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Regional School District 09 staff outline $550K shortfall, propose fee, sponsorship and personnel options
Summary
At a budget workshop administrators presented a revised year-end shortfall of roughly $500k–$560k, recommended keeping the $65 athletic participation fee (cap $260/family) while removing a $30 student participation fee (approx $44k), and proposed sponsorship and personnel-savings scenarios to reduce the 2025–26 increase to the high 3s–low 4s percent range.
Administrators for Regional School District 09 led a detailed 2025–26 budget workshop that quantified several cost pressures and presented “sandbox” scenarios to reduce the proposed operating increase.
Administration said booster clubs contribute an estimated $335,000 to athletics; athletic participation fees offset about $40,000 of the current year budget and are projected to offset about $35,000 in 2025–26. The administration recommended keeping the athletic participation fee at $65 per athlete (capped at $260 per family) and recommended removing a $30 student participation fee, an action that would reduce next year’s budget by approximately $44,000.
Facility-use fees and parking-permit revenues were discussed. Administrators noted the district’s field-and-building usage account has low deposits so far this year (about $3,000–$5,000 to date) despite prior uses of those funds (the board earlier approved $220,000 from similar funds toward a press-box project). The board asked central finance to review how schools report and track those revenues because school-level accounting appears inconsistent with the reported totals.
The administration also proposed sponsorships (seasonal 3x5 banners, digital screens or scorer-table ads) modeled after neighboring districts. A conservative estimate for Jo Barlo High School sponsorships was approximately $50,000 in potential annual revenue; board members urged creation of a committee to study equity, revenue-sharing, advertising restrictions and workload.
Administrators and board members flagged special-education object lines as a major driver of the current-year overage. The administration reported a projected revised shortfall at year end of roughly $500,000–$560,000 after including expected receipts: recently increased excess-cost funding (administration stated the district has already received about $461,701 toward a projected $740,000) and other offsets such as IDEA grant receipts and E-rate funding. Transportation rates and increased specialist/other professional services also contributed to projected overages.
To contain next year’s increase, the board discussed: modest non-instructional reductions presented by administration (~$54,000), a target of roughly $150,000 in non-certified personnel reductions (voluntary or, if necessary, involuntary), possible pension and capital transfer options, and a voluntary early retirement incentive (VER) modeled in examples between $50,000 and $75,000. Board members cautioned that using health-reserve funds or capital non-aps balances has tradeoffs and recommended clear guardrails if the board pursues those options.
No formal vote was held; administration will return with additional line-item transparency, committee recommendations on field-use reporting and sponsorships, and sandbox scenarios for the next meeting.
