Wauseon schools mull options over deficit
7/23/2008The Wauseon Exempted Village School District is exploring its options after financial figures for the 2007-2008 school year were returned showing a $500,000 deficit.
Declining enrollment and decreased property values contributed to a revenue decline of about $200,000. Meanwhile, increases in energy and personnel costs boosted spending by about $300,000 compared to the 2006-2007 school year, Superintendent Marc Robinson said.
He has recommended the establishment of a committee to study the district's financial situation and develop a solution.
"The main question your community has to answer is, how deep do you make cuts before they're willing to provide additional funding," he said.
During the most recent school year, the district made about $640,000 in budget reductions, Mr. Robinson said. The district trimmed the size of its teaching staff by three through attrition and imposed nonpersonnel budgets cuts of 10 percent.
The district's teachers also agreed to a health care concession that saved the district about $122,000, Mr. Robinson said.