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Belcourt board warned of $100,000-plus Title I drop and motions to revise federal application
Summary
District staff told the Belcourt School Board that Title I funding will fall from roughly $1.9 million to about $1.788 million next year and Title IV will be reduced by about $200,000; staff proposed a revised application and short-term steps to avoid immediate service cuts.
District staff told the Belcourt Public School District No. 7 board on June 2 that federal Title I funding for the district will drop from roughly $1.9 million this year to about $1.788 million next year, and that Title IV funding has been cut by about $200,000.
The board heard staff explain that the state's move to a census-based allocation method shifted money away from the district, which serves many students who live on the Turtle Mountain Reservation but are educated in neighboring districts. Staff also recounted a prior denial of roughly $1.2 million in Title I reimbursement that required carryover adjustments and complicated the district’s multi-year planning.
District business officials said they have formed a team to rework the Title I application and planned a special meeting to review the new application this week. The goal, staff told the board, is to preserve services through the coming school year while avoiding layoffs; officials said they will monitor funds closely and consider attrition and position reassignments if necessary.
Board members and staff discussed the limits of local authority: Title programs are supplemental and not guaranteed from year to year. Staff warned that if the funding level is not restored under a possible hybrid allocation method the following biennium, the district may need to migrate some Title-funded positions to general fund lines, ask affected staff to seek other positions, or use attrition rather than immediate layoffs.
The board was also briefed that a state task force has recommended reforms and that district leaders will pursue legislative remedies to seek a hybrid allocation that would restore some lost revenue. Staff said a clearer picture of allocation changes should emerge by the next legislative cycle and that the district is working to avoid service interruptions through the current year.
Next steps: a special meeting to review the revised Title I application, continued outreach to state legislative contacts, and monthly budget monitoring by the business office and district leadership.
