BOE Goal 1 - Let's Look at Enrollment Pojections, 2013-14 Expeditures, and the Capital Outlay Fund
On January 27, the BOE held a work session to discuss additional information regarding our district’s finances.The first item for review was a report on future enrollment projections that I contracted with the Kansas Association of School Boards to conduct.There is a lot of useful information in this report but for the sake of brevity let me share a couple of salient points.
- The population trend for Morris County is one of decline.The peak of population for our county was in 1910 with a population of 12,397.The 2010 census shows us with a population count of 5,923.We have been in a slight decline, 4%, for the past 20 years.Projections show the county in a relatively level pattern for the next 25 years.
- Live births are reported in the report and shows a decline in 2008-09 but a growth since through 2011-12.
- The overall enrollment projection will see us decrease in 2014-15 with a small kindergarten class.This class will remain small in 1st grade that will cause some issues for finances as the FTE for kindergarten students is counted 0.5 (the state only provides part-time funding for kindergarten students) while the FTE for 1st grade will be 1 FTE.Either way, this is a very small class compared to the past several years.
- After this dip, the district enrollment should level off through 2018-19.
The second report focused on where money was spent in the 2012-13 school year.The idea was to present a general idea regarding spending.I was asked to break out the spending by school.As revenue is generated on a per-student FTE basis, we wanted to compare spending in the same manner.As I told the BOE at the meeting, I am neither an accountant nor an auditor.So, I did the very best I could reviewing our accounting records and placing expenses where they belonged.
Teachers were placed by the school where they work, as were aides, counselors, librarians, principals, other personnel, and building expenses like supplies, equipment, furniture, etc.All district level expenses (superintendent, district office personnel, district office operating expenses) were divided among the schools by the % of FTE for each school.This was done because the money generated from operations comes from the FTE enrollment for each school.In the end, many different expenses were divided among the schools with each instance being listed for BOE members to see.This is all part of the instructions that are shared on the web site.
At the end of the spreadsheet there is a summary that shows the total of expenses as well as the revenues for each school.It also shows the balance for each school.Further down there is information that shows some percentages of how much of the budget goes to salary related expenses as well as non-negotiable, non-payroll expenses such as utilities, insurance, transportation, facility upkeep, etc.
As I said to the BOE, I will continue to refine this expenses ledger in the coming weeks to give as accurate of an accounting as possible.I will also do more work with interpreting the meaning as I work through the data.It is easy to jump to conclusions but that would neither be fair or prudent.There is a lot more information to be gathered as we work on this specific aspect of Goal 1.
The last aspect of the report discussed the district’s food service fund and the district’s capital outlay fund.I will speak specific to the capital outlay fund here.The information regarding the food service fund is posted for your review on our website.The reason that the capital outlay fund is so important is this district has a lot of facilities, several aging, for which we have to repair and provide for upkeep.In the past our general and LOB funds provided for the coverage of a lot of these expenses.With our shrinking general and LOB fund budgets, the capital outlay fund will have to cover more of these expenses.
The figures shown are all rough estimates that were made by our former maintenance person Rick Evans. Keep in mind that each year we experience several unexpected expenses that impact the affordability of these scheduled projects.It is desirable to keep a balance of at least $450,000 in the capital outlay fund if possible.That may seem like a lot but all it takes is for a major roof and boiler issue to occur (or perhaps a track replacement) and this fund will be depleted quickly.So with this guide in mind, a review of the balance for the fund shows that the nature of our projects is such that by 2018 this fund will get well below the $450,000 threshold.
Besides the smaller upkeep issues, we have some very major expenses that we will have to address in the very near future, only two of which show up on our list.These large projects include:
- 2 roof replacements totaling an estimated $240,000
- Track replacement including sub-soil structural work estimated at $300,000 that may well be estimated $150,000 too low
- Replacement of the 1961 steam uni-vent at CGHS (not currently on the list)
- Hot water coil replacements for the heating system at CGHS (not currently on the list)
- Hot water coil replacements for heating system at CGES (not currently on the list)
- Upgrade to the district stadium locker room/concession stand facilities (not currently on the list)
The list does not include any cars, vans, mowers, etc.So, as you can see, there are a lot of significant projects for which the district will need to have the financial resources to be able to meet our facility needs.Having plans for what needs to be accomplished is one thing, having the means is another.Part of the purpose for Goal 1 is to find or create the means.
This information and more can be found on the district website at http://www.usd417.net