Healthy School Budget for 2010-11 – And a Few Nice Surprises

At tonight’s regular Orcas Island School District (OISD) Board meeting, the board approved budget resolutions that bode well for a healthy 2010-11 school year.

During the meeting, a public hearing was held on the proposed budget of revenues and expenditures. It is projected that the annual average fulltime enrollment for the coming year is set at 540 students. However, in discussing the enrollment numbers for the budget formulation, Educational Services District financial advisor Ben Thomas said, “580 or 600 is a more realistic number.”

This year’s enrollment averaged 530 students (90 above what was projected last year). One result of the increased enrollment is that the board was required to file an extension to last year’s budget (’09-’10) to account for the increased enrollment which resulted in increased revenue, and increased staffing expenses.

(The Board had allotted for $175,000 more for teacher staffing for next year’s increased numbers; however, it is quite likely that the costs of providing for enrollment approaching 600 may require another budget extension at the end of next year, like the one approved tonight).

The District’s Fund Reserves are calculated at $395,331, in a General Fund of $6,179,722. “The fund balance is always a source of pride for me,” said Thomas, “because in ‘05-‘06 we inherited zilch.” The board is committed to maintain 5.75% of its total revenue as a fund reserve: in 2006, it had less than 1/10th of 1% in reserves; next year it projects $414,823 in fund reserves.

Thomas also noted that nearly 70% of the budget is allocated to teaching and teaching support staffing, with 15% of the budget allocated to administration; in 2007-2008 those figures were 65.4% and 17.8%, respectively.

The OISD Board also signed a resolution to extend the budget for the Capital Projects Fund to increase its appropriation from $100,000 to $140,000 to pay for “architectural studies tied to a bond election.”

Before approving the budget resolutions, the board passed a consent agenda that approves school staffing as follows:

• Reinstate Paula Towne as 6th grade teacher and middle school culinary arts teacher
• Reinstate Mandy Randolph to elementary assignments including the Farm to Classroom and 6th grade Leadership classes
• Reinstate Pamela Wright as elementary music teacher
• Reinstate Brett McFarland as Orcas High School Advanced Physics teacher
• Open a part-time K-12 music teacher, strings position
• Open a part-time K-12 band instructor
• Open a new elementary teacher at Waldron School

The board also got a surprise in the form of a letter from the Education Initiative of the Orcas Island Community Foundation (OICF) and Orcas Island Education Foundation (OIEF), announcing funds to the district of $92,000 in grants earmarked for:
• OICF:
• Reserve Fund — $10,000
• Marine Biology classes — $37,000
• Science specialist — $10,400

• OIEF:
• Teacher In-Service — $10,000
• Farm to Classroom(Elementary, grades K-4) — $10,000
• Advanced Art in High School — $9,400
• Arts Education Project (Middle School dance education) — $5,000

Superintendent Barbara Kline added that next month, the district will have work beginning on the High School’s HVAC upgrades, using local subcontractors.

She asked for board approval of a resolution adopting greenhouse gas reduction policies – a requirement of a million-dollar federal grant to upgrade utilities in the elementary school building and perhaps the old gym. Kline said that five percent of the funds in this bond are dedicated to small school districts, and that Orcas appears to be the only district that has applied in that category.

After some discussion, that resolution to approve the policy passed by three votes, with OISD Board members Scott Lancaster and Jim Sullivan abstaining.

Superintendent Kline reported that “Summer school is busy every day; it’s a wonderful thing to have open a summer school for Orcas kids who realize they are behind in their credits and can catch up by the fall.”