Florence School District 4 Board of Trustees has joined its comrades in education in approving a resolution calling for the General Assembly to take immediate legislative action to address school funding and flexibility.
During a regular meeting Tuesday, Florence 4 Superintendent Dr. Bertha McCants presented a proposed resolution that “strongly urges the (state) General Assembly to take prompt legislative action in 2009 to provide school districts with maximum funding and program flexibility in the current budget year in order to manage, and protect further erosion of core instructional and operational services to students.”
The resolution, which the S.C. School Boards Association is asking every school board in the state to adopt, comes as districts are tackling several state budget cuts as the nation’s economy weakens.
The district has received five state budget cuts totaling $407,594.17 since August. To address the decrease in funding, the district has reduced administrators’ employment days (voluntary), which saved the district $38,696; reduced art grants budgets by 20 percent; reduced academic assistance budgets by 5.5 percent; frozen out-of-state travel; limited in-state travel and supply purchases; reduced retirees employment days (voluntary); and left three vacancies unfilled.
Mamie Tedder, the district’s finance director, said the district also has $389,168 in other reductions, including the Star Academy and technical assistance funds.
Tedder and McCants are anticipating further budget cuts before the end of the school year.
McCants briefly discussed some ideas from administrators on how to handle any future budget cuts including restructuring personnel and classroom scheduling.
None of the ideas mentioned have been approved. McCants said she was happy the board unanimously approved the resolution calling for legislative action.
“I’m glad that the board members decided to submit the resolution because flexibility in funding will help us,” McCants said. “As in other districts, 85 to 90 percent of our budgets are in salaries.”
On the Web:
www.florence4.12.sc.us
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