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District outlines specific savings options: bus consolidation, custodial changes, fees and Fund 80 shifts
Summary
Staff presented menus of specific expense reductions and revenue options — including cutting two bus routes (~$100,000), moving some positions to Fund 80, modest custodial reductions, shortening the school year by five days and considering selective fee increases — and the board asked for detailed plans and equity analyses before proceeding.
District staff presented a menu of concrete savings and revenue options and asked the board for guidance on which to explore in detail.
On transportation, Unidentified Speaker (S2) said eliminating two routes could save about $100,000 but would probably require consolidation of stops and longer walks for some families. "In order to do that, we would likely need to create lock zones within the city limits...it would likely require students to have to walk further to bus stops," the presenter said, and cautioned that that change could raise equity and safety concerns that would need mitigation.
Operational options included converting a custodial position currently charged partly to the general fund so it would be paid entirely from Fund 80 (community service), and reducing two part‑time custodial positions (staff warned this might shift cleaning schedules and daily duties). Staff estimated moving co‑curricular middle‑school activities to a community‑fund model could generate roughly $90,500 in revenue by removing those costs from the general fund.
Staff also discussed shortening the school year by five days as a modest savings lever (presenter estimated roughly $90,000 of savings tied mainly to hourly staff and transportation days) but cautioned that collective‑bargaining and insurance eligibility issues would need detailed legal and human‑resources review before any change.
The board examined doubling a broad basket of student fees as a placeholder scenario (staff said doubling all listed student fees would yield about $100,000) but several trustees, while open to limited fee increases, raised equity concerns and asked staff for a granular fee list and a fee‑waiver plan before any proposal.
Several measures proposed to help close the two‑year $2.5 million target rely on attrition and reclassifying certain positions to Fund 80; staff repeatedly warned that auditors and the state have differing practices and that any Fund 80 moves must meet the fund’s eligibility criteria and be defensible to auditors.
The board did not approve any of the specific items at the retreat. Members asked staff to return with documented cost‑benefit analyses, equity and safety assessments for transportation proposals, an itemized fee comparison to neighboring districts and explicit language for any Fund 80 transfers.
