Hollister
– The Hollister School District Board of Trustees will be
discussing a preliminary budget framework for the next three school
years at a budget meeting tonight.
Hollister – The Hollister School District Board of Trustees will be discussing a preliminary budget framework for the next three school years at a budget meeting tonight.
The district’s chief business official, Jack Bachofer, will be presenting to the board a general outline of the future budget of the district, specifically looking at where the district may be forced to make cuts.
“Next year is going to be OK, but the decisions that we make and the things that we do are going to affect us in the future,” Bachofer said. “Our concern is really with ’08-’09 and going on.”
The board will look at the programs it could scale back on next year to avoid complete cuts in the future.
One of the areas that could be affected by the budget cuts is class sizes. Last year, the district reduced class sizes from around 35 students per class to around 30. The district may have to increase the size again in order create a balanced budget.
But district administrators and board members hope they will not have to resort to increasing class sizes.
“We’re doing everything to keep that number down, but we know in the back of our mind that we have that card to play,” Bachofer said.
The special education program, which has had increasing costs to the district without increased funding from the state, is one area where the district will probably be forced to make cuts.
The district is looking at between a 5 percent and 10 percent cut to the program, Bachofer said. This could save the district between $300,000 and $600,000 each year.
Bachofer stressed that it’s important that the district act prudently and conservatively with its money, so that it does not end up in the red.
The Hollister School District was faced with a $2.9 million deficit in the beginning of 2006, which it corrected with cuts and corrections.
“The main impression I want to give to the board is that this really is a business. In my position, what we have to do is maximize our resources,” Bachofer said.
Alice Joy covers education for the Free Lance. She can be reached at 831-637-5566 ext. 336 or at [email protected].
