Schools Budget Forum Postponed to May 26

The second of two Saline Area Schools budget forums has been postponed until 6:30 p.m., May 26 at the Liberty School Media Center.

The forum had been scheduled for Thursday, May 12.

The purpose of the forum is to lay out three scenarios to the public. The district seeks feedback before making a decision on the budget in June.

With so many variables in play, Graden said, devising scenarios was futile.

“We hope that between now and May 26 we’ll have firm numbers to plug into these scenarios. We don’t want to ask the public for feedback on scenarios only to create needless concern or, on the other hand, to come up with scenarios that don’t cut deep enough,” Graden said.

In an e-mail sent out Wednesday morning, Superintendent Scot Graden said the district is interested in getting more information from Lansing.

“Over the next two weeks we will continue to refine projections and develop scenarios to be discussed at the May 26 forum,” Graden wrote in an email.

The district has been looking at a “2+2+2=6” plan to deal with a projected $5.9 million budget shortfall. The plan involved using $2 million from the fund balance, $2 million in cuts, and $2 million in concessions from the Saline Education Association, which has a year remaining in its contract with the district.

There are signs that the shortfall may not be as bad as anticipated. Graden said some costs are coming in lower than projected. The district learned that non-teacher health benefit costs are coming in $300,000 less than expected. More insurance cost numbers are expected between now and the May 26 forum.

The district is also looking to Lansing to see if lawmakers will reduce the $470-per-pupul cut. Last week the Republican-led state house approved an additional 3.5 percent cut in funding for schools. They did so over the objections of Democrats who asked that vote be held off until the quarterly revenue estimate was released. The estimate was released Monday and it showed $455 million more than projected. The revenue conference is scheduled for May 16.

Graden said the negotiations with the SEA continue to be productive. The SEA recently elected Juan Lauchu, a Saline High School Science teacher, to replace long-time president Tim Heim. The school board went into executive session with union officials for the purpose of bargaining Tuesday night, although Lauchu was not present.

The $2 million in cuts involves laying off the equivalent of 20.5 full-time teachers. They layoffs, of course, would mean the elimination of some classes and electives and create larger class sizes. In some cases, larger class sizes would need to be bargained with the union.

The layoff notices will be sent out prior to the forum.

The district is also looking at cuts in other areas, such busing. Last week, Graden said it looked like the district was leaning toward eliminating mid-day busing.

In some areas the district could pass off expenses to parents as user fees. Pay-to-play fees are rising significantly. Last year, the board increased pay-to-play fees from $150 to $175. There has been discussion about making athletics completely self-sufficient. If that were to happen, costs would be more like they are in club sports, like lacrosse, where families pay up to $600 for their child to play. The same could be true of other extra-curricular programs, such as the marching band.