District 153 Lays Out Cuts Should Tax Hike Vote Fail

Homewood School District 153's Personnel and Finance and Property Committees have drawn up a contingency plan to address the course of action to be taken if the requested fails.

The plan was presented at Monday night's Board of Education meeting.

The district will cut 26 positions, including 16 certified teaching positions, if voters don't pass the tax hike.

In addition, every non-tenured faculty member will receive non-renewal notices and every non-certified assistant with fewer than four years of service will receive reduction-in-force notices, according to a district press release.

“(It was) one of the most difficult meetings that I’ve … had to be a part of,” said Board Member and Personnel Chair Gregory Lawrence.

Superintendent Dale Mitchell said the district has already cut the 15 percent of the budget usually reserved for things like office supplies and machine contracts to its furthest extent.

“The fact remains that we’ll have to cut $1.2 million from the budget next year if the referendum is not successful," said Mitchell in a press release. "The only way to cut that much money is to look at the 85 percent of our annual budget that covers salaries and benefits. There’s no way to soften the impact on classrooms when personnel are reduced.”

The result of such cutbacks would include:

• a 20 percent increase in class size;
• a reduction in fine arts programs;
• fewer field trips;
• reduced support services, including gifted education and behavioral development programs.

“Without the relief of the referendum, we will have no choice but to compromise the educational offerings to our children," said Board of Education Vice President Thomas Brabec. "We will have no choice but to endanger the already reeling property values in our community. We will have no choice but to allow a talent drain of teachers to go on right before our eyes.”

The school board is projecting a $600,000 deficit next year and is asking voters to approve a seven-year tax hike that will allow the district to secure a $7.5 million loan.

Property owners would be required to pay an extra $100 per $100,000 of their equalized assessed value. This roughly amounts to an extra $150 per year for the average homeowner in Homewood.