March 9, 2010 Joint Board Meeting
MINUTES OF JOINT BOARD MEETING
C & M/ANITA COMMUNITY SCHOOL BOARDS
MARCH 9, 2010
The C & M and Anita Boards of Education met for a whole grade sharing session on March 9, 2010, at 7:00 p.m. in the Commons of the Middle School in Massena.
The meeting came to order at 7:00 p.m. Present at the meeting were C & M Directors Gary Dinkla, Jennifer Holste, Todd McKee, Sean South, and Rob Ticknor, and Superintendent Steve Pelzer.
Present from Anita were Directors Jeff Gregersen, Nick Kauffman, Chuck Kinzie, and Randall J. Rabe, Superintendent John Brazell, High School Principal Dominic Giegerich, and Board Secretary Linda Edwards. Director Julie Williamson was absent. 36 visitors signed the guest log.
AGENDA: President Gary Dinkla read the C & M Mission Statement and a motion to approve the agenda by the C & M Board was made by Jennifer Holste, seconded by Sean South. A motion to approve the agenda by the Anita Board was made by Chuck Kinzie, seconded by Nick Kauffman. Motion carried unanimously by both boards.
DISCUSSION was held on the following sharing topics: Reorganization, Future Joint Meeting Dates, and Preschool Grant.
REORGANIZATION: This discussion item was divided into four sections: Financial projections, petitions, review proposed director district boundaries, and questions. Mr. Pelzer introduced Larry Sigel, Iowa School Finance Information Services, who presented information on consolidation and what the two combined districts would look like. These are some of the topics from his powerpoint presentation.
Why would districts consider sharing, consolidation, reorganization, dissolution? Mr. Sigel discussed the reasons to reorganize. Programming, staffing and accreditation requirements are becoming difficult; building conditions; general financial constraints; natural population changes; natural relationship progression (we’re already sharing); more opportunity for students; self determination for community.
State DE Authority: Phase II Financial Audit: Two or more consecutive years of negative unspent balance (overspending the district’s spending authority) triggers a potential Phase II Accreditation financial audit by the state Department of Education. The DE doesn’t consider the educational outputs of the district. The state can close down the district (Russell CSD as an example.) When a district’s expenditures exceed its revenues, spending authority decreases. Spending authority is like your credit card limit. When you exceed your limit, you would have a negative unspent balance.
Sharing and Organizational Options: These options were presented by Mr. Sigel: Sharing without incentives –partner with neighbors or other governmental entities; operational/administrative sharing incentives; regional academies and ICN courses; whole grade sharing; reorganization taxpayer incentives; dissolution; closure by the state.
Whole Grade Sharing – District Incentives – Time Limited: Both districts are allowed incentives for three years of supplementary weighting for sharing. The last year of incentive is given the districts the year before reorganization. Then there are three more years of supplementary weighting when the district reorganizes. The 2013-2014 school year is the last opportunity to include WGS students for supplementary weighting.
Operational Sharing Incentives: Beginning in 2007-08, districts are eligible for weighting from shared operations with other districts for five years. Incentives are lowered annually, with 20% phase out each year. Districts must report annual cost savings or increased student opportunities by September 15 of the following year. Services that can be shared are: superintendent, business office, human resources, transportation or operations. The districts are currently sharing the services of the business manager.
Reorganization Incentives: The uniform tax levy (currently $5.40 per $1,000 valuation) would be reduced by $1 to $4.40 the first year of reorganization or dissolution. The levy would increase to $4.90, $5.15 and $5.40 in the succeeding years. This applies to reorganizations effective before July 2014 with districts with less than 600 students, which the combined district would be.
Regional Academies and ICN: There are incentives for schools to provide classes through regional academies or via the ICN.
District Options: Perpetual whole grade sharing; shared functions (building relationships); reorganization/consolidation; dissolution. The options require willing partners, with the vote of the public necessary for voluntary reorganization/consolidation. Dissolution is seen as a last resort, but happens when there is no willing or natural partner (students may already be open enrolling in many directions.
Considerations for Local Leaders: Which neighbor is the best match? Program, Accreditation, Staffing Requirements; student and parent preferences –are students likely to open enroll out of (or in to) the newly formed district? Meld into one salary schedule (teacher salary supplement and professional development dollars too). Transportation costs. Building location and grade level configurations. Levy issues: Instructional Support Levy and Physical Plant and Equipment Levy would be set at the least common denominator in the newly formed district. These levies would go into effect for the least rate and the least time of the two districts. Because the C & M district does not currently have a PERL (Public Education and Recreation Levy), that levy will stop when the districts merge. Property valuation taxes: how will the newly reorganized district impact property taxes?
Mr. Sigel presented information on the property taxes. The newly formed district would be a weighted average of the two districts’ tax rates. Preliminary tax rates for Anita for FY11: $16.4467 per $1,000 valuation and for C & M: $14.9358 per $1,000. Combined rate for merged district for FY12 was estimated at $13.7024, which includes the $1.00 incentive reduction. Estimated unspent balance at the end of FY10 for Anita: $650,000 and for C & M: $32,000. Mr. Sigel estimated that a combined district could spend $5,134,955 and not reduce FY2011 Unspent Budget Authority.
Gary Dinkla thanked Mr. Sigel for his presentation. He commented that transportation costs might be less if routes could be made more efficient. WGS incentives have been used the last two years and the last year of the incentive must be used in the year before reorganization and before July 2, 2014.
Steve Pelzer: The state legislature has not been helping us. They currently are using ARRA stimulus money to fund part of the per pupil cost. The stimulus money is a one-time thing and the dollars are gone.
Larry Sigel: American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) was started a year ago February. Money was given by the federal government to state governments to the schools. Iowa used it to replaced foundation aid (per pupil funding). . This was $680 million in one-time funding. State revenues have been declining. The across-the-board cut of 10% was equal to a cut of $410 per weighted enrollment.
Gary Dinkla: The one dollar buy-back on property tax is in excess of a quarter million dollars that is not removed from the economy. The state pays this.
Larry Sigel: The funding streams can only be used for specific things. The legislature has talked about moving funds around but he doesn’t see them doing anything.
Steve Pelzer: We’ve looked at every conceivable way to increase revenues.
Larry Sigel: Two additional funding streams are the Instructional Support Levy and Dropout Prevention. Both districts are using these sources. Less kids mean less money. If ten students leave the district, they don’t all leave the same class and it doesn’t mean you can cut a class.
Steve Pelzer: At C & M, we haven’t cut staff. Any reductions were due to retirements, etc. The Department of Education predicts that the C & M district will have a negative unspent balance in two years. It seems like everything we do to increase revenues and decrease expenses the state has done something to counteract that. Now, at C & M, if we cut teachers, we cut programs. We have closed a building. We would have been in the negative this year if we hadn’t.
Gary Dinkla: Both districts have done a great job minimizing the effects on the children. This is the best chance to continue doing this for our kids’ educations.
Steve Pelzer: This way we get to choose to continue what we are doing. There will be an unprecedented number of teachers statewide who will lose their jobs this year.
Larry Sigel: It is hitting everybody in all sizes of schools. The population losses aren’t slowing down.
John Brazell: Our enrollment is stabilizing. Our count was actually up this year. We have spending authority but are strapped for cash.
Todd McKee: The average person says “If I can just make it another 4-5 years, things will get better.” That is what we are trying to do. We are fortunate—we have an obvious answer. Reorganization is the only smart way to go. Bigger schools don’t have these options.
PETITION PROCESS: Discussion was held on where the districts are on signatures on the petitions. Petitions need to be turned in to the attorney soon so he can verify signatures and get the petitions to the AEA by the end of March.
Gary Dinkla: We’ve accomplished the first step. We have enough signatures to place it on the ballot. He expressed thanks to all the work people put in to get this accomplished.
Steve Pelzer: We have 240 signatures, 30-40 more than we needed.
Randy Rabe: We have about 270 signatures and need 266. We will get some more to make sure we have enough valid signatures.
Gary Dinkla: This is behind us, now the real work starts. If anyone has a group they would like the boards or superintendents to talk to, we’d like to take advantage of those opportunities.
PROPOSED DIRECTOR DISTRICTS: Mr. Pelzer presented the proposed director districts he had received today from the state department of education. This shows the line dividing the two director districts to be four miles north of where the current line between the districts is. The districts need to be equal in population—one person, one vote.
The initial (interim) board of the combined new district would have three current members of the Anita board and two current members of the C & M board. Through elections, the configuration would be two from the north director district, two from the south director district and one director elected at large. Due to the census, there would be redistricting, probably in 2012.
FUTURE JOINT MEETING DATES: The next meeting will be held in Anita on April 8 at 7 p.m. The same information provided tonight will be discussed with any new information presented. The next step in the process is that the AEA receives the petitions, the signatures are verified, and they will hold a hearing.
Dave Wahlert asked what the timeline is. The interim board needs to be appointed within 45 days of the election. There will be three boards: the C & M board, the Anita board, and the interim board. The new district will begin on July 1, 2011. At the September, 2011 regular school election, two seats will be up for election. In September of 2012, the other three seats will be up.
Michal South asked who would be on the interim board. The interim board will be comprised of current board members, three from the Anita board and two from the Massena board, based on populations of the current districts.
PRESCHOOL GRANT: This is the last year to apply for the four-year-old public preschool grant. One advantage of this is that students with special needs will be required to be taught by a certified teacher and right now, we are unable to do this. The two districts are working together to submit a consortium grant to have a four-year-old public preschool. Each district on its own could not afford to have a certified preschool teacher, but through the grant could hire a teacher to travel between the two districts.
The grant provides for the first year of funding. Students are counted as .6 FTE on certified enrollment. Funding for the grant is provided by the State Department of Education. It could be written into the grant that a five-year-old could attend but preference would be given to four-year-olds.
John Brazell: We are having several meetings with “partners”. There will be meetings this week in both districts with daycare providers and parents, Wednesday night in Anita and Thursday night in Massena. We are looking at how it will be set up: half days or full days. We are hoping the legislature approves the preschool grant again. Each student would have ten contact hours per week with a certified teacher. The first year of funding is on-time and we would get to count those students on our certified enrollment and receive funding again the next year.
ADJOURNMENT: Todd McKee moved, seconded by Sean South, to adjourn the C & M portion of the joint board meeting. Motion carried unanimously 5-0. President Randall J. Rabe adjourned the meeting of the Anita board. The joint meeting of the Anita and C & M Boards was adjourned at 8:40 p.m.
