EVANSVILLE — In the wake of a failed April 2 referendum, the Evansville Community School District is planning to eliminate 14 positions, including 11 teachers, for the 2024-25 school year.
That would amount to $1.1 million trimmed from its 2024-25 budget, just in staff reductions.
Without the staff cuts, the district is projecting a $2.1 million 2024-25 budget deficit.
Specific positions planned to be cut:
2 music positions, a band instructor for grades 6-8, and 1 choral teacher.A physical education teacher for grades 6-8An advanced learning coordinator and a student services specialist — both for K-12.High school art, science, foreign language, social studies, tech ed. and alternative ed teachersOne data and tech specialist in the district office, one library aide, one custodian and one district facilities director in administration would be cut as well.
Also planned to be cut or reduced:
• A sixth-grade Spanish and an eighth-grade agriculture class at J.C. McKenna Middle School would be cut.
• Class time would be reduced for physical education and health at the middle school
• Band lessons for seventh- and eighth-graders would be reduced or eliminated.
• Common planning time for middle school teachers would be eliminated and a counselor would teach every period, reducing time to meet individually with students.
• At the high school, 33 classes in computer science, art, music, tech. ed, science, business and agriculture would also be cut.
According to the school district, about 70% of its budget is spent on salaries and benefits and 70% of the staff is made up of teachers, so as a result about 70% of the staff reductions are from the teacher pool.
The board has already authorized making up some of the shortfall by tapping into $236,000 of fund balance. The district proposes increasing student fees, which would bring in an additional $50,000.
Also proposed is a freeze on non-required, non-grant funded professional development, a freeze on materials and supplies and a smaller salary increase of 3% over 2023-24 instead of 5%, which would create a savings of more than $261,046.
Also on the table would be a reduction to the district contribution to health savings accounts and cash in lieu, for a cost savings of $72,680. The district has also proposed removing cash in lieu for married couples, for a cost savings of $12,700. Combining bus routes would save $61,619.
Interim Superintendent Steve Lutzke said at a special board meeting on Monday that each proposed budget reduction may end up being higher or lower depending on fall enrollment.
On April 17, the Evansville Education Association Executive Council wrote to the school board urging it to find alternative options, two of which were stressed in a public address by EEA President Greg Vossekuil on April 24.
Those two were using other certified staff to cover physical education, health and other classes being affected, and combining positions at the administrative level.
“The staff took the brunt of the cuts. The administration did not,” Vossekuil wrote to the school board. “What I would have really liked to present today is a need to foster an environment for collaboration and innovation. We believe together staff, administration and school board could have identified creative strategies to identify budgetary concerns without cutting programs and class offerings and compromising the education to our students.”
The school board also faced pushback from the music department on April 17. Music teacher Cindy Zblewski said that members of the department “were very alarmed to see that music was the only academic area to receive two staff cuts.”
“While we understand the necessity of tough decisions in this terrible situation, slashing one-third of our department’s resources threatens to undermine the foundation of the exceptional program that the ECSD music staff has diligently tried to cultivate,” Zblewski said.
Lutzke addressed the comments made, and said they were “strong arguments,” but the district was “stuck between a rock and a hard place” because of the decision voters made.
“There are many times I wonder, ‘Why did I become a district administrator?’ It sure wasn’t to have these types of discussions. It was exactly what you talked about: thrive, contribute and belong. That’s what we are all here in this room for,” Lutzke said. “Unfortunately, we live in a democracy. In that democracy the populace gets to decide what direction we get to take, and on April 2 they decided in the Evansville school district that we don’t need any more, and in fact, we need less money than what we have.”
By state law, the district needed to make the staff cuts by May 15.
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