District 196 Budget Proposal Recommends 48 Layoffs, Increased Activity Fees

The Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan school district has recommended a reduction of nearly 48 full-time positions—about 27 of those teaching positions—and several other cuts and revenues as part of the $8.5 million it plans to adjust for 2011-12, according to information released Tuesday.

About $5 million of the $8.5 million in recommended adjustments is from one-time money from federal education jobs funding, district Communications Director Tony Taschner said, meaning the budget steering committee made its other adjustment suggestions to the tune of $3.4 million.

The staff layoffs would account for about $2.8 million, according to a news release.

Most of the teacher layoffs—26—would be related to the district’s restructuring of its middle school format, he said. The board passed that plan in January, aiming to increase student achievement by reducing middle school schedules to six-period days and changing the electives format.

The 2011-12 adjustments should not create an increase in class sizes, Taschner said. Were the federal funding not available this year, the district would plan to cut about 80 additional positions and other services, according to a release.

Other recommended cuts and added revenues include:
•    Increasing the distance requirement for regular bus transportation to minimum one mile away from school for elementary students and one-and-a-half miles for middle school and high school students, for $300,000 savings
•    Reducing substitute pay from $110 to $100 per day, for $110,000 savings
•    Reducing the busing reimbursement for transporting private-school students, and eliminating special-education activity bus service, for $92,000 savings
•    Increasing by $10 student participation fees for sports and fine arts activities, for $70,000 increased revenue
•    No longer participating in the Schools for Energy Efficiency program, for $40,000 savings
•    Eliminating figure skating, for $26,000 savings

This is the third year the district has had to adjust its budget, Taschner said, and officials foresee continuing to do so in coming years.

Last year’s $15.3 million adjustment resulted in a loss of 144 full-time positions, including about 79 teachers, he said. That increased the number of students per classroom by about two per.

In the fall, officials had , according to a previous Patch article. After voters didn’t pass the district’s levy in November, Superintendent Jane Berenz commented that she thought cuts of 200 staff and a further increase in class sizes could be possible.

The current adjustment recommendations assume a 3.5 percent cut in state funding, instead; right now, education funding from the state appears to be flat, but the state in the past has shifted aid repayment. Several individual legislators have expressed wanting to avoid cuts to K-12 education, Taschner said.

“I think you can see how things have changed at the state level too,” Taschner said, noting that the projected state deficit shrank from $6.2 billion to $5 billion.

But officials still don’t know what the outcome of the state budget will be come May, but because of timelines to issue layoff notices they have to finalize a budget before that time. This year holds more uncertainty than others, Taschner said.

“That’s the big unknown that all school districts are having to deal with,” he said.

The district tends to plan conservatively, Taschner said. Officials also are taking into consideration that the federal education jobs funding won’t be available next year, he said.

Committees of community members and staff will discuss the recommendations at meetings on March 8-9, and recommendations will be introduced to the board at its March 14 meeting. Changes to the recommendations are possible before the board hears them, Taschner said.

“It’s constantly … in flux,” Taschner said of the budget. He said Berenz has shared many of the recommendations with the school board already, to let them know what’s coming.

The board is scheduled to vote on final adjustments at its March 28 meeting.

The complete list of adjustments is available with this story as a PDF file. Come back to Rosemount Patch for updates, including comments from school officials.