SCHOOL BOARD POISED TO REDUCE BUDGET; PLAN TO TRIM $1.5 MILLION WILL IMPACT ALL AREAS

The Cape Girardeau Board of Education is poised to make more than $1 million in budget cuts at its meeting Monday.

Superintendent Neyland Clark and Board President Pat Ruopp declined to name specifics of the recommended cuts.

Clark explained that some elements of the package are being modified over the weekend.

The board meets Monday at 4:30 p.m. The meeting is open to the public.

Ruopp said according to the preliminary reports he has seen the budget cuts affect every area of the district.

"When you have to cut a million and a half from your budget, everyone will be hit," Ruopp said.

"It's going to hurt us, and I'm concerned that it's going to ultimately affect class size. That hurts because that hurts the kids."

Ruopp said it's impossible to take $1.5 million from a $20 million budget without affecting many aspects of the district operation.

"That's better than five percent," Ruopp said. "We hate to do it. Any time you have to take one dollar away it hurts. We're not cutting any fat. We were already operating the district in a lean fashion. These cuts will really hurt our schools.

"We just can't do the good kinds of things we would like to do. We have really high quality education in Cape and this diminishes that. It's a reflection on our community as a whole."

Clark said first-round recommendations for budget cuts were filed in January by five internal committees studying elementary, secondary, special education, extracurricular activities and support services.

Those recommendations were reviewed by a new-funds committee, chaired by Clark and including CTA representatives Jo Peukert and Mary Hart, Business Manager Larry Dew and board member John Campbell.

This committee has drafted most of the final recommendation.

Ruopp believes the cuts are fair and carefully thought out.

"We've gone through reduction processes before," Ruopp said. "I believe this is truly the most equitable recommendation I've seen. These committees were very, very thorough.

"No one specific area is going to be hit harder by the cuts than another."

Ruopp said that board members have been receiving reports throughout the process.

"I don't think the recommendations Monday will be a shock to anyone," he said.

"We're trying to accomplish these reductions while being as sensitive to all individuals in the district as possible."

The budget cuts will likely involve personnel reductions. In February, the board approved a retirement incentive program in hopes that personnel cuts can be made through attrition.

Clark said, as the new-funds committee's name suggests, this group is also looking at additional revenue sources.

"We have been looking at current taxing sources that are not fully tapped," he said. "Several businesses are eligible for tax credits and abatements. We are asking them to go ahead and pay their full tax payment."

He said the board and new-funds committee are also waiting to see what recommendations are made by the district's Project Partnership long-range planning committees. The three groups, studying finance, programs and facilities, have been meeting since January to help formulate recommendations for a five-year strategic plan.