Board opts to reconfigure buildings; move forward with $767K in cuts

Early last Friday morning, just hours after hosting a public meeting Thursday night to gather input on next year’s budget, the members of the Montevideo Board of Education made some hard decisions.

After discussing public comments received the night before, the board directed the administration to do two things:

• reconfigure the district’s building structure, and

• move forward with making $767,000 in spending reductions.

“We will be moving out of Sanford as an attendance center,” Superintendent of Schools Dr. Luther Heller said Friday morning. “It will become primarily for Community Education, early childhood programs, special education, and Head Start.”

He indicated the district would move the Community Education Department offices to Sanford by the end of this summer.

The reconfiguration will save approximately $98,000 through reductions in vocal music, physical education, clerical, and custodial aid positions, according to Heller.

Ram­sey Elementary School will likely house grades K-2. Grades 3 and 4 will be housed at the middle school in the east wing with the 5th grade. Grades 6 and 7 will be separated in the west wing of the middle school.

“The final alignment is not set in stone yet,” said Heller. The administration is talking with the school nurses and social workers regarding the different configurations.

The one realignment that is certain is that the 8th grade will move to the high school, said Heller.

The district is moving forward with the $767,000 in reductions in Phases 1 and 2 recommended by the administration primarily because of the uncertainty of what to expect this legislative session, Heller explained.

Reductions will be prioritized so that some positions can be brought back if funding allows. On the other hand, a decision will also have to be made by mid to late March about moving into Phase 3 for additional reductions just in case of further funding cuts.

“The uncertainty is the hardest part,” said Heller.

The administration will make its recommendations for program reductions and naming staff who will not have their contracts renewed or who will be placed on unrequested leave of absence.

“We’re at a very significant level of cuts here,” said Heller.

Board takes public input
For more than two hours last Thursday night, a crowd estimated at between 150 and 200 people crowded into the media center at the middle school and pleaded with board members not to cut programs. Several spoke up for the instrumental music program, others for the reading intervention program, and others for the Discovery program.

When asked whether a four-day school week had been considered, Superintendent Dr. Luther Heller said it had been looked at “but we found no significant savings.” The main saving would be in transportation costs, he explained.

After others pleaded that the board not cut programs, audience member Pauly Kruger stated the obvious: “We have a lot of wants. What we need are solutions.”

Some offered suggestions about ways to raise additional funds, such as establishing an endowment fund for arts and athletics and hiring a professional fundraiser to try to raise money in the community. Another suggestion was to “privatize” extracurriculars by finding sponsors to support them.

Board member Betty Christensen pointed out the board’s responsibility is to make decisions based upon tax dollars in hand, not endowments and fundraisers.

“But the community can feel free to work on endowments, fundraisers, and another referendum,” she added.

Senior high teacher Cheri Kuhlmann said the teachers were resilient and would live with whatever decisions the board and administration made. But she asked the board to look at all the kids when it made its decision.

“We need to look at what’s best for all our kids,” she said, “not just those in band or athletics. We may not like the cut, but we have to deal with it.”

Board members told the audience the district must ultimately convince voters to approve a new operating levy.

“A referendum has to be a groundswell of people in the community,” said Christensen, as she challenged those in the audience to go out and work for passage of a referendum.

Board member Darin Balken added, “If the state doesn’t change its funding, we’ll be back here again next year doing the exact same thing, only we’ll have to cut $800,000.”

He encouraged everyone to “go out and get 10 more people” to support passing a new operating levy in November.