Our school board meeting began on time with all 7 members present, plus our two student representatives, and Superintendent Elstad.
MISSION MOMENT: We had many students and parents present for the meeting as Superintendent Elstad recognized our elementary school patrols for their hard work and commitment to safety. The patrol captains from each elementary school stood together and introduced themselves, and then they grouped together for a photo. Thank you, students and the advisors that help them, especially when it’s so cold!
Lori Volz, our director of finance and operations, along with SI Elstad, presented the financial forecast which was first presented to the finance committee members last week (Jolayne, Lori W., and me). Essentially, the district will have a financial shortage in revenue that, if left unattended, will cause great detriment to the district in the coming years. There are four main reasons for this:
- ESSR funding (which was federal grant money given to the district during fiscal years (FY) 2021-2024 due to the COVID-19 pandemic) has ended. The district was able to retain 10 teacher positions during the pandemic that otherwise we would have lost, and also able to hire 12 teachers to grow our online program. From FY 2024 to FY 2025 , there will be $3 million less federal funding.
- Special education expenses have increased, in part due to the increase in the number of special education students, which is now 17% of our student body, and the staff/programming required for them. While the district receives annual funding for special education, there has always been a gap in which the district’s general fund needs to cover the costs (cross subsidy). The special education expenses have increased from $9.9 million in 2015 up to $17.5 million in the current school year.
- Increased salary and benefits costs due to new staffing positions (those providing direct student teaching/needs), increases in contract negotiations, new mandates approved by the legislature for Earned Safe and Sick Time and new unemployment costs, increased cost of benefits, and general inflation. In the last 10 years, the district has hired 47 new staff, which SI Elstad reports have been all for direct student teaching and care, none of which have been administrative. Summary data regarding state and district expenditures can be found on the MN Report Card website. This shows that the state average district admin expense is 5% (of total general fund), OPS is 4.96%. The state average school-level admin expense is 3.67% and OPS is 3.47%. State average teacher and special ed teacher expenses are 39.29% and 18.56% respectively, while OPS is 42.5% and 21.23% respectively.
- Student enrollment is declining. As noted previously, our kindergarten and first grade class sizes are much smaller than our current 11th and 12th grade class sizes. We are told that this is a nationwide trend with decreased birth rates.
Other comments from the presentation note that our Owatonna Online program is growing, and while we first used ESSR funds to hire the teachers for this program, we are now seeing net earnings of $1 million, with the goal to continue to grow this program.
Based on the information given, Ms. Volz projects a $1.7 million budget deficit for the school year 2025-2026. Our current unassigned fund balance (“cushion”) is currently at 12.89% which, if needed, would cover 1.5 months of district expenses. The district’s goal is to maintain the unassigned fund balance at 8-10%. I noted that last spring we received a report regarding referendums in area districts (Big 9) comparing Owatonna to other districts. We are second from the lowest with our current operating levy at $529.14 per pupil unit. Austin is the lowest at $512.70 and Northfield is the highest at $2064.34. Budget cuts and a new referendum/levy will be discussed at future meetings.
The enrollment report is reviewed with no major changes.
Committee meeting minutes, previous board meeting minutes and special meeting minutes are reviewed without discussion.
Several policies were presented for a first reading and discussion including: 102, 104, 207, 413, 416, 419, 522. Policy 522 Title IX Sex Nondiscrimination is noted to be completely replaced due to the many changes and is modeled after the MN School Board Association’s policy 522. I asked for clarification on a few of the statements listed under General Statement of Policy. First was letter H. and Chris Picha (director of human resources) confirmed that the legal rights of a parent or guardian are held in higher regard than Title IX rules, thereby allowing parents and legal guardians to make decisions for their minor student.
The second clarification was letter I. which I read aloud and can be heard on the recording. The last sentence of this paragraph states that if a district prevents a student from participating in the activity consistent with their gender of choice, this subjects that student to harm (“more than de minimus harm”) which is not allowed under the new interpretation of Title IX rules. I noted that as of August when I last researched Title IX, congress had not formally approved this new Title IX interpretation and definition of sex (only the original Title IX in 1972 was formally approved, protecting women in sports). So, in essence, one could argue that this interpretation does not need to be upheld and actually violates the original definition of Title IX. However, that aside, as our policy is now written in draft, I suggested to the board that we consider a statement to protect the safety of those students that will feel unsafe in these circumstances (specifically biological women being forced to use bathrooms, locker rooms, and play sports with biological males). These students would be subjected to more than “de minimus harm” in this situation. We need to provide a statement in this policy that will protect all students, on either side. Providing safety for students does not mean discrimination in all circumstances. Simply stated, we have many rules and regulations to protect us (driving, alcohol consumption, work related rules/regulations, hunting, gun safety and licensing, pet management, disposal of chemicals/medications/caustic substances, etc.)
The consent agenda is approved without questions or discussion.
December 9, 2024 is our last board meeting of 2024 and will be a regular meeting as it is our only board meeting in December. There will be an audit presentation and Truth in Taxation presentation.
Happy Thanksgiving Owatonna. I hope that you are able to enjoy time with family or friends, but if not, then I hope for you peace and relaxation! May we all be grateful for the good things in our lives, even the smallest of those.
Soli Deo Gloria!
Elizabeth for Owatonna Schools 