Stillwater School Board to Hear Budget Cut Recommendations Thursday

administrators will present a recommedation of more than 100 items that may be cut from the district’s budget to school board members Thursday night.

Among the items on the list are modifications to transportation and school start and end times; reduction in teaching, administration and support staff; increases in fees for activities; and reductions in programs across the district.

The presentation will be based on recommensations from the Budget Adjustment Advisory Committee.

The list of items was identified by community members and district staff to serve as a guide that will assist the board as it moves forward with budget cuts for this fall as well as in future years.

The official recommendation includes some changes to earlier drafts of the budget cut list which were presented to the public during hearings on Jan. 17 and 24.

Changes were made in response to concerns and questions raised by the public and include language clarification, movement of items between tiers or movement of items between priority levels within tiers.

The recommendation will be formally presented during the Feb. 2 school board meeting, which begins at 7:15 p.m. at .

The budget adjustment recommendation is broken into three tiers totaling about $4 million each, with Tier 1 having the least impact on students and Tier 3 having the most impact on students.

Tier 4 lists future items that could be considered in the event that additional reductions are necessary in 2013-2014 and beyond.

“The BAAC intentionally listed $12 million in possible reductions with the understanding that this isn’t a one-time deal,” Superintendent Corey Lunn said. “Without a levy renewal and/or levy increase within the next year or two, the financial challenges we're facing today will compound very quickly and we will be faced with many more difficult budget decisions in the future."

After reviewing the recommendation this week, board members will hold a special work session on Friday, Feb. 10 to ask specific questions and gather more information on some of the items.

Administrators are also working to finalize additional budget details which may impact the scope of the proposed reductions for the 2012-2013 school year.

Additional discussions regarding the budget adjustment list will take place during the board meeting on Feb. 23, and the board will vote on a final list on Thursday, March 8.

“We will continue to find ways to save money to ensure we operate our schools in the most efficient and effective way possible with the end goal of investing resources to our classrooms and students,” Lunn said. “With this in mind, there are many things yet happening behind the scenes that will have an impact on the scope of the proposed budget reductions for the 2012-2013 school year. 

Residents can share comments, questions and concerns with board members by e-mail or by posting comments on the Community Conversations website.

Feedback can also be shared during the following School Board meetings:

• Thursday, Feb. 2 – 7:15 p.m. at for the first hearing of budget adjustment recommendation.
• Thursday, Feb. 23 – 7:15 p.m. at for Board discussion of recommendation.
• Thursday, March 8 – 7:15 p.m. at for Board vote on budget adjustments for 2012-2013.