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SPPS faces $25 million budget shortfall
Saint Paul, Minn.- Closing the achievement gap and maintaining a high-quality educationfor all students remain priorities as Saint Paul Public Schools managesan expected $25 million budget shortfall for the 2009-10 school year.Twenty-five million dollars is about 5 percent of the district'soperating budget. This is the largest single-year shortfall thedistrict has faced in more than a decade.
"We have hit thetrifecta of bad budget news - a sluggish economy, state fundingincreases that have not kept pace with inflation and decliningenrollment," said Superintendent Meria J. Carstarphen. "We are notimmune to the hardships of an economic downturn," she continued."Families, however, do not expect us to change our focus from providingthe best education possible to their children. Our challenge is tobecome even more efficient and effective in the face of these declinesand to maintain the optimistic course we have set."
With pastbudget shortfalls, school and district officials made every effort tokeep cuts as far from classrooms as possible. That will be the primarygoal as district officials plan for the 2009-10 budget, however, adeficit of this size will touch all areas of Saint Paul Public Schools.A task force of Business Services staff, principals and otheradministrators currently are developing priorities for eliminating theshortfall.
Saint Paul Public Schools assembles a preliminarybudget outlook in December then revises it based on updated enrollmentcounts, state forecasts and the Legislative session. This year theforecast was made in August to accommodate a presentation to the Boardof Education on Large Scale System Change in the district. At that timethe shortfall was estimated to be about $15 million. A decline inenrollment and a recent, downward of adjustment to zero of expectedstate funding for the 2009-10 school year caused the shortfall to grow.With an economic downturn, fewer staff are expected to retire changingthe anticipated savings in turnover from experienced, higher-paidemployees to newer, lower-paid staff.
"We are being especiallycautious with our estimates and our investments," said Chief BusinessOfficer Lois Rockney. "As a public agency, we are conservative in ourapproach, and now with greater economic uncertainty we are being evenmore careful."
The Superintendent will begin to discuss theshortfall at the regular Board of Education meeting on Tuesday, Jan.20. Discussion will continue through the Feb. 10 Committee of the Boardmeeting at which guidelines for the 2009-10 budget will be presented.Later this winter the district will assemble enrollment and budgetallocations for schools. Those are sent to schools in March. Principalsand site councils prepare their budgets and return them to the districtoffice in May to be assembled into the final budget. The board isexpected to vote on approval of the 2009-10 budget at its June 16meeting. By law, the district must have a board-approved, balancedbudget by June 30.
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