The More Things Change . . .

In October of 2010, the fall after I accepted my first superintendent position, Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker signed Act 10 into law.  The residual effect of that led to the need for our district to cut $2.2M out of a $37M budget.

In my second superintendent position, my CFO told me in May when I was visiting the district shortly after I was appointed, that we had a $2.4M budget deficit going into the next school year, but not to worry, because in June, the Board planned to cut $1M, and we had enough fund balance to manage until we could take further budget measures.  For whatever reason, that didn't happen, and a week later, when the calendar turned to July, I walked through the door and into a situation where we had a $3.4M deficit on a $120M budget.

In the first instance we balance the budget by the next budget cycle.  In the second instance, it took two budget cycles.  In either case, it is not exactly the way a new superintendent would prefer to come into a new situation--at least not me.

Fast forward 13-1/2 years.

In January of this year, I began a new superintendent position.  It is the first time that I have started a new position mid-year.  I had hoped this would have some advantages.  I developed a plan with Board input that focused on getting to know the staff and community, and, as I learned more, begin a dialogue with the Board and community about establishing a future-driven plan for learning.

Silly me to be so optimistic.  Over the course of my first 10 days, the district had two high profile meetings about what do with three properties that were closed as attendance centers due to declining enrollment.  I had expected this, having been adequately informed about recent controversy surrounding the issue.  I had also expected that over the course of the next couple of years, we would need to do some belt tightening, as a recent agreement with the local power authority was expiring, which would result in a $2M hole in our budget.

What I did not know was that we would be facing a $3M budget shortfall for the 2024-25 school year even with a 1.99% levy increase.  Here we go again, as they say.

My team and I got to work immediately, with our first strategy being to capitalize on a retirement incentive that had been negotiated in the recent teacher contract.  My union president has been a true partner in conversations about the long-term financial sustainability for the district, and I am very appreciative of this.  Though it has helped a lot, it hasn't changed the fact that the retirements alone were not enough to close the gap, and that this was not going to be a one-and-done problem.

My experience has been that regardless of the district, there are at least five commonalities that districts face when dealing with budget deficits.

Five Commonalities That Most Districts Face During Challenging Budget Times

1. Staff reductions are inevitable

2. People expect the level of service that they are accustomed to

3. The research doesn't matter

4. People want what they want

5. The money is at the high school

The first and most obvious commonality is that approximately 70% or more of a school district's budget is in salary and benefits, and most of the rest of it is fixed costs.  There are little options on the expenditure side outside of reducing staff, and none short of tax increases on the revenue side (fees are generally nominal in the grand scheme of things, and just as unpopular as a tax increase.)

A second commonality that I believe districts share is that it does not matter how well-resourced a district is.  People are accustomed to a certain level of service, and that is what they expect.  This is exacerbated in towns where there are multiple generations of history, and where a significant majority of teachers graduated from the district.

The third commonality, which follows from the second, is that the research doesn't matter.  According to Hattie, the effect size of class size is .21 and the effect size of co-teaching is .19.  Two of the most expensive things that schools support, two of the least impactful influences, and, two of the most politically unviable areas to touch during budget deliberations.

The fourth commonality is that people want what they want.  They prioritize wants based on the ages of their children and their personal experience in schools.  In other words, elementary parents will want lower class sizes, high school parents will want a broad range of elective offerings, special education parents will expect generous supports, people will want fine arts and athletic opportunities, most people advocate for technology, some for air conditioning, and very few will want their taxes to go up.  Balancing all of that is close to impossible.

The fifth commonality is that, in most districts, the money is at the high school.  This is not meant to be a criticism but merely a statement of fact.  This reality complicates decision-making in multiple ways.  In a single high school town, the high school is often the centerpiece of the community and a true source of pride.  Common sense can take a back seat quickly when the rhetoric revs up and the departmental turf wars begin.  This commonality can be the most challenging.

These five commonalities haven't changed from my first year as a superintendent in 2010, and, neither apparently, has the need for me to have to find budget savings in my first year in a new district.