“We are not considering closing those schools as of this point in time, but they are low enough that we have to be cognizant of the situation and be moving forward prudently,” Douglas said. “That means we need to understand how we are to proceed if those enrollments actually fall below the minimums required by the state.”
An official 20-day count of district enrollment reflects 9,400 rather than the projected 9,591 students attending district schools.
“In Fiscal Year 2005, we actually gained enrollment over the projection and were thinking that was the beginning of a trend,” Douglas said. “We did not project a 2 percent decline for Fiscal Year 06, but it appears that we should have.”
As of Monday, Cooper Landing had an enrollment of 11 kindergarten through eighth-grade students. High school students in that community are bused to Soldotna. Also as of Monday, Hope’s enrollment was 12 students in kindergarten through 12th grade.
“Those communities are aware that the school board is aware that there is a potential situation regarding enrollment of those locations,” said Douglas, adding that the enrollment count has resulted in no discussion of school reconfigurations, such as combining schools.
Prior to the school board meeting in Homer on Monday, a public budget hearing was held in Homer High School’s Mariner Theatre. It was the last in a series of seven meetings to obtain public input on the district’s budget for FY07.
“It was probably the best from a public attendance standpoint,” Douglas said of the eight members of the public at the meeting.
Board President Debra Mullins said she could not interpret the meaning for the low attendance at the hearings that have been held in Seward, Kenai, Soldotna and Homer.
“I don’t know if folks have just had so many years of attending meetings and seeing the district have to cut year after year after year. I don’t know if they feel that there’s nothing else they can do,” Mullins said. “We were hoping by having these budget hearings and explaining it to the public, that they would come give us some advice. We’re looking for input, more than just reporting.”
Former Homer school board member Deb Germano attended the hearing in her role as a newly elected Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly member and the assembly’s liaison with the school board.
“It’s really important to hear what the public thinks,” Germano said. “If it’s too many kids in a classroom or not enough offerings in the high school, whatever the issues are that the public has, those are really important things for the public to come out and stand up for. That is heard by the board and administration.”
There are still opportunities for the public to participate in the budget process. Site-specific budget information is due to the district on Dec. 1; the school board will give a preliminary budget review at its work session on Jan. 16, 2006; a joint board and borough assembly work session is tentatively scheduled for Jan. 17; and public budget forums are scheduled in the Seward High School library on Jan. 3, Skyview High School library on Jan. 25 and Homer High School library on Jan. 30. A public input form is available on the district’s Web site, www.kpbsd.k12.ak.us, and Douglas will distribute a public survey before the end of 2005.
The board and administration took advantage of the meeting to recognize Germano’s 10 years of service on the school board. Germano also received a certificate of award for distinguished service from the National School Board Association, one of 10 given in each state annually. It recognized her “unparalleled commitment to America’s children through school board leadership and service.”
“She was a great mentor to a number of board members that have come on through the last 10 years,” Mullins said. “I really appreciated that.”
“It was bittersweet to have Deb Germano at the board meeting in the audience,” Douglas said. “She did a great job on the board and I know she’ll do a great job at the assembly level. I look forward to what she can do there, as well as what the new board members can do for us on the board.”
In October, Germano and Margaret Gilman of Kenai were elected to the borough assembly. Their appointed replacements to the board are Bill Hatch of Kenai and Liz Downing of Homer.
Principal Curtis Liberty gave a presentation to the board on Susan B. English School in Seldovia, and Principal Ron Keffer reviewed testing scores of Homer High School students.
The board gave unanimous approval of three new teacher assignments, two long-term substitute teacher contracts, one request for a leave of absence, one resignation and one tentative non-tenure teaching assignment. (See related story this page.)
The next meeting of the Kenai Peninsula Borough School board will be at the Borough Administration Building in Soldotna, 7 p.m. Nov. 21.
McKibben Jackinsky can be reached at mckibben.jackinsky@homernews.com.
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