The Jordan Elbridge School District may have to cut 29 jobs and ask taxpayers to accept a 7.3% tax levy increase.
The proposed budget also eliminates modified sports and some varsity sports like golf and indoor track. Thursday night, a group called The Jordan-Elbridge Citizens for Fiscal Responsibility held a public forum for taxpayers. They are hoping a pair of fresh eyes on the proposed spending plan, will reveal new ways to save jobs and programs.
"This is in no way slamming the Board of Education for their efforts in coming up with a proposed budget. This is just another tool. Maybe they can pick some things out of this proposal and it can help the district," said community member Maureen Doyle.
J-E Assistant Superintendent of Business and Finance Bill Hamilton estimates the budget gap to be $3-million, but says the district hasn't made clear what the deficit is. "I think the gap, can be closed in a different way," he said.
At the meeting, Hamilton proposed a number of suggestions, including settling a number of legal battles the district is facing, restructuring central administration, using federal job fund money to save positions and asking employees to take a wage freeze. His proposal nearly closes the gap and would call for less than 10 layoffs to make up for the remaining deficit.
But Hamilton says everything needs to come together for it to work. "Before you do wage concessions labor wants to see what else is being done before they give up something that they already have," said Hamilton.
Hamilton says he doesn't believe the district needs to make deep cuts to extra curricular activities like sports and marching band. He told the group of concerned citizens that those events are critical in helping to connect the schools to the community.
"The school district is the heart of a community, and we are very unsettled right now so if we can at least get a budget we are comfortable with," said Doyle.
The group hopes the school board will take some of these suggestions into account when working through the spending plan. The school board still needs to vote on the budget, that's expected in the next few weeks.
