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News
School budget cuts OK'd : News : Oswego Ledger-Sentinel : Hometown Newspaper for Oswego and Montgomery, IllinoisSchool budget cuts OK'd
| 80 jobs targeted for elimination
| by Lyle R. Rolfe
| 2/25/2010
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A plan to resolve a $5,523,000 deficit in the 2010-11 Oswego School District budget was approved by board members Monday night by a 6-1 vote.
The plan, which includes sweeping budget cuts, was first presented at the Feb. 8 board meeting but no action was taken at that time.
The largest item in the cuts totals $3,807,000 for staff and salaries. The district also shows program cuts totaling $835,000, followed by trimming at the operations level totaling $431,000.
After the plan was explained in detail Monday night to several hundred people in attendance at Oswego East High School, only 10 of them made comments and suggestions or suggested other possible cuts.
The board approved increases in fees and other charges to bring in an additional $450,000 in new revenue.
Board member Mike Scaramuzzi cast the lone negative ballot on the motion to approve the cuts.
The deficit is due to a shortfall in state financial aid payments to the district. The state currently owes the district $ 5,353,503.
Tim Neubauer, executive director of financial services, said the cuts will become effective at the start of the 2010-11 school year next fall unless the state comes through with money it has promised to the district. But this seems unlikely according to state and district officials who say the situation is the same statewide.
He said the board's goal was to protect the core curriculum as much as possible, meet state and federal mandate laws and follow union contracts and preserve salary and benefits to attract and retain quality employees.
The major cuts will mean eliminating 80 positions, 68 of which are support staff or K-12 teaching assistants, Todd Colvin, associate superintendent for administrative services, said.
This cut will save $1,496,000.
Other employee cuts and their savings include four building secretaries, $112,000; three police liaison officers, $74,000; one elementary director, $140,000; one junior high band instructor, $55,000; one construction supervisor, $80,000; one building trades teacher, $67,000; one technology manager, $45,000; a one-half principal position, $14,000; and 22 school webmasters, $27,000.
Other cuts include $280,000 for each teacher and administrator to take a furlough day; $5,300 for five furlough days for the superintendent and his administrative assistant; and $1,120,000 by hiring only 12 new teachers instead of the 32 needed to handle the estimated 3.5 percent increase in enrollments next year.
By restructuring hours and workdays they will save $3,900 for nurses; $34,000 for elementary Learning Resource Directors; $4,600 for junior high LRC directors; $16,000 for junior high counselors; $7,400 for high school counselors, $6,000 for district band coordinators; $20,000 for reducing police security for events and $200,000 for reducing the number of substitutes for professional development conferences and workshops.
Cuts approved by the board at the managerial level include $10,000 in the superintendent's office, $10,000 in the board budget, $72,000 in elementary school budgets, $48,000 in junior high budgets, $80,000 in high school budgets, $50,000 for transportation, $100,000 in meeting costs, and $61,000 in postage and printing costs for a total of $431,000.
Marsha Hollis, assistant superintendent for teaching and learning, explained the cuts board members approved for the elementary and secondary levels for a combined savings of $835,000.
Elementary cuts include postponing curriculum renewals at the learning resources center, fine arts, science and physical education levels, saving $150,000; restructuring the Academically Talented (AT) program saving $112,000; reducing the number of elementary grade-level leaders saving $1,500; reducing clubs and intramural by 50 percent saving $72,800; eliminating the elementary roller skating PE unit saving $28,000 and eliminating all non-essential field trips saving $29,000.
Secondary cuts include postponing curriculum levels, learning resource centers, fine arts, math, students services, career and tech saving $150,000; cutting the high school building trades program saving $20,000; restructuring the high school driver ed program saving $25,000 and changing the junior high summer band program into a fee-supported summer school enhancement program saving $27,000.
Also, reducing junior high clubs and intramurals by 50 percent saving $22,400; reduce high school clubs and intramurals by 50 percent saving $12,800; reducing high school athletic budgets saving $50,000; eliminating non-essential field trips saving $29,000; and eliminating salaries for high school students in the Interrelated Cooperative Education program saving $100,000.
As a partial solution to next year's deficit, the board approved increases in various fees that will generate additional revenue.
They include offering breakfast in all schools which will generate $50,000, and fee increases which include $30,000 for building rental fees; $100,000 for additional student fees; $200,000 for additional course/registration fees, $40,000 for driver education fee hikes and $30,000 for increased athletic user fees.
Neubauer noted that 69 percent of the district's costs are for salaries, 12 percent for employee benefits, eight percent for supplies, seven percent for purchased services, and the remaining four percent for capital outlay and other items.
He noted the district's operating expense per pupil is $8,885, compared to the state average of $10,417. He said only four out of 13 comparable districts have a lower per pupil cost-East Aurora, Yorkville, Sandwich and Plano, all of which are much smaller districts.
The other comparable districts are West Aurora, Naperville, Plainfield, Indian Prairie, Batavia, Geneva, Kaneland, and St. Charles.
The per pupil instructional expense and classroom cost for Oswego is $4,763, compared to the state average of $6,103, Neubauer said. Oswego is 11 lowest out of the 13 comparables with only Yorkville and Plano being lower, he said.
Colvin noted that Oswego's pupil-to-teacher ratio is 16.2 to 1 compared to the state average of 13.3 to 1, making it the highest in the 13 comparable districts.
The average teacher salary in Oswego is $58,857 compared to the state average of $61,402. He said Oswego is sixth highest of the 13 comparables.
The pupil-to-administrator ratio is 263.4 to 1 compared to the state's 201.8 he noted, and said Oswego is fifth highest of the 13 comparables.
The average administrator salary is $91,070, compared to the state's average of $106,217, making Oswego the lowest of the 13 comparables.
Teachers make up 58 percent of the employees, support staff 18 percent; transportation 10 percent, custodian and maintenance nine percent, and administration five percent.
State categorical grants, which are specific for things such as transportation and the Brokaw Early Learning Center, are behind for this year, and are predicted by state officials to be reduced drastically for next year.
The General State Aid is being reduced by $160 per pupil, Neubauer said.
Deficit could grow by
another $11M, board told
He said it is possible that there could be an additional $11 million added to the deficit if the state does not come up with the promised funds.
This could equal 14 to 15 percent of the district's $102 million budget, he said.
He said 58 percent of their budget is from real estate taxes paid by residents, 24 percent form state grants, 29 percent from federal grants (which are not affected), 10 percent from general state aid, and the remainder from student fees, lunches and other items.
Neubauer said the Consumer Price Index and the Equalized Assessed Valuation of property in the district, both of which affect their income are both down, but health insurance costs have risen by 13 percent.
The tax rate for next year will be $5.06 per $100 of assessed valuation as promised to taxpayers when the approved the $450 million bond issue in November 2006, but 2010-11 is the last year for the low rate.
He said Oswego's tax rate is second highest out of 13 comparable districts which Plano being highest at $5.40.
Superintendent Dr. Dan O'Donnell, noted that their worst case scenario for next year would be if the state reduces school payments even more because it could result in an additional $11 million deficit added to the $5.5.
O'Donnell said residents can help by contacting their state legislators, staying informed, attending community forums, spreading the word among friends, and volunteering to help in the schools.
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