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Brookings School District approves balanced budget, adds modest music staffing
Summary
The Brookings School District adopted a tight but balanced budget with no program cuts and small increases to music staffing; Superintendent Dr. Summer Schulz said the plan preserves class sizes while allowing limited new programming.
Dr. Summer Schulz, superintendent of Brookings School District 05-1, said the school board approved a tight but balanced budget at its July reorganization meeting and that there were no program cuts.
Schulz said the preliminary budget had been prepared over months and presented publicly alongside the reorganization meeting. She credited Stacy Van Beek, the district's director of finance and business, for assembling "six months of work into a presentation" that guided the board's decision.
The budget keeps class sizes "fairly similar" while allowing limited program additions in response to student demand. "We did an addition of 0.25 in the orchestra, and that's on top of a little bit of addition 0.5 in our band area," Schulz said, describing the staffing increases as modest steps to expand individual and small-group lesson time, particularly at the middle school level. She said the district sought to match staffing to student interest and priorities while remaining fiscally prudent.
Schulz also noted the district could offer a staff pay increase that exceeded the state funding infusion because the overall plan remains balanced. She said enrollment is slightly down this year, a trend the district anticipated as a historically large class graduated.
The board adopted the budget at last night's meeting; details of the formal motion and the vote tally were not specified in the interview.
Looking ahead, Schulz said administrators and the board will continue monitoring enrollment and spending to preserve instructional programs while maintaining fiscal balance.
