CHAFFEE SCHOOLS EYE FREEZE

CHAFFEE -- Lack of state funding could force the Scott County R-2 School District at Chaffee to freeze salaries for the 1991-1992 school year.

The development would be more extreme than when a lack of revenue this school year required the district to stick with the same salary schedule for teachers for the second year in a row.

That action, taken by the district's Board of Education last April, still allowed some teachers pay increases because they continued to advance through the current salary schedule. An outright freeze, on the other hand, would mean no salary schedule increases, even if teachers are eligible, said District Superintendent John Payne.

Payne has said the district could possibly expect less state funding in the 1991-1992 school year than is now being received, which could bring on the salary freeze. This school year, the district expects to have a deficit of about $30,000, Payne has said.

In spite of the district's funding problems, the superintendent has recommended against cutting any jobs or district programs.

"My recommendation is that rather than lay people off or destroy a program that we added over the last 12 years that was needed we maintain those programs and spend into our reserves. And hope we get relief the following year," Payne said.

"At this point we feel we have enough (money) in reserve that we could do some more deficit spending. I want to maintain the integrity of our programs for at least one more year."

Payne said the district has to work on its budget at this time of year and that teacher contracts must be issued between May 1 and May 15. But because the word from the Missouri General Assembly is that there are revenue shortfalls, and there won't be much money for the Department of Elementary or Secondary Education or any other state agency the district has had to take a conservative approach.

The district's fiscal year starts July 1.

There are two bills pending in the legislature that could change things, Payne said. One is in the House; the other in the Senate. If the bills pass in their current versions, he said, they would increase school funding over what Gov. John Ashcroft had originally recommended in his budget message.

In addition, there is always the chance an amendment could be attached to another bill that would increase school funding. Yet Payne says he doesn't "see any particular grounds for being optimistic."

"There's so many potholes out there in front of those bills," Payne said, "so nobody knows how they are going to be amended or wind up. So there are some bills that will give us some relief, but it's too early to make a judgment."

Sue Duncan, a first-grade teacher at Chaffee Elementary and the president of the district's Community Teachers Association, said she believes teachers need to deal with the state education funding issue by becoming more politically active. One of most important actions they can take, she said, is to tell people about the situation.

"Our job is not only education of the children, but to educate the parents as to what is going on," she said. "I think it's going to be each teachers' responsibility to inform those parents."

Duncan said she feels an increase in state education funding may eventually be determined by voters, possibly through initiative petition.

Noting that he is retiring at the end of this school year after 30 years in education, Payne said he is very concerned about the funding of public schools in Missouri. He said he believes the situation is far worse than most people realize.

"This is going into really a third year with a squeeze in revenue," said Payne. "I haven't seen that at any previous time in the past 30 years.

"We've tightened our belt to the point that we're down to our belt buckle."

At a meeting last Thursday, the district's school board employed its certified staff for the coming school year. Certified employees are those with teaching certificates, including administrators, counselors and librarians.