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Mead 46-1 faces $1.25 million shortfall; superintendent proposes closures, tax increase and program cuts
Summary
Superintendent Wormstead presented a plan to close two rural schools, move Whitewoods 5th grade, combine principal positions and seek $350,000 in local revenue to bridge a $1.25 million FY27 deficit; the board scheduled a public meeting for Oct. 28 and approved an early-retirement incentive to reduce staff costs.
Superintendent Wormstead told the board that Mead School District 46-1 is facing a $1,250,000 deficit for fiscal year 2027 after an 80-student drop in enrollment reduced revenue. He said the district built last years budget on 3,028 full-time-equivalent students but the count-day total came in at 2,948.
"That has now changed to a $1,250,000 budget because of loss of revenue, because of loss of 80 students," Wormstead said during his presentation, and he described a three-part approach of increased revenue, efficiencies and cuts to reach the target. He recommended a $350,000 local revenue increase as one option to blunt cuts.
To reduce ongoing costs, Wormstead outlined specific proposals: combining the Whitewood and rural principal positions (returning to pre-2020 staffing), moving Whitewoods 5th grade to Sturgis Williams Middle School (estimated savings about $64,000), and closing Atoll and Hereford schools with students absorbed at Central Mead Community School (CMCS) (estimated net savings about $252,000). He also recommended program reductions such as eliminating the Talented and Gifted program (estimated $64,000) and noted possible reductions in counselor staffing if federal COVID-era funds are not replaced.
Wormstead emphasized legal timelines for closures and personnel actions: the closure process must follow state law (completion by Dec. 1 for certain steps) and reduction-in-force notifications are subject to statutory dates. He also proposed a board-approved early-retirement MOU to encourage voluntary separations and said administration expects at least seven teachers may accept the offer by the Dec. 17 deadline.
Board members and staff pressed on trade-offs. Business manager Brett Burdett and Wormstead warned that repeatedly transferring capital-outlay funds to the general fund or delaying necessary facilities work would create longer-term fiscal risks. "You don't transfer funds on an ongoing basis if you don't have to," Wormstead said, arguing that capital funds pay for roofs and other maintenance that would become more costly if deferred.
The board approved the early-retirement incentive MOU and directed administration to prepare a community engagement meeting for Oct. 28 to solicit itemized feedback on each proposed cut. No final decisions on closures or grade reconfiguration were made at this meeting; the superintendent said the board must choose which of his proposal elements it prefers by the December/January decision windows.
