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Santa
Fe Trail Board of Education
Uncertainty stimulates communication
Gabe Faimon | Reporter
CARBONDALE—In anticipation of heated questions and strong
reaction to funding uncertainty discussed during its Jan. 12 meeting
and meetings with staff, the Santa Fe Trail Board of Education devoted
nearly two hours of Monday night’s meeting to communication
with the more than 50 people present. At the board’s request,
Dr. Steve Pegram, superintendent, presented board members and the
audience an overview of the challenge facing the school district.
The presentation included details regarding 2009-2010 budget issues,
linking the continuing problem of declining enrollment with implications
of impending state budget action by the Kansas Legislature. The
“best case scenario” was presented as loss to the district
of at least $235,000. However, Pegram stated that a bill likely
to be debated in the state Senate this week calls for an across-the-board
budget cut of 4.7 percent. Passage of the bill in its original form
would mean a state-funding cut of approximately $437,000 for the
district.
Possible strategies that could be taken to respond to the impending
loss of state funds were outlined as follows:
• yearly crisis management – if decisive action
is not taken before the 2009-2010 SFT budget is set.
• district reorganization – housing all classes
of each elementary grade in a single attendance center instead of
the present pattern of scattering students of each grade in each
attendance center.
• closing an attendance center.
When asked if there was another way of fixing the funding problem
without making drastic changes, Pegram said, “The issues facing
the school district are not a one-year problem. The district stands
to lose somewhere between $300,000-$437,000, possibly this year,
which would carryover into the 2009-2010 school year. The issue
that compounds the SFT problem is that of declining student enrollment,
which costs the district $90,000-$110,000 annually.”
The cumulative decline in student enrollment over a 15-year period
equates to approximately 10 vacant elementary classrooms.
Board president Randy Boudeman opened the meeting to questions.
As discussion proceeded, another possible strategy surfaced, which
Pegram labeled as “Plan B.” The plan would consolidate
grades sixth to eighth in Overbrook and consolidate pre-school through
fifth grades in Scranton and Carbondale.
As the public session closed, Boudeman said the board had established
plans for follow-up discussion. He said representatives of the board
will be present at each of the next site council and PTO meetings
– Feb. 2 in Scranton, Feb. 3 in Carbondale and Feb. 17 in
Overbrook.
Pegram’s presentation was to be posted on the SFT Web site
http://www.usd434.org/.
In other business, the board:
• received an energy management report from Paige Ralston,
representative of TAC Energy Management. Ralston said energy management
efforts adopted by SFT were producing significant savings, while
opportunities for additional savings were discovered in Overbrook
and Scranton attendance centers. Ralston proposed that TAC conduct
a preliminary energy audit at no cost to the district. The board
authorized Ralston to proceed.
• received the report of a survey conducted by the Southeast
Kansas Education Service Center (Greenbush) regarding current cost
of driver education programs in SFT and nine districts in the region.
The Greenbush report also listed the potential cost that districts
could expect to bear to continue the program without state funds.
Information regarding a driver education online program conducted
by Greenbush was also received.
• adopted the 2009-2010 school calendar, establishing
Aug. 20 as the first day of classes and end of the fourth quarter
on May 26, 2010.
• accepted board member Carolyn Hug’s Jan. 12
letter of resignation, to be effective Feb. 12. Hug stated that
due to work and family obligations, she will be moving out of the
district.
• tabled further consideration of selling the old gymnasium
until relocation of the wrestling program was established.
The next scheduled meeting of the SFT Board of Education is 6 p.m.
Feb. 9 in the district administrative center. |
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