Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the School Finance topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Southmoreland officials flag roughly $600,000 cyber-charter shortfall, urge state reform
Summary
Business manager Pam told the board that cyber-charter tuition costs this year are far above budgeted amounts and that the district has paid nearly $2 million to cyber charters in the prior fiscal year; trustees were urged to press state legislators for reform.
Southmoreland School District's business manager reported a large, unanticipated cost for cyber-charter tuition on Aug. 19, saying the district faces a roughly $600,000 gap on the line item and asking the board and community to press state lawmakers for reform.
"One of the things that I always show you each month is the cyber charter comparison. Looking at the amount that we paid last fiscal year was almost $2,000,000," Business Manager Pam said during the meeting. She said the district is monitoring cash closely while the state budget remains unsettled.
Pam told trustees the district has reserved some designated fund balance for cyber-charter overages and is working with auditors to reconcile year-end totals. She said she hopes the district will not need to draw the full set-aside but prepared the board in case it does.
Board members responded that the shortfall was substantial. "That's a half a million. It's 6 tenths of a million dollars," one member said while reviewing the figures. Trustees discussed advocacy steps; several urged constituents to contact state legislators about cyber-charter funding and reimbursement formulas.
The board also discussed timing and uncertainty: the district must submit data used to set cyber-charter tuition rates to the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) before the final tuition is known, which complicates budgeting. Pam said the district completes the PDE form used to set rates (the transcript referenced the PDE form) and that tuition rates for the coming year are determined afterward.
Trustees asked for follow-up detail on which cyber providers charge tuition and requested updated figures after auditors finish year-end reconciliations. At the meeting, a vocational-technical partner (CWCTC) said it set its cyber tuition rate at $15,000 to recover some community funds.
Why it matters: Cyber-charter tuition is a recurring budget pressure for Pennsylvania districts; large overruns can force districts to draw on fund balance or alter local tax/expense plans. Board members said they intend to continue outreach to state lawmakers to seek systemic change rather than short-term fixes.
What’s next: Pam said she will reconcile final year-end numbers with auditors and report back to the board with vendor-specific tuition rates and any recommended local budget actions.
