Shorewood School Budget Includes No Additional Adminstrators

After months of the debate, the Shorewood School Board has approved a preliminary $21.9 million budget for next year that doesn't include any new administrative positions.

Although the 2011-12 budget still could be modified before it gets final approval in October, overall expenditures are down about $1.8 from last year — a 7.7 percent decrease.

After starting the budget process of with a $1.95 million deficit, the district is projecting a surplus of $1,295.

The property tax levy, which will be officially set this fall, is expected to drop from $15.3 million to $14.9 million — a 2.7 percent decrease.

Earlier budget recommendations to the board from Superintendent Blane McCann called for additions to the administrative staff. But after a public outcry and some opposition from board members, the positions were taken off the table.

"We have eliminated all administrative staff additions," McCann said at Tuesday's board meeting where the budget was approved. "We will continue with the current configuration."

McCann first proposed hiring a full-time director of instruction, a director of administrative services and other positions. The district now plans to add a part-time high school librarian at cost of $20,000; bring the high school’s nurse to full time at a cost of $29,000; and add $17,000 for the director of instruction to work one day a week.

The budget also includes $230,000 to increase teaching staff throughout the district, including $30,000 at the high school.

"If the board approves the budget tonight, we would start the hiring process for a sixth-grade teacher at Lake Bluff," McCann said.

Furthermore, McCann said he would consider adding kindergarten, first- and fifth-grade teachers at . A K4 teacher also may be hired at , he said.

In mid-March, due to a reduction in state aid and cap on revenue under Gov. Scott Walker’s biennial budget proposal.

However, the district is looking at more than $730,000 in savings from an increase in contributions to employee pensions and a 1 percent cap on salary increases, outlined in Walker’s budget repair bill.

Since the district doesn’t use the state’s health care plan, employees aren’t subject to the provision to contribute 12.6 percent to their health care premium. However, the teacher’s union has agreed to pay the 12.6 percent anyway.

More than $610,000 in savings comes through the district’s recently voter-approved referendum, which allows the district to borrow money to refinance debt and shift funds out of their operating fund.

Around $305,000 is expected from staff turnover. Veteran teachers who are at the top of the district pay scale retired this year, making way for younger teachers to enter the district at lesser salaries. The district will save another $638,000 from a change in its health care plan.

Under the budget plan, fees would increase in high school athletics from $100 to $125, and club fees from $50 to $60, which would generate an additional $14,000 in revenue.

The district would no longer offer health care for new instructional aides, while current aides would retain their insurance — a move that will save $18,425. In addition, reducing custodial overtime and secretarial substitutes would save $7,000.

The district expects to still save $50,000 from energy efficiencies.

The preliminary budget also brings a instrumental band teacher at Shorewood Intermediate School from part time to full time at a cost of about $21,500, and adds a one-day-a-week art teacher to work with art students at the middle school, which would cost about $15,000.