“Cuts hurt. Although identifying cuts and reductions to an already lean budget is not a place that we ever wanted to be, the community spoke and we are moving forward with implementing districtwide cuts and reductions,” Superintendent Douglas Cozad said in a release.
The board authorized the district tonight to move forward with the following first phase of cuts:
- Districtwide reductions to teaching and staff positions
- Cuts to transportation staff and reduction in bus routes
- Reduction of building and technology budgets
- Reduction from the district budget to the district's athletics budget
- No school bus purchases
The transportation cuts mean changes to school start and end times, which will be provided later as the district works on a new plan, Cozad said.
The second phase of cuts will be announced in the fall, and would be effective the following academic year.
“We know these will be difficult for everyone, which is why the board is announcing these as soon as possible so that families have time to plan and prepare,” Cozad said.
Board President Liz Betz stated that while it is too soon to discuss a future operating levy request, the need has not gone away.
“At some point we will need to return to Bellbrook-Sugarcreek voters,” Betz said. “We cannot continue cutting and reducing our budget while expecting that things will remain unchanged or that the quality of education and services will be unaffected.
“If we have learned anything it is that, even though we will continue to voice our concerns to our legislators about the inadequacy of the state funding system, we cannot count on Columbus. The best way to support the quality schools that we currently have is with our local tax dollars.”
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