PORTA District Considers Reductions
State of Illinois Payments to PORTA Schools Uncertain
March 20, 2012
State of Illinois Payments to PORTA Schools Uncertain
At the Board of Education meeting on March 13th, Superintendent Brue reported the State of Illinois has not paid $733,000 that is owed, and has not indicated a pay date. That figure, coupled with three delinquent transportation payments from the State of Illinois totaling $404,365, leave the district in a precarious position.
The District currently holds 1.6 million in the form of working cash. With the State of Illinois not delivering on their obligation, this could force our district to begin the next fiscal year with a dwindling working cash balance of less than a half million dollars. This is not a viable position to sustain long term.
The Board, along with Mr. Brue, explored possible reductions in all area’s of curriculum, extra-curricular programs, and staffing. The board has also taken into consideration increasing fees in many areas. As a result of the most recent Certified Staff reductions and retirements, Mr. Brue and the Board of Education anticipate savings of $314,000 in the next fiscal year. The goal of the Administration and Board is to reduce costs by $600,000 to $1,000,000 in the upcoming school year. With this in mind additional reductions will need to be considered and acted upon during the upcoming months.
The Board directed Mr. Brue to solicit feedback from the staff in regards to those programs that have the least amount of impact on student outcomes after graduation. The Board agrees with Mr. Brue that the quality of our curricular offerings is the focus as we move forward. Many hard decisions will have to be made as a result of declining revenues and increasing costs.
