Somers/Lakeside school district funds outlook improves

The financial picture in the Somers/Lakeside School District 29 may not be as bleak as first thought.

Last week, Superintendent Paul Jenkins and school board members discussed options on what to do about the future of the district after voters rejected a $200,000 permanent general fund levy earlier this month.

“We’re fortunate because of some of the other factors and variables have come into play,” Jenkins said during the May 21 meeting. “We’re not looking at cutting teachers.”

Jenkins noted that the district is scheduled to receive $61,363 as a result of passage of HB175, an education funding reform law. More good news came when the district found out recently that $25,000 in Rural Education Achievement Program funds were restored. Jenkins said the state Office of Public Instruction worked at the federal level to get the funding restored. The district was set to lose the funds because it was no longer considered a rural school.

Those $86,363 in additional funds will be offset by a slight decline in enrollment — the district lost five students from May 2012 to May 2013 — that would result in a reduction of $6,759 and federal sequester-related cuts to Titles I and II programs that total $19,000.

The district is currently negotiating with the teachers’ union and is requesting the health insurance deductible be raised from $500 to $1,000 a year. This would save the district $72,316. Jenkins didn’t know what the budget impact would be if the district remained with a $500 deductible.

Maintenance needs at the district’s two schools include a new roof at Lakeside Elementary; sealcoating of parking lots and bus turnaround areas at Lakeside and Somers schools; a new heating system in Lakeside; a mobile technology lab at Somers Middle School; and new desks in Lakeside.

In regard to technology, the district received good news last week from Lakeside Elementary Principal John Theis. He noted that TeleTech awarded a $3,000 grant to the school’s special education teacher Laura Raykowski for iPads.

Jenkins said the district’s Facilities, Buildings and Grounds Committee was scheduled to prioritize funding for maintenance May 29. The school board will consider the committee’s recommendation at its regular meeting June 5 at 7 p.m.

At last week’s meeting, the school board brainstormed about what to do about long-term maintenance needs.  

Consolidating the two schools, building a new school or retrofitting one of the current schools are options.

The board talked about sending out a survey to registered voters, but decided to wait on that one. Instead, the board directed Jenkins to look into hiring a planning consultant and report back with some information.

“We obviously need a different strategy,” Jenkins said, quoting an oft-used phrase, “Pay me now or pay me later.”

Resubmitting a grant request to the Department of Commerce for removal of asbestos at Somers Middle School is one option. Another is looking into an energy audit is another.

Board members wondered about purchasing land to build a new school. “I don’t really see one campus with the price of land in this area,” board member Tim Rogge said.

“I think the community would support an upgrade, but not building a new school,” board member Alice Blasdel said.

Jenkins said that the cost of change orders could be exorbitant if the district decides to retrofit one of its schools. Jenkins and Rogge agreed that it would be cheaper to build a new school than to upgrade Somers Middle School.

Any effort to build a new school would take a marketing campaign that stretched two, three or four years, board member John Hollensteiner said.

Board member Sam Bagley said the district’s No. 1 priority should be ensuring that Lakeside Elementary doesn’t deteriorate.

Jenkins noted that the district’s voters have rejected a number of bond and levy requests over the years.

Board clerk Diane Fetterhoff said the district paid around $20,000 the last time it used a consultant.