Posted: 4/14/04
By Barbara Brown
The North Branch school board last week unanimously approved more than $1 million in budget adjustments for the 2004-2005 school year.
To combat a looming $2.8 million projected deficit, the board was faced with making some kind of budget cuts. Instead of laying off large numbers of employees and seriously driving up class sizes or eliminating programs altogether, the board chose to use $1.8 million of the districtís savings and cut $1.022 million from the budget for the coming school year.
Savings were realized by combining programs in most areas, although some cuts were necessary.
Savings:
ï $200,000 for textbooks and curriculum, $101,850
ï $173,370 for staff development and training
ï $101,850 in buildings and maintenance
ï $9,300 in food service
Increased profit of about $37,000 is expected from raising activity fees, admission prices and combining several middle school and high school programs as well as eliminating fall dance, winter cheerleading, 5th and 6th grade Knowledge Bowl and SADD.
The districtís chemical health coordinator position was eliminated for a savings of $48,490. Other counselors and staff will take on the duties.
Teaching positions in kindergarten, first, second and 7th grades and one high school post will be eliminated for a savings of $222,340.
One special education teacher, one gifted and talented teacher and the Primary School technology teacher positions will be eliminated to save $154,000.
The Area Learning Center principal will be cut to half-time, several secretarial and paraprofessional positions will be combined and one special education paraprofessional position will be eliminated to save $82,055.
In Community Education, the board approve the following actions: increase participation fees, reduce teaching staff, reduce adolescent parent program due to loss of funding, discontinue use of Stacy Family Center.
In other board business, the members received first drafts of annually updated policies: public and private personnel data, mandated reporting of child neglect or physical or sexual abuse, attendance; extended school year for certain students; enrollment of non-resident students; student medication, and student sex non-discrimination.
Also at the meeting, high school teacher Betsy Carpenter, bus driver Kristin Kae Ruppert and high school attendance clerk Dawn Paulson resigned; Julie Jackson, Dianna Linehan and Marcia Kay Schindler received a one-year leave of absence; bus drivers Ed Buchanan and Cheryl Charles were terminated; Nancy Nadeau received a medical leave for the remainder of the school year; Heidi Corbinís contract changed from full-time to hourly; and Kristy Lee was approved as a long-term substitute for Michelle Linnell for 37 days.
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