Whitko Looks At Cutting Budget

PIERCETON - Whitko Schools needs to cut more than $600,000 from its $11 million budget - approximately 6 percent.

At a special Whitko Community School Corp. board of trustees public work session Wednesday, Superintendent Dr. Jeff Hendrix said besides the school system not replacing the curriculum director after Dr. Diana Showalter left last year to be the superintendent at Manchester schools, there are nine other areas in which the corporation will make changes, reductions or eliminations. Those areas include counseling, the media center, physical education, industrial technology, extended contracts, lead teachers, athletics, non-athletic extracurricular positions and aides and assistants. Some staff also may see cuts in their benefits.

Hendrix did not release specific information about what teachers or positions may be eliminated. He said he first wanted to talk with the teachers' association and then with specific personnel first. He said he expects for that to be completed by Friday.

"We're not eliminating a total program," he said.

The school board will vote on Hendrix's recommendations at a special April 26 meeting.

The cuts have become necessary, said Director of Finance Phil Menzie, due to funding cuts by the state and rising costs in such items as insurance.

In 2002, Menzie said, the state shorted Whitko schools by $180,000. Health insurance claims rose to $1.5 million during the 2002-03 school year, along with an increase in worker's compensation.

According to numbers presented by Menzie, from 1996 to 2001, the dollars in the general fund increased from approximately $9 million to $10.5 million. In 2002, the fund dropped slightly and then again to approximately $9.75 million in 2003 so far. Whitko schools, Menzie said, still has not received all its 2003 final tax distributions.

"That number is out of whack," he said.

Meanwhile, the history of total salaries and benefits has remained steady. Menzie said that even though the school corporation hasn't given much in raises, costs have risen, keeping the total salaries and benefits slightly above the $8 million mark.

Menzie also reported that in 2002, approved appropriations totaled $10,971,320, but total revenue was $10,731,695, making for a loss of $239,625. In 2003, the school corporation suffered another deficit of $233,329. And, though the 2003 budget still is not certified, Whitko expects to lose another $153,757. The total deficit for Whitko for the three years is $626,711.

Also contributing to Whitko's problems is a declining enrollment. At its peak during the 1996-97 school year, Whitko schools had 2,193 students. For the 2003-04 school year, Whitko's enrollment is 1,973, a difference of slightly more than 200 students.

"That affects how much money we receive," said Hendrix. Funding received by the state is based partially on student enrollment. Even schools with increasing enrollment, he said, still aren't receiving the kind of funding schools used to receive.

The reasons for the declining enrollment, according to Hendrix, include people moving away, an aging Indiana population and job losses.

"The kind of jobs we are getting here is smaller and smaller so keeping people here is getting difficult," Hendrix said.

Board chairman Dave Tranter asked what the school corporation has been doing during the past two to three years to save on costs.

Hendrix said they've been concentrating on cutting back costs. Bids for maintenance are more competitive. They've adjusted the pay for new custodians. Menzie said the custodial staff has been cut down to its bare bones. Nine teaching positions have been cut out of the general fund since 1998. Salary increases have been minimal "at best," and in 2001 they made changes to health care benefits.

"We've done things over the past few years gradually," said Menzie, and tried to cut costs, but they haven't been enough.

Another way Whitko hopes to cut costs is by sending students to Warsaw or other school corporations for such instruction as vocational training. It is expected it will cost Whitko less money to send students to other schools than to offer the programs in-house.

As for the future, Menzie said, "2005 looks even bleaker than 2004."

Hendrix said that at this point, they've made the necessary cuts to get Whitko to next year. In the next two to three years, when new teachers are hired, they'll still try to find the best teachers, "but they may be someone not at the top of their game because of costs."

During the public comments, a woman asked if it was beneficial to the students to make these cuts. Hendrix said it was never beneficial, but they have to be made and they've looked at all the angles.

"Class sizes probably won't be affected at this point," he said.

Tranter said the cuts were being made to have the least effect on education as possible.

Another woman was concerned about loss of counselors for the students. Hendrix said the burden for helping students in difficult situations "will fall on everyone's shoulders."

Menzie said that even if everyone agreed to raise taxes for increasing the school district's revenue, it's not possible because the state puts a maximum levy on how much money schools can raise.

Tranter said, "We can't spend more than we take in and we're on the verge of doing that. The coffers are dangerously low."