Pyramids Can Expect Rate Revisions

Pyramids Administration met with NYSED representatives Thursday June 5th to learn that Pyramids will be able to re-submit for insufficient funding for preschool special education services. This news will allow Pyramids to move forward with a restructuring of the debt. This is very good news to the families served by Pyramids and the employees who value and appreciate their employment.

These revisions come at a cost. It is the regional counties served by Pyramids that are mandated to absorb these costs. Therefore, some of the questions that are worth addressing with today's blog are as follows:

How has debt been created in the amount of 800,000 over 4 years?
Each year, since 2004, in order to cover all the costs of operating the mandated preschool special education programs, Pyramids required an additional 7% of revenue annually to stay in the black.

Why are these programs so expensive?
A preschool special education classroom ranges in cost between 150,000 to 250,000 per year in actual cost depending on the nature of the needs of the children serviced by that classroom. The more therapies necessary the more the cost of the classroom. No surprise to anyone the increased cost of health insurance and employee benefits and general operating expenses also increases the cost. But another very important point worth mentioning is the reduction of revenues to share overhead costs.

As any good business person knows, shared overhead costs for a facility, materials, equipment, and administration costs, spread out over more programs, reduces the cost to anyone program. This is a significant point to be made in Clinton County and one that deserves to be understood by the voting community.

When the facility, Pyramids in Morrisonville was opened, 2002, the business plan was a good one. Under one facility, marry child care with preschool special education programming, and allow other programs, such as early intervention revenues and preschool home service revenues, share the cost of overhead and administration costs.

What happened then?
In 2004, the local legislators, voted to create two new agencies in Clinton County doing the same work for early intervention and home preschool services using employees at the time currently working for Pyramids and with clients currently serviced by Pyramids. Since 2004, the revenues for these other programs, to help off-set overhead and administration costs, has been reduced by 70%. Essentially transferred to start up agencies to do the same kind of work.

Who then needs to take responsibility for the deficit created to operate the mandated preschool special education preschool programs?
No one person but rather a collective group. A group of legislators whom voted to collectively dismantle programs to Pyramids that were acting to off-set overhead costs, to keep the costs of operating the mandated preschool special programs from running a deficit or at the very least a deficit that would not result in a forced Chapter 11.

Why did they do this?
Depending on who you speak to, legislators, county officials, the county attorney, Assemblywoman Janet Duprey, you will hear a different answer. Yet, collectively there has been one single mission since 2004, to distort the truth. What tactics and measures have the responsible parties willingly engaged in to distort the truth? Although nothing surprises me any longer, it may help the reader to explain why I relocated my family. Regardless of the reason, the vote, .. an unprecendedted phone vote .. by the legislators in 2004, to dismantle revenues, has the fiscal result of higher regional costs to educate the preschool child with a disability.

In closing, this is a good day for the Pyramids team. There is relief and a sense that all the work to bring parents and employees together to unite with a single voice stating emphatically they want their school to survive, their programs to remain in tact, has paid off.

There is more work to be done. Private donations will continue to be a focus to finish the debt entirely. Our fiscal reports for 06-07 are being completed with the help of our Albany based consultant and finally, the state audit report, with all its flaws and misrepresentations is being formally disputed.

A very big thank you to the readers of this blog who continue to show their support and the increasing amount of individuals who desire to be informed and not mislead by a selected few.

To receive a copy of FAQ's please email drrecore@pyramidspreschool.org

All prospective donors, please call 518-562-3847 and ask to speak to Vivian Reiner, Melissa Dorsett-Felicelli, Karen Hachigian, Margi Carter or Valerie Bragg.

Melissa will be happy to discuss the issues concerning the audit. She may be contacted at mdfelicelli@pyramidspreschool.org or 518-593-8945.