WACO cutting $400,000 from next year's budget

Members of the WACO Community,

On behalf of the WACO School Board, I?m going to give a quick update on the current status of our district. There seems to be many negative rumors floating around, and the Board wishes to clear these up. As many of you know, we are experiencing financial difficulties this year and into next year. We are not the only district with this issue. Many other districts in the area and state are facing the same issues. This past winter, our administration found out we are approximately $300,000 short in next year?s budget, and since then discovered we are about $30,000 short for this current school year.

So, after nearly three months of planning and consulting with staff and administration, the Board carefully cut a little over $400,000 from next year?s budget at the March school board meeting. Over half of this amount came from attrition in the form of early retirements from six valuable teachers who have served the students of the district for many wonderful years. By cutting this amount, the Board wanted to be cautious and to account for unexpected expenses next year, as well as potential increases in health care, fuel, food, and energy inflation. Also, by the extra cuts, it propels us into next year and helps us build financial momentum for years to come. These cuts, which go into effect for next school year, are ?hard money,? which means the district will realize the decrease in expenditures for years to come.

By way of our actions at the March school board meeting, the WACO board and administration has demonstrated that we are confident and committed to the long-term future of WACO. Because we are committed, we chose to make these painstaking cuts. We currently are sharing a few positions with neighboring districts, such as, superintendent, maintenance, transportation director, human resources, a few teachers, and athletic programs such as baseball, to help save the WACO district money. The board will continue to look at sharing some positions in financial hard times in order to keep our district alive and thriving.

WACO has much to be proud of, and much to celebrate! Our ITBS scores are among the highest in neighboring districts, large and small. Our average ACT score last year was 23.9 compared to the state of Iowa average of 22.3. We have state-of-the-art technology, two very modern campuses in Crawfordsville and Wayland, and one of the nicest athletic facilities in this part of the state. Our curriculum is designed to give the students an opportunity to earn a year or more of college credits before they even graduate high school.

There has been a WACO Marketing Committee formed, which is open to the public, to help attract students and promote our district. Our teachers and staff have already begun many cost-cutting strategies, and have been very helpful in securing a future for WACO. The board is also looking at and researching other cost-saving measures to implement in years to come, as well as continuing to improve the educational process of our children.

If anyone has a question or concern, feel free to contact any school board member or anyone on our administration team. We appreciate our WACO communities and all that you do to help support what we are all about ? our students!

Thanks,

Tim Graber

WACO School Board President