Penncrest previews $60.4 million preliminary budget; cyber charter costs, health claims and declining enrollment cited

Kristen Slauscher, the district's business manager, presented the Penncrest School District’s proposed 2025–26 budget on April 14, reporting projected expenditures of $60,411,098 and a preliminary budget gap of $1,366,004.16.

Slauscher said the figures are preliminary and depend on final state and federal numbers. “This is where our starting point is,” she said during the presentation, adding district staff are still awaiting several state inputs that could reduce the projected shortfall.

Why it matters: the board will vote on a preliminary budget May 12 and must adopt a final budget by June 9. The presentation identified several drivers of the deficit that board members said they will press to address: falling enrollment, large out‑of‑district cyber charter payments, sharply rising self‑insured health claims and prescription costs, and the cost of transporting students across a large, multi‑county district.

Key budget figures and drivers

- Expenditures and deficit: Slauscher presented projected expenditures of $60,411,098 and a preliminary deficit of $1,366,004.16. She described the number as a starting point that the district hopes to reduce as state figures are finalized.

- Enrollment trends: Enrollment has declined about 23 percent from 2013–14…