YPS passes budget deficit

By Jim Cavanaugh
Jun. 30, 2009    ·    2:48 a.m.

The Ypsilanti Board of Education unanimously approved its 2009-2010 budget Monday night, with an anticipated budget shortfall of more than $3.7 million.

In accordance with state law, the district will be required to submit a deficit reduction plan. The district expects to file the plan after a financial audit by Plante-Moran is finished.

In the weeks leading up to Monday night’s meeting, the district held a number of public input sessions regarding the proposed budget. The district had expected to face a deficit of approximately $1.4 million with possible cuts to personnel, the elimination of some field trips and reduction of staff hours.

A number of costs made their way to the final line item budget that were not included in earlier budget revisions, including utility and health insurance increases as well as the loss of money through property tax tribunals. The district also expects to see a $110 per pupil reduction from the state, resulting in a loss of $433,111.

“We’re probably 95 percent certain there’ll be a $110 reduction per student,” Superintendent James Hawkins said.

As for losing money through local tax tribunals, acting Chief Financial Officer Kelli Glenn told the Board that the district should expect to get some of that money back from the state, but it is only issued twice per year.

The budget initially included a $6 million deficit, however, several cost cutting measures were implemented to bring it down to $3.7 million.

The final budget calls for 16 teaching positions to be cut, four of which will be made from the art, music and physical education departments.

Contracted administrators and central office administrators will be taking a pay cut of 3 percent. Non-union secretaries, custodial employees and other non-union employees will work a reduced amount of minutes, equating to a 3 percent pay cut.

Board Vice President Linda Horne expressed thanks to the employees who took the pay cut and suggested she’s hopeful about labor negotiations that are set to begin later next month.

“I know it is difficult,” Horne said about the pay cuts. “I hope that during our collective bargaining a lot of positive things will work out.”

Other personnel cuts include the elimination of one secretary at Ypsilanti High School, the elimination of one electrician position and two custodial positions.
Earlier budget revisions called for the elimination of middle school sports, along with some art and music classes. Several parents, along with board members, came out against such eliminations at earlier public input sessions.

Mike Harback, a parent with three children in the Ypsilanti school system, said he was attracted by some of the programs that places like Washtenaw Community College offered that would have allowed his children to graduate high school with an associate’s degree. But ultimately, he decided that the Ypsilanti school district was right for his children.

“The reason I wanted to keep my kids in the public schools were the extra curriculars,” Harback said.

He added that things like sports, art and theater productions give children confidence and provide “a whole different way to get their brains to work.”

In one of the evening’s few moments of levity, Board President David Bates commended the fact that one of the supply funds had come in under budget last year—and then returned a bag full of large paper clips to the board clerk, which resulted in applause and laughter from the board and audience.

“We’re not going to find a big solution to this budget problem,” Bates said. “If we’re going to solve our budget problems, we’ve got to get together everyone in the community.”