshops during BOE Meetings	Public
3.02.26	Candidate Petitions available to the public	Public
4.20.26	Last day for submission of candidate petitions (must be received by the District Clerk no later than 5:00 pm, 30 days prior to the election)	School Board Candidates
4.20.26	School Board Election Notice: Candidates must file their first financial disclosure statement (30 days prior to election)	School Board Candidates
4.21.26 12:00 PM	Ballot Selection for School Board Candidates will take place at 45 Mountain Ave., Hillburn, NY 10931 (Order of position on the ballot)	Public
4.21.26	Budget presentation and adoption	Public
4.22.26	Tax Report Card submitted to NYSED	N/A
4.24.26	Military Ballots Distributed	N/A
4.27.26	Budget Overview: This information should be displayed in all schools (salaries, schools, tax report card)	N/A
5.5.26	Public hearing on the budget	Public
5.8.26	Deadline for voter registration with the Rockland County Board of Elections (11 days prior to the election)	N/A
5.12.26	*Mail Only: Absentee Ballot and Early Mail Ballot Application deadline (Must be received by the District Clerk by 5:00 pm)	N/A
5.13.26	Budget Notice Mailed to Public	N/A
5.14.26	School Board Election Notice: Candidates must file their second financial disclosure statement (5 days prior to the election)	School Board Candidates
5.18.26	*In-Person: Absentee Ballot and Early Mail Ballot Application deadline (must be received by the District Clerk by 5:00 pm)	Public
5.19.26	Absentee Ballots and Early Mail Ballots (must be received by the District Clerk by 5:00 pm) **Absentee ballots and Early Mail ballots may also be dropped off at the proper polling location until 5:00 pm	Public
5.19.26	Budget/Candidate Vote (Polls open 6:00 am - 9:00 pm)	Public
5.19.26	Board of Education Meeting	Public
6.08.26	Candidates for the school board election must file their third financial disclosure statement (20 days following the election)	School Board Candidates
6.16.26	Budget Revote (If Necessary)

Voter Information

Important Voter Information

Where to Vote

Am I Registered?

Qualified Voter Information

You can vote if you are:

A US Citizen
At least 18 years old
A resident of the District for 30 days prior to the vote
Registered to vote

When: Tuesday, May 19, 2026 - 6:00 am - 9:00 pm

Where: Voters must report to their assigned school budget election district.

Cherry Lane Elementary School
- 1 Heather Drive, Airmont
Hillburn Administrative Building
- 45 Mountain Avenue, Hillburn
RP Connor Elementary School
- 13 Cypress Road, Suffern
Sloatsburg Elementary School
- 11 Second Street, Sloatsburg
Suffern Middle School
- 80 Hemion Road, Suffern

Budget Workshops

Previous Budget Presentations

As a reminder, all budget workshops and presentations can be viewed on the Board of Education YouTube Channel.

2025-2026

May 20, 2025

Below are the unofficial results of our 2025-26 Suffern Central School District budget vote:

The budget passed with 1759 votes, which is 78% of voters approving of the budget. The budget totals.

In addition to the passing budget, two board of education seats were up for election. Jason Andert and Roxanne Bryan have been elected to the board and will serve a three-year term, beginning July 1, 2025.

“We’d like to thank our community for once again supporting our students and the wide range of programs and services that make our district exceptional,” said Superintendent Dr. Erik Gundersen. “By passing this year’s budget, residents have reaffirmed their commitment to maintaining strong educational opportunities from Pre-K through 12th grade. Your continued partnership helps us to build on our successes and invest in the future of every student. Together, we are #OneSuffern.”

The following are the unofficial results of the 2024-25 Suffern Central School District Budget and Board Vote.

Suffern Central 2023-24 Budget:
Yes – 1759 No – 484

Board of Education (two vacancies):

Jason Andert - 1820
Roxanne Bryan - 1901

February 4 - Budget Presentation

March 4 Budget Presentation

April 1 Budget Presentation

2024-2025

2023-2024

2022-2023

May 17, 2022 - The unofficial results of the Suffern Central 2022-23 school budget show an approved budget with 4555 ‘yes’ votes, or 77.88% of the vote. The budget totals $152,225,964 and reflects a 5.10% budget-to-budget increase and a 1.21% tax levy increase.

For Proposition 2, 81.14% of voters, or 4848 ‘yes’ votes were cast, allowing the District to use Capital Reserve Funds from May 2017 to repair and replace roofs at Suffern Middle School and Suffern High School. Proposition 3 passed with 75.88% of voters, or 4438 ‘yes’ votes, allowing the District to establish a new Capital Reserve Fund for the purpose of funding future District-wide improvements.

“Thank you Suffern Central for voting to approve our budget, “ said Superintendent Dr. Erik Gundersen. “This year’s budget will allow for us to expand on our social and emotional supports, enhance curriculum and instruction opportunities, make needed improvements to our facilities and continue to provide the best programs and offerings to meet all our students’ needs.”

In addition to passing the budget, Matt Kern and Chris Nicpon have been elected to the Board of Education. These seats carry a three-year term, which will begin on July 1, 2022, and conclude on June 30, 2025.

2021-2022

2020-2021

2020- 2021 Budget
2/04/20 – Board Budget Workshop – Budget Presentation
3/03/20 – Board Budget Workshop – Budget Presentation
4/01/20 – Virtual Board Budget Workshop – Budget Presentation
4/07/20 – Board Budget Workshop
4/21/20 – Budget Workshop – Budget Presentation
2020-21 Budget Newsletter (PDF)

Here are some highlights from the 2020-21 Property Tax Report Card data published by NYSED:
2020-21 Proposed Spending Pct Chg
2020-21 Proposed Tax Levy Pct Chg

CONTACTS

Dr. William Castellane
Assistant Superintendent for Finance and Business Operations

Pamela Elefonte, CPA
District Treasurer

Etna Martinez
Accountant II

Angela Ruiz
Secretary

Operations

Financial and Audit Information

Financial and Audit Reports

Suffern Central ARP Stimulus Plan 2021-22

ARP ESSER APPROVED FS10

Audits:

External Auditor – On an annual basis, audit financial statements to render an opinion on whether they adhere to Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP).

Internal Auditor – On an annual basis, performs risk assessments and helps the board in developing internal controls to reduce financial risk.

Claims Auditor – On a weekly basis, ensure that all expenditure vouchers are properly itemized and documented before payments are made by the treasurer.

NYS Comptroller’s Audits – The New York State Office of the Comptroller audited the District in 2007/2008 and 2011/2012, an additional audit requirement enacted by the New York State Comptroller’s Five Point Plan. These audits are performed at each NYS school district every five years to ensure that programs achieve their established goals, funds are used efficiently, and assets are adequately protected against fraud, waste and abuse.

2023 Independent Auditor's Report

2023 Extra Classroom Auditor's Report

Financial Reports:

Every month, the district prepares a Treasurer’s Report that provides an update on the expenditures, revenue, and reserve balances.

Search BoardDocs for Reports

Purchasing

The purchasing department serves the educational program by providing necessary supplies, textbooks, equipment and related services. Purchase contracts and public works contracts subject to competitive bidding will be awarded to the lowest responsible bidder; however, purchase contracts may be awarded on the basis of best value. Requests for Bids and Requests for Proposals are advertised in the Journal News and Rockland County Times. Bids and Proposals are published by the Empire State Municipal Purchasing Group (see link below) and on this website (see list below). http://www.empirestatebidsystem.com/

Current Bids/RFPS

Suppliers and those interested in doing business with the School District are encouraged to forward a request in writing to our department indicating the category of supply or service. Also, vendors are encouraged to create an account on the Empire State Municipal Website to ensure up-to-date bid and RFP information.

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