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Point School Board works to cut budget

By CHRIS RANDAZZO
of The Gazette
Time is running out for the Stevens Point Area Public School District Board to make budget cuts for the 2002-2003 school year. The district faces an estimated $3.8 million deficit for 2002-2003, and because scheduling and staffing is done up to a year in advance, Superintendent Emery Babcock said the board must act soon.

Board president Ray Haas has set an Aug. 27 deadline for the cuts. That deadline is also important for the district because Babcock said that the board must decide before Sept. 1 if it wants to bring a fall referendum for funding to the public. After Sept 1, Babcock said the board could not do a fall referendum because of state requirements for a 45-day legal notice.

The board came a step closer to identifying possible budget cuts when it met in a special work session on Tuesday, Aug. 7. Initially, the board had planned to put programs into mandated, must have, should have and nice to have categories at the work session, but put off those categorizations pending possible input from the district's teachers.

Approximately 30 of the district's teachers showed up at the work session, but were told just before the meeting that they would not be able to speak. However, Board President Ray Haas said the board would discuss setting up a work session with teachers at its next meeting on Monday, Aug. 13.

"We weren't happy, but it was an equitable solution," Glen Reindl, president of the Stevens Point Area Education Association and a teacher at Stevens Point Area Senior High School said.

The board did go through a list of categorizations put together by school administrators. Of the 99 categories looked at by administrators at the district, elementary, junior high and high school levels, 23 were in the mandated category, 10 in the must have, 27 in the should have and 29 in the nice to have.

Babcock said anything the administrators put in the must have category involved direct teacher student contact and classroom issues.

"That is the basic core of what our school district is about and must be preserved," he said. "It is also our responsibility as we look at these program areas that we must produce a balanced student."

"I think we accomplished a lot, in that we know where we disagree and what we need to look at," Haas said. "That will be further narrowed when we hear from teachers, if the board agrees to hear from them," Haas said.

Not all board members were happy with the categorizations though. "We don't have time to get the information we need to make decisions responsibly by the end of the month," board member Barb Ruesch said. "Maybe instead of saying cut it or don't cut it we need to look at cutting a percentage of programs."

The board will look at that possibility at its next meeting.

Even though the board doesn't have all the information it desires, some members felt they may have to make decisions anyway. "We might just have to make decisions with scant information. We have to decide," board member Elmer Fournier said.

Babcock painted a grim picture if the board doesn't either make the program cuts or get funding via a referendum. "If we don't bite the bullet now, things will get worse and worse," he said.

Babcock said that without the cuts or extra funding the $4 million deficit would force the district to take drastic action during the 2002-2003 school year, including possible massive layoffs across the board, as the district would not have the funds to continue at its current level.

"Think of it like a family," he said. "What would you do if you didn't have the money to pay your bills?"

While there was a good amount of agreement among board members on which categories programs belonged in, there was some disagreement as well. "It's really upsetting to me that athletic programs (at the junior high and senior high levels) are a should have, while (maintaining) our graduation requirements is nice to have," Diana McGinley, board member, said.

Some issues that have been unpopular with the public, like school consolidation, also resurfaced. "I absolutely think we have to study consolidation of our elementary schools," McGinley said. "The numbers may not support it but we need to look at it. We have to weigh the political liability against what the savings are."



	Point School Board works to cut budget By CHRIS RANDAZZO of The Gazette Time is running out for the Stevens Point Area Public School District Board to make budget cuts for the 2002-2003 school year. The district faces an estimated $3.8 million deficit for 2002-2003, and because scheduling and staffing is done up to a year in advance, Superintendent Emery Babcock said the board must act soon. Board president Ray Haas has set an Aug. 27 deadline for the cuts. That deadline is also important for the district because Babcock said that the board must decide before Sept. 1 if it wants to bring a fall referendum for funding to the public. After Sept 1, Babcock said the board could not do a fall referendum because of state requirements for a 45-day legal notice. The board came a step closer to identifying possible budget cuts when it met in a special work session on Tuesday, Aug. 7. Initially, the board had planned to put programs into mandated, must have, should have and nice to have categories at the work session, but put off those categorizations pending possible input from the district's teachers. Approximately 30 of the district's teachers showed up at the work session, but were told just before the meeting that they would not be able to speak. However, Board President Ray Haas said the board would discuss setting up a work session with teachers at its next meeting on Monday, Aug. 13. "We weren't happy, but it was an equitable solution," Glen Reindl, president of the Stevens Point Area Education Association and a teacher at Stevens Point Area Senior High School said. The board did go through a list of categorizations put together by school administrators. Of the 99 categories looked at by administrators at the district, elementary, junior high and high school levels, 23 were in the mandated category, 10 in the must have, 27 in the should have and 29 in the nice to have. Babcock said anything the administrators put in the must have category involved direct teacher student contact and classroom issues. "That is the basic core of what our school district is about and must be preserved," he said. "It is also our responsibility as we look at these program areas that we must produce a balanced student." "I think we accomplished a lot, in that we know where we disagree and what we need to look at," Haas said. "That will be further narrowed when we hear from teachers, if the board agrees to hear from them," Haas said. Not all board members were happy with the categorizations though. "We don't have time to get the information we need to make decisions responsibly by the end of the month," board member Barb Ruesch said. "Maybe instead of saying cut it or don't cut it we need to look at cutting a percentage of programs." The board will look at that possibility at its next meeting. Even though the board doesn't have all the information it desires, some members felt they may have to make decisions anyway. "We might just have to make decisions with scant information. We have to decide," board member Elmer Fournier said. Babcock painted a grim picture if the board doesn't either make the program cuts or get funding via a referendum. "If we don't bite the bullet now, things will get worse and worse," he said. Babcock said that without the cuts or extra funding the $4 million deficit would force the district to take drastic action during the 2002-2003 school year, including possible massive layoffs across the board, as the district would not have the funds to continue at its current level. "Think of it like a family," he said. "What would you do if you didn't have the money to pay your bills?" While there was a good amount of agreement among board members on which categories programs belonged in, there was some disagreement as well. "It's really upsetting to me that athletic programs (at the junior high and senior high levels) are a should have, while (maintaining) our graduation requirements is nice to have," Diana McGinley, board member, said. Some issues that have been unpopular with the public, like school consolidation, also resurfaced. "I absolutely think we have to study consolidation of our elementary schools," McGinley said. "The numbers may not support it but we need to look at it. We have to weigh the political liability against what the savings are."