Cost-saving suggestions for district keep coming, but deadline is almost here
Cutting costs
Janesville school officials are working to lower rental costs. Recently:
-- The Janesville Academy for International Studies moved from rented space downtown to a no-rent space at UW-Rock County, saving $44,396 a year.
-- The district negotiated lower rent with Kimball Properties for Rock River Charter School, lowering annual rent from $52,815 to $30,263 on a lease that ends in June 2013.
-- Officials have asked Hendricks Properties for a break on the $131,941 annual rent at Arrow Park, where TAGOS Leadership Academy and the district's Truancy Abatement and Transitional Education program are located. That lease ends in 2013.
JANESVILLE — Get outside the box, literally and figuratively. That's what one taxpayer urged the Janesville School Board at a listening session Thursday.
Turns out officials and school board members have been thinking outside the box when it comes to the school district's 19 brick-and-mortar boxes.
The board Tuesday voted not to close an elementary school. That decision came after months of study, but officials have considered other ways to consolidate programs in fewer buildings.
Some of the ideas that surfaced at Thursday's session at Craig High School were new to the general public if not to district officials.
Rob Riley suggested that Franklin and Marshall middle schools be combined with their next-door elementary schools to make kindergarten-through-eighth-grade campuses.
And maybe Jackson Elementary School could move to open space at Edison Middle School, Riley suggested, as large numbers of Jackson students already ride the bus.
"I see a great way, right there, to reduce costs. We just have to change our way of thinking," said Riley, who is transportation director for the Stoughton schools.
School board President Bill Sodemann was intrigued. "I would like to have the administration look at it. I think it's a really neat idea," he said.
Superintendent Karen Schulte said the idea had come up in administrative discussions. Some smaller districts have various combinations of grade levels, she noted.
"Next round, however that comes around, that could be something we could look at," Schulte said.
When the next round might be is uncertain. Schulte said after the meeting that the deadline to make major building changes to help next year's budget is nearly here.
The administration told the board months ago that it needs a decision by Oct. 1 so the planning process for teacher staffing next year can begin as it normally does in October.
The date is actually Oct. 3 because of the weekend, officials have said.
Other ideas popped up as four board members engaged in a free-flowing, polite conversation with a handful of parents, teachers and others at Craig.
Board member Kevin Murray said one solution might be moving some "business" functions out of the Educational Services Center to make room for either the TAGOS or Rock River charter schools, which now pay rent in commercial buildings.
Board member Lori Stottler was not at Thursday's session, but at Tuesday's meeting she suggested the board tell the administration to come up with a "restructuring" of building uses, something she said they could likely do "in their sleep."
Stottler said Thursday that the district could look at changes in programs as well as building use as it peers into the future and tries to discover what a 21st century education should look like.
The board has an agenda-planning meeting this morning, and Stottler said she might attend to see if the idea has any traction. The board isn't scheduled to meet until Oct. 11, but it could call a special meeting at any time.
Administrators also have considered adding fifth grade to the current middle school grades of 6-8, said board member Peter D. Severson.
The 5-8 school idea apparently came up after school board member Karl Dommershausen some months ago suggested a different idea, moving the middle schools' sixth grade to the elementary schools.
"I believe we will eventually need to close a school, unless enrollment turns around," Dommershausen said Thursday.
Schulte repeated her hopes—based on recent increases in preschool, kindergarten and first-grade—that enrollment could be making a comeback.
That was a reason Severson said he voted not to close an elementary school.
Riley said he didn't think that comeback would happen in his lifetime.
Two parents at the meeting liked the K-6 elementary school idea, but Schulte said sixth-graders are closer to middle schoolers in terms of their physical and mental development.
"We'd want to dig into the research and make sure we're making the right decisions, but surely that could be looked at," Schulte said.
Sodemann said if past experience is a guide, he could probably find research to support opposing points of view.
Several speakers Thursday pleaded with the board not to do what it did last spring, when staff morale plummeted as the board considered job cuts, ultimately reducing district staff by 110.
"I try not to be a doom-and-gloomer, but I don't see any way we're going to get through next year without some cuts," Severson said.
"We're in survival mode right now," Severson said. "Next year is probably going to be the worst. … We've torn down this school district a little bit, and we're going to have to work to build it back up."
Oct 2, 2011 at 4:01 p.m.
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I agree Sandman, and I am a parent of two children that are in the school district. I paid a whole $32 for my youngest's education, and he is in ementary school. I had to pay a whole $44 for my high schooler's education this year. One pair of shoes, or an outfit costs more than this.
Is this all I think their education is worth for the year? Absolutely not!!!
I did some math based on my youngest's kindergarden class. There are a total of 73 kids in our schools kindergarden classes. This year the max paid, if everyone paid full fees, is $2,336. Now lets say that EVERY parent HAD to pay $100 for school fees, that amount would go to $7,300. That is an increase of $5,000 for one grade alone. Now include another 5 grades of another 73 students in each grade, that's $30,000 for his school alone for one year. If you take that $30,000 and multiply it by the 17 schools that are in our district that is $510,000 for one year. It wouldn't take long for the shortfall to be taken care of.
Oct 2, 2011 at 8:35 a.m.
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Hey Sandman...why don't you take your head out of the sand...who paid for your education when you were a child ?(sounds like your STILL a child).
Oct 1, 2011 at 3:39 p.m.
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Rocky, It would also have taken a mutual agreement with the teachers union to change the contracts. Why on earth would the teachers agree to that? But the board pushed for it and people are angry that the teachers didn't do it.
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I do remember a few years ago, Milton was struggling with overcrowding and rapid growth and maybe there would have been a window for changes then. Now, I agree, they have nothing to gain... but it would help the Janesville budget! So why don't we push this, then we can be mad at Milton instead of the teacher's union for choosing not to do something that is not in their own best interests.
Oct 1, 2011 at 1:54 p.m.
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SmallBiz - you may want to look up the definition of sarcasm. Perhaps with better schools you'd understand it better.
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Factsplease - here are a few facts for you: It would take a mutual agreement to change the boundary line with Milton. Why on earth would Milton agree to that? Why would Milton families want to go from a financially stable, low tax district with decent board/staff relations for what exists in Janesville? More likely scenario: Janesville parents exercise their right to school choice this February and move even more Janesville kids to the Milton schools - taking their state aid dollars with them.
Oct 1, 2011 at 1:39 p.m.
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The board does have tough decisions to make, but I'm disturbed by the approach I've seen. For example, closing a school was presented almost as a "threat" and they were surprised when people didn't like it. Board members then threatened that there will be larger class sizes anyway. Well, what I don't get is why they couldn't have done some preliminary research BEFORE going to public meeting stage regarding school closings. Why not give people as much info as possible? Here's what a re-drawing boandary lines will look like. Here's where your kid MIGHT go to school and here's what class sizes MIGHT look like. They keep throwing things out with what appears to be little research. Change may be inevitable, but people will inherently be afraid when you give them no idea of what it will look like.
Oct 1, 2011 at 1:21 p.m.
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Rocky - - you may have forgotten that CHANGE is good. Also, I don't buy the "my hard-earned salary" crap.
Oct 1, 2011 at 12:06 p.m.
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Here's "out of the box", why don't we change the boundary lines with Milton so more kids who live in Janesville are in this school district? Most of the growth of this city (NE corner) has increased the Milton school district, not Janesville.
Oct 1, 2011 at 10:02 a.m.
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"Officials have asked Hendricks Properties for a break on the $131,941 annual rent at Arrow Park, where TAGOS Leadership Academy and the district's Truancy Abatement and Transitional Education program are located. That lease ends in 2013."
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But I suppose they can't afford to give a break to the taxpayers supporting this school district. Even though there seemed to be an extra million dollars to donate to the Koch Brothers!
Oct 1, 2011 at 9:57 a.m.
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Hear that flushing sound, Janesville? Continued cuts will bring the sound closer and closer.
Oct 1, 2011 at 7:47 a.m.
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Sandman is exactly right. We need to do the same with social security and medicare. Let the old and disabled who use the services pay for them! I'm tired to having to pay 8% of my hard-earned salary to cover these freeloaders. Time to cut back!!! [/sarcasm]
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SmallBiz - you may have forgotten that the constitution guarantees the right to a free public education (Article X, Section 3). Yes - that is the same constitution that protects your right to bear arms, hunt and fish. Are you proposing to change the constitution?
Oct 1, 2011 at 7:12 a.m.
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A statewide move toward private schools is the answer.
Oct 1, 2011 at 6:07 a.m.
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It's getting to be too much to listen to all the wonderful things these schools are doing when the board doesn't even have the fortitude to make tough decisions and live within their budget instead of asking taxpayers to pay for it once again!
Hey--all you folks with kids in the system--why don't you volunteer to shoulder the extra financial burden and pay the difference for all the school extras they just can't live without? If you can't afford these kids, there's no reason that everyone else should have to pay for everything!
Otherwise, START CUTTING!
Sep 30, 2011 at 6:56 p.m.
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Maybe he is a taxpaying citizen of THIS city and he took the time to attend the meeting. I do agree with him, we need to look outside the box for any ways to "fix" this budget mess.
Sep 30, 2011 at 5:43 p.m.
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Why are we listening to suggestions made by a transportation director from another school district?
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