Certified Public Accountant Carl Nordquist presented the school board with the bottom line on its financial situation at the November 17, 2010 ISD 166 school board meeting.
Total revenue for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2010 was $7,358,904. Expenses were $8,038,904, leaving the school with $680,000 less in net assets than it started with. Assets exceeded liabilities by $2,515,728. Its long-term outstanding debt as of June 30 was $10,428,157. Thedistrict’s fund balance decreased by $199,084, leaving a balance of $1,537,653.
Fifty percent of FY 2009-10 expenses went to instruction, 24 percent went to fiscal and other fixed costs, 12 percent went to student and staff support services, 6 percent went to physical plant operation and maintenance, 5 percent went to administrative support, and 3 percent went to noninstructional services.
The budget for 2010-11 of $4,929,941, which includes regular and special education instruction, administration and support services, building and transportation costs, reflects a 22 percent decrease from the 2007-08 budget of $6,341,913. The number of students dropped by 20 percent during that time.
Nordquist informed the school board that as student enrollment has dropped over the last three years, the student-toteacher ratio has dropped at a faster pace, which means student enrollment is going down at a faster rate than teaching staff. This ratio needs to stay in a certain range in order for the school to be fiscally healthy, he said.
Taking into account classroom, title, and special education teachers, the student to full-time-equivalent teacher ratio in Cook County was 14.25 to one last school year, compared to 15.60 statewide. Cook County’s ratio has dropped each year since the 2007-08 school year, when it was 15.72. In 2001-02, the district had 714 students and 42.87 teachers. This year it has 478 students and 33.42 teachers.
A $70,000 deficit is expected for Community Education by the end of the 2010-11 fiscal year. “We’re not breaking even in most Community Education programs,” Superintendent Beth Schwarz said. She said adult education classes have not been bringing in enough money and the fitness center is “a small part of the problem.” The budget has included more of the superintendent’s time than she actually spends administering the Community Education program, however, so a more accurate reflection of the time she spends would reduce the budget, she said.
Using building more efficiently
With student enrollment expected to continue declining over the next several years, Superintendent Schwarz told the board efforts are being made to figure out how to use less of the building to save on heat, utilities, and janitorial services. She will be meeting with the entire staff to gather their ideas, and the consultant acting as Cook County’s representative in its new community center project, Tom Wachholz of Orb Management, will be conducting a free walk-through to give the district his ideas on how to use the building more efficiently.
Schwarz will meet December 1 with the Council on Aging to assess its interest in using the current district office and Jane Mianowski Conference Room as a Senior Center.
School board members Leonard Sobanja and Mary Sanders offered to get involved in the process of building reorganization. Sobanja said to Superintendent Schwarz, “I’m going to keep hounding you until we get welding space.”
Building security
The superintendent said she is considering making the Eagle door entrance the only entrance open to the public during the day. Thecomplex has 17 entrances.
School board member Eric Kemp said they would need to consider the ramifications this would have on parking and the cost of things such us signs to direct people to the unlocked entrance.
“We are being very cognizant of all the costs,” Schwarz said, “and trying to minimize that.”
Eliminating middle school recess
The administration is considering reducing the middle school lunch period from 50 minutes to 30 and adding the extra 20 minutes into class periods.
In an email to the Cook County News-
Herald,
Superintendent Schwarz wrote, “We are the only school in the area with a recess past elementary. …Several discipline issues occur over ‘recess.’ The time is not well used and would be better served in class.” At the meeting, she told the board she expects some parents and business owners to object to this change.
Truancy referrals
Principal Gwen Carman has referred more than a dozen students to the county attorney’s office for truancy. She told the school board they will need to meet with Assistant County Attorney Molly Hicken to negotiate an attendance contract. If the students break this contract, they will be referred to court.
Bullying to be addressed
Superintendent Schwarz said she is working with Extension Director Diane Booth on organizing a community discussion forum to promote violence awareness and prevention. “It’s not just here,” Schwarz said. “It’s in the charter schools. It’s widespread.” She said part of the solution would be to address cultural norms.
Reducing printing costs
Two representatives from IKON Office Solutions of Duluth presented an analysis of the district’s copy machine use. The district makes about 126,000 copies and spends $2,560 a month on printing. They made recommendations for changes in equipment that could save the district $769 a month. The system would be configured specifically for the district’s needs. It could store confidential documents securely online, trace print jobs back to the users, and be used as a tool for auditing.
While student records have been kept electronically for the last seven or eight years, the previous 70 years of files are on paper or cards. Brett Bennett, one of the IKON reps, quipped, “So that would free up space for that welding equipment.”
The school is also waiting on information from Tri-State Business Systems, the school’s other source of office equipment.
Winter sports
The board approved a working agreement with the North Superior Ski and Run Club for help running its Nordic ski program.
Winter sport coaches were approved as follows—Boys’ basketball: Mitch Dorr, varsity (junior varsity coach to be determined); Seth Falk, eighth grade; Caleb White, seventh grade. Girls’ basketball: T.J. Super, varsity; John Jacobsen, junior varsity; Kim Linnell, eighth grade; Kelly Roberts, seventh grade. Alpine skiing: Jim Vick, head coach; Mike Larson, Jim Elverhoy. Nordic skiing: Mark Summers, head; Kelly Summers.
Staffingadditions
Theboard approved paying Sue Ahrendt $8,910 from Title I funds to act as a math consultant/mentor to the teaching staff.
Michael McHugh and Betsy Jorgenson will each be paid $500 to investigate the pros and cons of participating in Q-Comp, a program in which districts and teachers’ unions negotiate plans that address career ladder and advancement options, job-embedded professional development, teacher evaluation, performance pay, and an alternative salary schedule. Districts receive up to $260 per student—$169 per student in state aid and $91 per student in board-approved levy.
According to a Minnesota Department of Education press release from February 2009, “The Q Comp program, created with bi-partisan support in the Minnesota state legislature in 2005, enhances professional development, utilizes evaluation tools, and rewards quality teachers through reforms of the teacher pay structure. There is a significant and positive relationship between the number of years a school has been implementing Q Comp and student achievement, according to a new analysis conducted by Hezel Associates, LLC, an independent education research and evaluation firm.”
Participation would require application to the Minnesota Department of Education.
School board resignation
Rod Wannebo announced his resignation from the school board effective February 28, 2011. The board accepted his resignation with regrets. When asked why he was resigning, he said, “Personal reasons.”
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