Lee County schools programs, positions lost in fund shortfall

by christina cepero
May 2, 2008

Dunbar Middle School seventh-grader Corey Gibson will play intramural soccer after school two days a week instead of four next year.

Public middle and high school students scheduled to have their band uniforms replaced will have to wait a year.

And administrative work at the Lee County School District office may take longer as the system faces a state funding shortfall of $27 million to $32 million.

So far, Superintendent James Browder has proposed $14.7 million in cuts to the operating fund by eliminating dozens of programs and 140 positions, 43 of which already are vacant. A hiring freeze has been in place since September.

The eliminated positions don´t involve teachers, teachers´ aides or any other jobs in the district´s 107 schools. The positions are at the district level in departments including Information Systems and Transportation Services.

“Somebody else picks up the essential parts of that and we go forward,” Browder said. “The ones that are left will be doing more.”

Browder is still at least $12.3 million short of the cuts he needs to make based on the expected deficit.

“There´ll be more rounds of reductions as we move forward,” Browder said.

“You get what you get and you try to make it work and that´s what we´re doing. The state of Florida as a whole is in financial trouble because of the economy.”

If the shortfall exceeds $30 million, Browder said the district will have to consider cutting support staff at schools such as guidance counselors, custodians, secretaries and nurses.

“It´s my goal not to do that,” Browder said. “If we have to, we´ll have to look at every avenue.”

The state´s $66.2 billion budget expected to pass today will result in $332 million in cuts to K-12 education around the state. Operating funds for the state´s 67 school districts would be $18.4 billion.

“I am very disappointed that our legislators have allowed this to happen,” Lee County School Board vice chairwoman Jane Kuckel said.

“It´s a disservice to the people of this community, of this state, to allow that to happen when there are other funding sources.”

Kuckel said the Legislature should look at repealing sales tax exemptions on the books for special interest groups.

The district already lost $20 million in funding out of its $789 million 2007-08 operating budget because of cuts and declining enrollment.

District enrollment was 80,526 at the beginning of the school year and has decreased to 78,832, capacity director Mike Smith said.

The school board is scheduled to vote on adopting a tentative budget July 31 and a final one Sept. 9.

Cuts next year include 15 school bus driver positions, five of which are vacant.

Browder said the other 10 are full-time drivers who fill in for absent drivers or take students to field trips or other activities but don´t have assigned routes.

Transportation subsidies for after-school games and field trips will be limited.

But students riding buses to and from school next year will not be affected by the cuts, Browder said.

The student assignment department will lose two clerk typists and four information specialists.

“We´re hoping that we can work it out, that it doesn´t affect the families, but I´ll have to wait and see what happens,” said Leila Muvdi, student assignment director.

Smith projects enrollment will remain at 80,526 - the same as at the beginning of the school year last fall - or increase by up to 1,500 students.

Fourteen positions will be moved out of the operating fund and be paid for with federal and state grants as long as money is available.

Programs that will be dropped next year include training for physical education staff and high school athletic subsidies for game officials.

The district also will eliminate its call center for community members to call in with cost savings ideas and concerns.