Liberty district enrollment slips; finance staff urge caution as payroll encumbrances shift
Summary
District staff reported a small year-over-year enrollment decline and an October budget snapshot showing payroll-related encumbrance changes. Board members requested more detailed enrollment breakdowns for budget planning and warned that the district may need to revise its December budget.
District staff told the Liberty Elementary governing board at its Nov. 10 meeting that the most recent enrollment snapshot (Nov. 4) showed 4,543 students, down from figures reported in May that are used for ADM (average daily membership) calculations.
Board members flagged a 108-student decline from May — the ADM baseline used in prior budget calculations — and said a downward enrollment trend could require revisions to the December budget. One board member called the drop "pretty concerning" given a recent new school opening.
Finance staff (Crystal Mosher) presented the October expenses and encumbrances through Oct. 31 and said the apparent roughly $1,000,000 shift in remaining Maintenance & Operations (M&O) funds stemmed primarily from payroll and benefits recalculations (vacancies, new hires, benefit adjustments) that re-run each payroll. Mosher said carryover Title I funds and an additional allocation from the Arizona Department of Education are possible later in the winter; she recommended caution with M&O and capital encumbrances for the rest of the fiscal year.
Board members asked staff for more granular class-by-homeroom and rosters breakdowns (to identify where additional sections or paras might be needed) and requested that staff provide updated graphs and projections for the December budget revision. Finance staff offered to provide more detailed trend charts in a future update.
Why it matters: Enrollment levels underpin state funding calculations (ADM) and influence staffing and budget decisions; a sustained decline can force program or position adjustments.
What comes next: Staff committed to sending more detailed enrollment trend graphs and to working with the board on any necessary budget revisions ahead of the district’s December budget timeline.
