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State's new math nips $400K from district's budget |
By Laurent
Bonczijk, Newberg Graphic reporter
E-mail Laurent at lbonczijk@eaglenewspapers.com |
New accounting rules by
the state of Oregon have created a $400,000 shortfall in the funds
carried over in the Newberg School District’s budget, officials
announced at Monday’s school board meeting.
Claire Hertz, district director of business services, explained
that the change is due to the state’s modification of the average
daily membership weighted (ADMW). The school district receives
funding from the state depending on the number of students attending
classes.
In the past, when a student left the district and no one knew where
the student had gone, he or she could be counted for 10 days. Now,
“the 10-day rule is gone,” said Hertz, adding that the ADMW funds
stop immediately when a student leaves the district. The state
didn’t notify the district of the change in the accounting practice,
she said.
“I knew they were counting kids differently. I didn’t know they
were taking it out of our ADM,” Hertz said.
The hiring of new teachers by the district this year also affected
funding because the average teacher experience went down compared to
the statewide average.
“When the teacher experience goes down, so does the funding,” she
said.
Another difference from years past is that the state sent the
district two financial reports for the past year instead of the four
or five Hertz normally receives. She attributed that to reduction in
personnel at the state level.
“To be clear, no one has overspent their budget,” she told the
board. Instead, principals and directors simply spent more of their
budgets than in years past. “We’ve had some very lean years,”
describing this as “part of the impetus for people to feel freer to
spend their budget.”
Hertz said the shortfall would be made up by delaying hiring some
positions. The hiring of younger teachers to replace those who
retired also means lower payroll expenditures than forecasted.
Superintendent Paula Radich said that this year, unlike last year,
she would wait until school attendance stabilized before allowing
hiring of additional teachers. She explained that last year, based
on development in the Newberg area, she had planned for a larger
increase in the student body than what materialized and had “front
loaded” the hiring of teachers as a result. “The reality was, I was
wrong and that cost us $500,000,” she said.
In other business, Melinda Van Bossuyt, chairwoman of the board of
directors, appointed directors Steve Cathers, Warren Parrish and
herself to the board facilities committee; Mitsi Vondrachek, Mark
Ankeny and Debbie Hawblitzel to the finance committee; and Parish,
Vondrachek and Jim Chogyoji to the personnel committee.
The board also discussed changes in its principles and guiding
beliefs, its goals, its mission statement, and discussed the
creation of a board and superintendent working agreement.
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Published
Aug. 15, 2007, Newberg Graphic
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