Martin schools to cut some sports, travel

By RACHEL SIMMONSEN
Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, May 28, 2008

STUART - Martin County school officials plan to cut ninth grade sports, limit out-of-county athletic events and pay teachers less to be club sponsors to help make up for an estimated $3.7 million shortfall next budget year.

“It´s really going to be a phenomenal slap on the forehead,” school board member Sue Hershey said today during a budget workshop. “I don´t know what we´re going to do.”

School district staff already have frozen vacant positions and banned most employees´ travel. Now they´re looking to cut costs in staff training, field trips and school sports in the budget year that starts July 1.

Cutting out ninth-grade basketball and limiting on-the-road games for middle school athletes could help save the district about $75,000 a year, according to school district officials.

Assistant Superintendent Hank Salzler said it´s already difficult to fill girls´ ninth-grade basketball teams, and it´s getting increasingly difficult to find other districts to play.

As for travel costs, Salzler said the four hours or more it takes to make round-trips to places like Sebastian add up because of fuel costs and bus drivers who get paid more than $20 an hour.

District officials also have told schools to cut their discretionary budgets by 10 percent, a move that could save an additional $125,000. But that means schools will have less money for things like staff training or field trips, Salzler said.

Teachers, meanwhile, face getting smaller stipends to serve as club sponsors, a move that could save the district nearly $94,000.

Other cost-saving plans include taking $321,000 from the district´s capital budget to pay for maintenance and using new computer software to save $132,000 in electrical costs. The district will save about $922,000 this year in property insurance costs.

School districts, like other government agencies, face millions in lost revenue because of the state´s sluggish economy. State lawmakers cut school budgets twice this school year and plan to trim more for the beginning of next school year.

Vern Pickup-Crawford, who lobbies for the Martin County school district, said the financial outlook likely won´t improve until gas prices drop, people start spending more money and the housing market rebounds.

“Keep that as your fondest dream, because that´s really what we need,” he said.

State officials aren´t counting on the economic slump to turn around until 2011, Pickup-Crawford said.