POPLAR RIDGE - The failing economy is hitting everybody's wallet, and the same cannot be any truer for the Southern Cayuga Central School District.
Jill Connor / The Citizen
Steve Morse, a board member, right, laughs with Superintendent Mary Kay Worth, and Ted Rejman, board president, at the Southern Cayuga Board of Education meeting on Monday evening.
Steve Morse, a board member, right, laughs with Superintendent Mary Kay Worth, and Ted Rejman, board president, at the Southern Cayuga Board of Education meeting on Monday evening.
Facing a scenario for the 2008-09 budget in which district expenses are greater than the amount of revenue coming in, the district and its board of education are considering options to be fiscally responsible with spending to keep taxpayer impact under control.
One idea proposed by district Superintendent Mary Kay Worth is to offer retirement incentives to faculty members.
According to Business Administrator Martha Stevermer, these incentives would honor the dedication of faculty members by giving them a financial boost as well as allowing the district to save some money.
The vacancy left by a retirement would be filled by an entry level employee working under a lower salary.
Board president Ted Rejman pointed out that this is more than just money.
“We're talking about people here,” he said. “Yes, part of it we're doing for financial need, but I don't want the perception to be that we're trying to get people out the door. These are good people.”
Board member Jim Wilcox voiced his opposition to any retirement incentives, saying that it was discussed last year and the board decided against it.
Replied board member Steve Morse, “Desperate times call for desperate measures.”
The district is facing a budget deficit for the next academic year as contractual expenses for teachers will increase by 4 percent while the amount of state aid, which accounts for most of the district's revenue, is not expected to match the increase, Stevermer said.
Retirement incentives is a way to keep spending under control, Stevermer said. Others include examination of staffing and programs.
“We're dealing with people's money here and everybody's feeling the pinch,” board member Leonard Jordan said. “You are going to be hard-pressed to come up with a tax increase of more than 1 or 2 percent. It isn't going to happen. It will be voted down. I guarantee it.”
Board vice president Michelle Dean said that she knows what it's like to be financially strained, as she has five children with one going off to college and commuting to work daily.
“But we also have to remember the other side of that and that's how every decision we make is also affecting the kids in the building,” she said. “That's the piece we also have to be mindful of, and while we're trying to be fiscally responsible, we have to weigh that other piece because if you have kids here you feel it. You feel it when they are not getting the support they need because of staffing. We have to remember that we have kids that are graduating here and they have to be just as competitive when they go on to college.”
Rejman said the board also has to remember the social dynamics of the people comprising the district.
“We may have people that live on the lake,” he said. “We may have some expensive farmland, but you know what you got as your core?
“We've got a lot of people that are just barely getting by. That means mom and dad are not home. Kids are not getting what they need at home, so they come to school for a safe haven. We can't be cutting there.”
The board is likely to be looking at some concrete numbers and tossing around ideas to keep spending at a minimum during its meeting on April 7.
Staff writer Alyssa Sunkin can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 239 or alyssa.sunkin@lee.net
One idea proposed by district Superintendent Mary Kay Worth is to offer retirement incentives to faculty members.
According to Business Administrator Martha Stevermer, these incentives would honor the dedication of faculty members by giving them a financial boost as well as allowing the district to save some money.
The vacancy left by a retirement would be filled by an entry level employee working under a lower salary.
Board president Ted Rejman pointed out that this is more than just money.
“We're talking about people here,” he said. “Yes, part of it we're doing for financial need, but I don't want the perception to be that we're trying to get people out the door. These are good people.”
Board member Jim Wilcox voiced his opposition to any retirement incentives, saying that it was discussed last year and the board decided against it.
Replied board member Steve Morse, “Desperate times call for desperate measures.”
The district is facing a budget deficit for the next academic year as contractual expenses for teachers will increase by 4 percent while the amount of state aid, which accounts for most of the district's revenue, is not expected to match the increase, Stevermer said.
Retirement incentives is a way to keep spending under control, Stevermer said. Others include examination of staffing and programs.
“We're dealing with people's money here and everybody's feeling the pinch,” board member Leonard Jordan said. “You are going to be hard-pressed to come up with a tax increase of more than 1 or 2 percent. It isn't going to happen. It will be voted down. I guarantee it.”
Board vice president Michelle Dean said that she knows what it's like to be financially strained, as she has five children with one going off to college and commuting to work daily.
“But we also have to remember the other side of that and that's how every decision we make is also affecting the kids in the building,” she said. “That's the piece we also have to be mindful of, and while we're trying to be fiscally responsible, we have to weigh that other piece because if you have kids here you feel it. You feel it when they are not getting the support they need because of staffing. We have to remember that we have kids that are graduating here and they have to be just as competitive when they go on to college.”
Rejman said the board also has to remember the social dynamics of the people comprising the district.
“We may have people that live on the lake,” he said. “We may have some expensive farmland, but you know what you got as your core?
“We've got a lot of people that are just barely getting by. That means mom and dad are not home. Kids are not getting what they need at home, so they come to school for a safe haven. We can't be cutting there.”
The board is likely to be looking at some concrete numbers and tossing around ideas to keep spending at a minimum during its meeting on April 7.
Staff writer Alyssa Sunkin can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 239 or alyssa.sunkin@lee.net
