ShawneeDispatch.com

More than 100 positions, including 70 teachers, would be cut in the 2010-11 school year in Shawnee Mission USD 512 under a proposal presented this week to the district’s Board of Education.

The proposed cuts are part of the district administration’s plan to slash more than $10 million from USD 512’s budget in the wake of additional state funding cuts.

At the USD 512 Board of Education meeting Monday evening, superintendent of schools Gene Johnson recommended the cuts. Eliminated jobs include 25 teaching positions in elementary schools, 19 teaching positions in middle schools and 26 teaching positions in high schools, as well as, one counselor position at each of the district’s five high schools.

Districtwide cuts included 15 operations and maintenance positions such as custodians, positions in staff development, media services, human resources, information services and resource specialists. The district also would delay the hiring of an information services manager.

Johnson also proposed cutting the fourth-grade strings program in the district’s elementary schools and delaying uniform purchases at high schools.

Currently USD 512 is facing state cuts of approximately $10.2 million for the 2010-11 school year.

“We aren’t’ sure what’s going to happen to the school budget for the next fiscal year,” Johnson told board members. “Tonight we are going to reveal a little over $10 million in proposed reductions. We are hoping we don’t have to add on to that. We realize there is a possibility of more cuts based on the state revenue deficits in Topeka.”

Johnson said the board would review the proposed recommendations and there would be discussion between the board and administrators to develop a final budget to be approved in August.

Johnson assured those in the audience that cuts to teaching positions would not adversely affect the pupil-to-teacher ratio at any level of instruction.

Board president Larry Winn said the board hoped the $10 million would be final.

“I think the $10 million is a firm number, if we are lucky and things don’t get worse than they are now,” he said.

Johnson said administrators reviewed the list of recommended reductions last week, so that employees on the list were notified personally. The board did not see the recommendations until Monday’s meeting.

The only patron input at the meeting was before the recommendations were revealed.

Kathy Cook, district patron, asked the board and fellow patrons to support tax increases to help alleviate budget deficits in the state.

“I know the board decisions are not easy,” She said. “I am asking for our board and patrons to stand with our legislators as they make necessary but not popular decisions. If we do nothing to show our support, then we have no one to blame but ourselves when the Legislature slashes our budget.”

At the conclusion of the meeting, Winn asked the community to look at the positives within the district, the students.

“You can get gloomy and doomy coming to these meeting,” he said. “The bottom line is we have a bunch of good kids. We’ll get through this.”

Comments