Pine River-Backus School Board passed a resolution, Monday night, to authorize adjustments of $407,130 to the 2009-10 preliminary budget Ð- including reduction of teaching positions at the elementary and high school.
The 2009-10 preliminary budget will be submitted for board approval at the June 15 school board meeting.
Despite $407,130 in adjustments, the school board anticipates deficit spending between $149,379 and $338,002 for 2009-10.
Without the reductions, the board faced between a $556,509 and $745,132 budget deficit for 2009-10 depending on school funding and inflation.
The administration and school board finance committee's budget recommendations to the overall board reflect these goals: maintaining low class sizes in the elementary; providing varied elective and college credit opportunities at the high school; and provision of appropriate instructional space.
The budget factors in declining enrollment; $296,000 less in capital expenditures; $100,000 in bond payment for remodeling the elementary and district office addition; a $50,000 reduction in diesel fuel expense to reflect the anticipated costs next year; and reduced interest income on investments.
At this point, federal stimulus dollars are not factored into the preliminary budget assumptions.
The $407,130 in adjustments includes the following 2009-10 budget reductions:
1 full-time equivalent (FTE) elementary teacher, $66,820
1 FTE elementary special education instructor, $27,000
.6 FTE high school science teacher, $26,100
1 FTE high school industrial tech teacher, $40,600 (teachers will be assigned between programs to maintain electives)
.8 FTE high school English teacher, $38,550
.34 FTE art instruction, $18,921
.3 FTE media specialist, $16,200
.4 FTE high school Family and Consumer Science teacher, $29,917
Savings due to retirements and leaves of absences, $83,738
ECFE staffing, $15,284
Support staff, $20,000
Technology, $50,000
Facilities, $50,000
Staff development (pending teacher approval), $60,000
Most of the staffing reductions represent teacher retirements that are not being replaced.
The budget adjustment also includes the following planned additions:
Transportation: purchase of two buses, $50,000
ALC/High School shared-position, $55,000
Mental health programs, $15,000
Online learning programs, $15,000
The planned expenses and purchases for the 2009-10 budget may vary depending on available funding.
PR-B Schools operate on a July 1 through June 30 fiscal year. As of June 30, 2008 the district had an audited fund balance of approximately $2.3 million. The district anticipates a $1.59 million fund balance at the end of fiscal year 2010.
