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Resident warns of reserve depletion after consolidation; parent urges more guidance counselors
Summary
During public comment, a resident criticized the district's consolidation finances and predicted leadership turnover; parent David Fedor said the district has far fewer guidance counselors than state recommendations and asked whether hiring is planned.
At a Rock Ridge Public Schools board meeting, a resident in the public-comment period criticized the district’s consolidation financial decisions and warned the district is approaching statutory operating debt, while a parent asked the board about guidance-counselor staffing.
The resident (identified in the transcript only as a member of the public) read a prepared statement saying the consolidation involved large reserve reductions and alleging that the district had spent about $6.5–$7 million of reserves inherited at consolidation. The speaker questioned previous savings estimates and said the district might face further budget reductions, adding: "You are getting dangerously close to statutory operating debt." He predicted the superintendent would depart amid the financial strain.
Parent David Fedor told the board his son has a 504 plan and praised staff work on the plan but said there is no guidance counselor in one building. Fedor cited a state recommendation of one guidance counselor per 250 students and estimated Rock Ridge has roughly three guidance counselors for about 2,100 students (about one per 700 students). "So we're less than a third in terms of the recommended number of guidance counselors," he said, and he asked whether the district plans to hire additional counselors.
Board members did not provide a detailed financial rebuttal during the public-comment period, and Andrea (district staff) later emphasized that household tax impact depends on market value but did not address the specific reserve figures cited by the resident. The resident’s financial claims and the parent’s staffing concerns were recorded in the meeting record; the board did not announce immediate staffing hires or a detailed response to the reserve allegations at the meeting.
Next steps: the resident's allegation about reserve use and the parent’s counselor staffing concern were raised on the record; both items could be referred to staff for follow-up and possible placement on a future agenda for financial presentation or staffing discussion.
