With their annual visit to Waldron Island school for a regular board meeting beginning at 10 a.m., and the reconvening of the public session at 4:35 p.m., followed by a special board meeting at 7 p.m., the Orcas Island School District administration and board had a marathon day of school business to take care of on April 24.

Finance report

Ben Thomas, District Business Manager, reviewed the finance report for the period ending March 31, 2008. The report included enrollment analysis showing 462.70 annual average full-time equivalency figures for the District, including the ALE programs and Waldron School.

Thomas noted that enrollment between 2000 and 2008 has shown a downward trend the last few years. The report also showed assets, liabilities, and the current fund balance of $142,491. Thomas stated that his best guess, “being conservative,” is that the school year will end with $185,000 fund balance. Upon questioning from Board Member Charlie Glasses, Thomas said that the balance may be between $185,000 and $216,840.

The monthly average expense for staffing is $358,000, which includes health benefits, retirement, testing wages, paid leave, advisor stipends and other benefits for certificated and classified staff.

Capital projects fund, debt service fund, Associated Student Body fund, transportation vehicle fund and Private and Trust Funds are accounted for in the District budget as well as the General Fund.

2008-2009 budget

Of major concern to the public was the proposed 2008-2009 budget, and the projected $667,000 deficit that was announced last week.

At the afternoon meeting in the school cafeteria, Marta Branch, representing the Orcas Education Association, read a statement to the board, saying, “We believe there was bias built into the District’s report of the budget, specifically in the District’s characterization of collective bargaining as a causal factor to the projected deficit.

“We view the manner of presentation as a clear violation of the spirit and content of Appendix N [the memo or understanding between the Orcas Island School District and the Orcas Education Association, dated Sept. 1, 2007]….it now appears that he District has violated its own best hopes for communication.”

Steve Diepenbrock, Chair of the Budget Advisory Committee (BAC), stated that the committee’s primary project focus was budget communications. The BAC will form the first budget report to be presented to the board for a review in time for it to be of benefit during the board budget process through June.

Deficit reductions

The Budget Administration Team, composed of Superintendent Glenn Harris, Thomas, Principals Tom Gobeske and Barbara Kline, and transportation, food, and maintenance and operations supervisors, had gone over the budget presented to the board on April 17 and updated it to show reductions to the $667,000 deficit originally projected. The reduction in deficit would occur through two options.

Proposed deficit reductions in the first option included: reducing the fund balance growth; counting $100,000 in community donations into the budget; reducing “revenue conservation” (a kind of extra contingency fund); reducing non-employee-related costs (NERCs); reducing K-8 parent allocation for Alternative Learning students; reducing 2.8 Full-time employee (FTE) positions in the elementary school; reducing 2.18 FTE positions in the high school; reducing classified staffing in the food service; and reducing additional .91 certificated staffing.

The second option changed the additional reduction in certificated instruction by .24 FTE, instead of .91, and also added the following elements: reducing transportation costs; transferring costs for athletic travel to the ASB fund.

The update indicated that other areas for reduction, but not examined, were the Educational Services District’s business contract, Administrative staffing, and additional classified staffing, as well as reduction in other programs such as special education and pupil transportation.

Board comment

Board member Keith Whitaker asked about the current year’s general supplies fund, which “consistently shows overbudgeted and underspent” amounts, leaving what appears to be an additional $150,000 dollars.

He also questioned contracted expenses, which showed a $229,000 surplus. “My main concern in looking through the files, is that in addition to unallocated resources, where a little bit of extra money was left in, all monies are not specifically allocated to known expense items… It’s one thing to be safe and conservative, but I’m concerned about accuracy. We don’t have a good sense when there’s little bits and pieces that don’t add up.”

Board President Janet Brownell suggested that by removing coaching stipends and making all coaching positions volunteer, it would add $57,000 into the budget. Harris responded that her suggestion implied that paying for coaching would be “funded in another way.” Lancaster added that other stipends beyond athletics should be looked at.

When Whitaker said that if the ALE parents’ allocation was reduced, that some would leave the program, Brownell suggested that the ALE allocation could be added back into the budget if all coaches were volunteers.

Board Member Tony Ghazel said he would “throw on the table” his suggestion that seven different departments on campus — curricular, administrative, business office, extracurricular, food, maintenance and operations and transportation — all face a nine percent cut across the board to address the projected deficit.

Harris said that the suggestions would be considered in the next week, and alternate proposals brought to the board by April 30 special budget meeting.

The next school budget meeting will be on Wednesday, April 30, beginning at 5 p.m.

For more information on the April 24 School Board meeting, go to www.islandssounder.com.