GI Budget Action Plan

2009-2010 Budget Action Plan

Progress ReportMarch 24, 2009


Budget Action Plan – Purpose

In a purposeful and proactive manner, the Grosse Ile Township Schools chooses to engage the key stakeholders in building the 2009-2010 budget.

Beginning early, we have carefully sought information, diligently researched our options so that the district demonstrated

fiscal responsibility in every aspect of our operations as decisions are reached. Every effort to be transparent and

forthright has been and will continue to be made during this process.


Budget Action Plan – Targets:

• To reduce the 2009-2010 operational budget by $1,400,000

• To maintain an excellent educational experience for students within our financial parameters

• To have a balanced budget approved by the Board of Education – June 23, 2009

• To begin the 2009 - 2010 school year with smooth transitions – Tuesday, September 8, 2009


Budget Action Plan Timeline

October - Budget Action Plan - Regular Board of Education meeting

November - Planning Phase - Early Childhood meetings - Research on a number of topics begins

December - Refinement of Community Engagement process

January - Information Gathering Phase - Met with all staff members – surveyed - Six Community Forums held - Community on-line survey

February - Investigation Phase

March - Action Phase


Budget Action Plan Statistics(To Date…)8 – Staff meetings held between January 6-15

72 – Staff members completed Staff Surveys

6 – Community Forums held January 20-22 (163)

315 – People completed the Community On-line Survey

10 – Committees created to handle the feedback

64 – Meetings to date held to process feedback

134 – Hours spent in committee meetings

1000+ - Comments received from community engagement

$1,400,000 – Targeted amount for budget cuts


Budget Action Plan – Committees

Administrative Services

Instructional Services

Transportation

Schools of Choice

Salaries and Benefits

Purchasing and Building Budgets

Energy Savings

Athletics/Extracurricular Activities

Calendar

Marketing


Budget Action Plan Decision-Making Process

• Input from staff and community

• Investigation of options – advantages and disadvantages

• Recommendations

• Administrative review (Adjust, as needed – return to committee)

• Board review (Adjust, as needed – return to committee)

• Build into 2009-2010 Budget

• Creation of Transitional Plans for implementation

• Budget adopted in June 23, 2009


Budget Action Plan – Decisions To Date

• Purchasing moratorium

• Full Day Kindergarten and Young Fives

• No Schools of Choice for 2009-2010

• Administrative Reductions - Eliminate Curriculum Director and Building & Grounds Positions

- Administrative pay freeze / Insurance co-pay

• Moving to Kindergarten-Second Grade and Third-Fifth Grade Buildings

• Joint Marketing endeavor with Township and community

• Developing a district-wide Energy savings plan


Budget Action Plan – Building ConfigurationAdvantages:• Savings on supplies – might not need to duplicate orders• Age-appropriate activities• Social relationships – all kids together for K-12 experience• Better distribution of Resource Rooms• More grade level communication and collegiality• Easier scheduling• Easier to balance class sizes within a grade regardless of population trends• Teamwork - end building comparisons and competition• More classrooms to share Special Education mainstreaming• Moving entire classes and teachers instead of singling families out to balance class sizes – everyone goes together• New opportunities for pen pals and exchange programs• Coordination of district-wide calendar to avoid scheduling conflicts• This district has had to make many changes over the year to handle student distribution…there is a good track record that we have done what was needed, at a given time, to manage our local resources• Due to our small, close-knit community many students already are familiar with students and staff in the other building


Budget Action Plan – Building Configuration

Disadvantages:

• Minimal construction changes in some rooms to make classrooms age-appropriate

• Moving to a new building – equipment, furniture, books

• Splitting families – having multiple kids in different buildings

• Loss of peer assistance/mentoring and sibling experiences

• Transition of Third Grade during MEAPS

• Potential transportation complications

• Disgruntled parents may move to other districts

• Teacher “common planning time” will be different

• It is a major change for all of us to absorb


Budget Action Plan – Class Size

• Recommendations from community to “marginally” increase class size

• Review of 2008-2009 class sizes

• Projection of 2009-2010 class size

• Commitment to keep class sizes as low as possible, but also commitment to keep as many viable programs as possible

• Regardless of the building configurations, we will be downsizing our classrooms to fit our declining student population

• Moving to the K-2 and 3-5 Grade Level Buildings will allow us to maintain more advantageous class sizes - provide flexibility


Enrollment Projection Assumptions

Declining population in Michigan, the Downriver area and Grosse Ile will have an impact our student enrollment. There will be

variations in the numbers from one year to the next, as there alwaysare. In the past, we have had a tendency to pick up new students at

certain grade levels – First Grade and the Middle School years. This has not been built into the projections. The base Kindergartennumbers have been getting smaller, but in this report, 100 students

was used for projection purposes. It is our hope that this is a deflatednumber and that this would be the “worst case scenario”

we are facing.

If these predictions are realized, the Grosse Ile Township Schools will have to carefully monitor the utilization ofavailable facilities and potentially merge and move grade level

configurations to other locations for sensible “fits.”

Building capacities: Meridian-425; Parke Lane-445; Middle School-540; High School-744;

East River Administrative Building – 275.






Budget Action Plan – Next Decisions

• Transportation cuts and plans

• 2009 - 2010 Calendar

• Negotiations with employee groups

• Instructional Services – Staffing issue

• Athletics/Extracurricular Activities

• Kindergarten-Second and Third-Fifth Grade Building


Budget Action Plan – Transition Plans

For every decision that is made resulting in changes to our currentoperating procedures, a Transitional Management Plan will be created by those most closely involved with implementing aparticular recommendation. Each plan will identify the steps and resources needed to ensure as smooth a transition as possible.Communication will be a key component of each Transition Plan.


Budget Action Plan – ProcessIn undertaking this challenge, in this manner, we have taken more

time to complete the budgeting task according to the established plan.

It has been a lengthy process but it has been visible to our staffand community. The coordination of decision-making has been crucial

because some decisions are predicated on other fundamental decisions.

The “domino effect” has been taken into consideration throughoutthis endeavor. Timing and pacing of the process, recommendations, and

notification of those decisions has been embedded into the plan.

Every attempt to counsel individuals and groups affected by the recommended outcomes, in a sensitive and considerate manner,

has been made. It is apparent that these changes doimpact lives.


Budget Action Plan – Summary

The Budget Action Plan that was established has been a most helpful guide as we go through this very difficult process. At this time, we are on schedule and have experienced a great deal of cooperation under abnormal circumstances.

Obviously, this is an endeavor of endurance, patience and commitment to do the right thing for our students and the educational opportunities at Grosse Ile Township Schools.


Budget Action Plan – Guarantee

The Grosse Ile Township Schools will continue to examine our educational options to insure that we are maximizing the available resources to the utmost advantage for our students.

This means that we will undergo further review of new data And information that comes our way as responsible stewardsof this important community asset – our schools.


This economic plan can’t please everybody. If the package is picked

apart there will be something thatwill anger each of us and it won’t

please anybody, but if it is taken as a whole, it will help all of us.

Former President Bill Clinton