Money Talks, Kids Don’t Walk

Hmmm.
The day the clock tower project is canceled the school announces a $30,000 anonymous donation. Maybe there is no connection, but if there is, the money is being put to good use, i hope. Better late than never. Thanks anonymous donor!
From the schools website:

allowed us to restore the supplemental payments to teachers for most of the clubs and activities that were eliminated in November. This is an excellent way to help enhance our children’s educational experience. We are most grateful to the anonymous donor,” said Kohanski. Board Vice President Ann Morrison stated, “School boards are faced with having to implement immediate cuts when a levy fails to deal with immediate and long-term delays in securing the funds we need to operate our schools efficiently. We are glad to have the opportunity to at least temporarily restore some of the cutbacks.”

The implementation of cluster stops on all bus routes was announced in November, as part of the board’s plan to trim $120,000 from its current budget. The cost-saving plan included cuts in supplemental contracts, reducing the curriculum budget, scaling back professional development, requiring reimbursement for field trips and the decision to begin charging students to attend athletic events.

The anonymous donation allows approximately 25% of the cuts to be temporarily restored. “In addition to these cost savings, the district will need to eliminate nine staff positions this spring unless we pass a levy in March and obtain additional funds,” Kohanski said. “With the November levy failure, we are faced with cutting half, or $850,000 from next year’s budget to trim the 1.5 million needed by the end of 2010.

The reality is that until we begin eliminating staff positions, we will not realize any significant cost savings, since over 80% of our operating budget is comprised of staff salaries and benefits,” he added. A letter sent this week tells parents of the anonymous donation and reinstitution of clubs as well as rescinding the decision to implement cluster bus stops.

The Board has also announced the creation of a cost reduction committee that will review all areas of expenditure before issuing recommendations for further budget cuts this spring.>