Area districts expect deep budget cuts to hit classrooms

Area school district officials are steeling themselves for another round of severe financial cuts in light of Gov. John Hickenlooper’s 2011-2012 budget, which chops K-12 education by $375 million and higher education by $36 million.   

Educators don’t expect much help from the legislature, predicting the numbers will remain grim because the state has a $1.1 billion shortfall. The governor’s budget includes $117 million in property tax decreases that will hit districts and will not be backfilled by the state.  

Noting that education is 41 percent of the budget, Hickenlooper said, “I don’t know how to protect K-12. We could not find a way to do that.”

Educators said it is students who will suffer.

“If this continues we will have a lost generation,” said Superintendent Rick Walter of Miami-Yoder School District JT60. “They keep telling us we can do more with less, and everyone has been absorbing workloads, but we can’t do much more. The kids are going to suffer.”

“It’s a sad day. There is no way any district can keep this from impacting classrooms,” said Cheryl Wangeman, assistant superintendent of operations for Lewis-Palmer School District 38.

Already, Colorado dramatically lags other states in per pupil spending. The state ranked 42nd last year in spending per pupil, or about $8,167, according to GreatEducation Colorado.    
Along with state cuts, districts will lose federal stimulus and education jobs money, which expire as enrollment continues to rise.

“It’s bad, it’s really bad,” said Glenn Gustafson, chief financial officer for Colorado School District 11, noting its cuts could exceed $21.4 million. “We  already cut the easier things. Now it will be the hard stuff like school programs, class size, employee compensation.”

Falcon School District 49, with 14,027 students, started cutting in January, including staff cuts and the elimination of bus transportation starting next school year.  

Last year, it lost a bond election that would have helped with enrollment growth.

It expects anywhere from $5 million to $9 million in cuts from its $92.7 million budget.  The district is pursuing official innovation status from the state, in part to drive money to the classroom instead of central administration.

John Mann, board president of Lewis-Palmer School District 38, calls the situation onerous.

”We are looking at ways to cut. But where?" Mann said. "There is a crisis coming to all districts.”

D-38 is looking at cuts of 5 to 10 percent from a $36 million budget, or as much as $3.6 million. The district, which has 5,500 students, will receive about  $468 less per pupil. It also expects increases in utilities, employee pension plans and health care costs, Wangeman said.

Mann said cuts in recent years led to a teachers’ pay freeze, reduced elementary staff, realignment of schools and a requirement that  high school staff teach six periods instead of five.  

A citizens task force looking at cuts has suggested reducing utility costs, having students help clean classrooms, renting buildings and selling unused assets.

Miami-Yoder, a rural district east of Colorado Springs has 320 studentsand a $2.5 million budget that may have to be cut another $240,000.  Walters said it probably will go into deficit budgeting, using reserves since it has already cut to the bone. Like other districts across the region, it also will look at staffing.

It has a new school, thanks to a state grant from the BEST program that uses state land trust fees to help replace Colorado’s crumbling schools.

 “As it is, we’ve got the new school but probably won’t be able to staff it completely, ” Walter said.