sksd budget cuts letter april 2010

8/9/2019 SKSD Budget Cuts Letter April 2010

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April 23, 2010

Dear SK Family,

Good afternoon and Happy Friday!

This is the part of the message where I make a weak attempt at humor within aneven weaker attempt to express my goal to be brief. The topic of budget iscomplicated, sensitive, easy to misunderstand, can generate doubt anduncertainty and is very, very personal. As such, my goal is to be very clear andprovide more answers than questions. Thus, brief this wont be

With legislative decisions made and state budget finalized last week, we were ableto become more specific regarding our budget gap for the 2010 2011 schoolyear. With multiple proposals (two from the Governor, one from the Senate, andone from the House), we have been operating within a wide range of what ifsand subsequent goals for potential reductions. As you know, this unpredictablerange led us to a creative flotation device model that focused on million dollarpackages with varying ranges of pain for children, people, and programs.

State Budget and SKSD: The Bottom LineThe final state budget impacts us by over 2 million dollars, with 1.6 million fromthe elimination of I-728 funding, and over $500,000 through the combination of4th grade staffing enhancement (K-3 was restored) and the elimination of thefinal state-funded Learning Improvement Day. This, coupled with our own

projected gap of 3.7 million dollars (enrollment decline, one-time FederalStimulus dollars used, etc.) leaves us with a targeted gap for next year of 5.8million dollars.

Recent History of Resourceful and Respo nsibleConsequently, we will have cut over 18 million dollars since the 06-07 schoolyear. While we have been very successful at protecting children, protecting theclassroom and protecting our people, we have all been impacted by the manysacrifices, reductions, efficiencies and cuts that have been made. In two yearsalone, we will have made over 12.5 million in cuts. To share that we haveprotected our kids and those who serve them is, I believe, a very true and

accurate statement. But the fact is, cuts have been made, reductions in staff haveoccurred, services that have been provided have been eliminated, critical supportand administrative positions that became vacant were not filled; and the impacthas been felt by us all. Gratefully, thanks to a remarkable team that has steppedup to do more with less, we have sheltered our students from feeling any painfrom these difficult decisions.

2010-2011: Filling the Gap


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I am proud of the fact that being resourceful and responsible is a daily endeavorand not simply a budget exercise we go through each spring. We shared thefollowing preliminary plan with the School Board on Wednesday evening:

Our Raft, which addressed adjustments made to our current budget -speaks to our emphasis on making decisions NOW in order to be betterprepared for projected shortfalls and gaps.

o We have identified over 1.3 million dollars: Budget reductions,unfilled administrative positions, cost savings, delayed expenses,etc.

Our Ferry replicates many of the cost savings from the current budgetand applies to the 10 11 budget.

o We have identified over 1 million dollars: Full years savings foradministrative positions vacated and not filled this year; re-organization of Special Education and Title resulting in one lessadministrator, department budget reductions, etc.

Our other flotation devices are less definitive and will continue to bemonitored and adjusted by actual expenses and decisions (including ourSchool Board) as they are made:

o Our Ark represents Levy Revenue. We have 1.4 million in new revenue generated by the Levy

Plan. We have goals and commitments within the plan andare seeking solutions/resources to not only meet the goalsbut also capture this new revenue.

o Our Ship represents potential new revenue. We have tentatively identified $870,000: Special Education

Safety Net, Levy Equalization enhancement, etc.o Our Tugboat represents possible resources within our

designated Fund Balance reserves. We have tentatively identified $185,000 as possible one-

time resources.o Our Yacht represents efficiencies, reductions, and restructuring

associated with staffing and services. We have tentatively identified $1.4 million: this includes

enrollment driven adjustments to staffing and tighterstaffing formulas within contract agreement.

o Our Clipper represents reduced NERC (non-employee relatedcosts) allocations.

We have identified $47,534: a 5% reduction in schoolbudget.

The above estimates total over 6.2 million dollars. Consequently, if you have been keeping up with the flotation device concept, you will notice that thesubmarine is not included. This ring would have reflected staffing cuts acrossthe board classified, certificated, and administrative. Furlough days were beingconsidered and ultimately a Reduction in Force would have been necessary togenerate this additional, million-dollar package.


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No Reduced Education Plan: No Certificated Staff RIFWe believe we can move forward without this dramatic, devastating action, andconsequently, we did not present our School Board with a Reduced EducationPlan which would have been required prior to a Certificated Staff RIF. There

will be no su ch RIF. The work ahead will be difficult, as protecting a positionfor all staff has been our goal, some staff will undoubtedly find themselves in adifferent position next yeardue to the potential of involuntary transfers. We willclosely monitor our overstaffed locations with an eye on retirements,resignations, and voluntary transfers in order to ensure that not only arepositions filled, but strong alignment exists with teacher skill/certification andbuilding/student needs.

How Does this Impact Classified Staff?The timeline that drives our decision relative to a Reduced Education Plan onlyimpacts certificated staff. However, with this decision made, our immediate focusis a timely decision regarding classified staffing and positions. While we are notyet in a position to state that no individual or position will be impacted, we arefocusing on efficiency options only, and not direct cuts to simply save money.These are complex decisions and will include conversations with associationleadership and members potentially impacted. I wish this message could be moredetailed and specific; however, we are committed to making these importantdecisions as soon as possible in order to ease staff anxieties that exist due to thisuncertainty.

W hats Next?Being resourceful and responsible never ends. Beyond the financial crisis, wemust continually analyze our resources and investments and seek opportunities

to be more efficient. In addition, there are a number of factors that will impactour budgeting for next year, including:

Negotiations with SEIU and SKEA Additional Efficiency Options within Positions and Programs Special Education and Safety Net Funding Enrollment Projections and Impact on Staffing Decisions regarding Levy Revenue

Reduced Education Plan?While we did not submit a formal Reduced Education Plan, it is very clear that we have aggressively and painfully implemented a Reduced Plan. We have

protected the term that reflects our purpose Education but it is critical thatno one consider this to have been achieved without significant reductions, cuts,and sacrifices:

Our district-wide custodial team continues their remarkable,challenging work with 6 less custodians.

Our office staffing models were adjusted to align with currentenrollment, resulting in a reduction in force. This impacted people,their hours, and required multiple moves district-wide.


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Efficiency adjustments to bus runs impacted drivers, hours, andprovided many challenges earlier in the year.

We continue to assertively and creatively tell the SKSD story;however, the workload in Community Relations was redistributedto others when the Communications Assistant position was not

filled. A Dean position was not filled at the high school, impacting staff,

students, and administration. District level Instructional Specialist support and services for

schools, teams, and teachers were reduced through attrition. Facilities and Operations reorganized and assigned additional

responsibilities across their entire team when a Manager positionwas not filled.

We are reorganizing and integrating our Curriculum, Instructionand Assessment team with Special Education and Title team withone less administrator.

The above examples clearly reflect that without question - we have REDUCEDand we have CUT.

I am hopeful this message highlights the fact that our organizational purpose -Ensuring high levels of learning for all students - has been at the core of ourdecision making. In times such as these, the depth of our commitment to ourpurpose is challenged if our commitment is true, real and genuine, thendecisions are made based on what will NOT be sacrificed. I am proud that wecontinue to protect our purpose, and am grateful for such a nurturing andinspiring team.

T h i n g s t u r n o u t b e s t f o r t h e p e op l e w h o m a k e t h e b e s t ou t o f t h e

w a y t h in g s t u r n o u t . John Wooden

If you have any questions, comments or concerns, please contact me (direct lineis 7009), your site/department administrator, or any of our Union PresidentsLinda Breed (SEIU), Judy Arbogast (SKEA), Janice Stewart (PSE), Ron Ness(Coaches), Jerry Lundberg (SKAP).

Have a great weekend. Thank you for all that you do

Dave

sksd budget cuts letter april 2010

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