The South Callaway R-II School Board approved the district's 2015-16 budget at its regular meeting Wednesday night. Superintendent Kevin Hillman highlighted elements of the budget for the board before its vote. Hillman drew attention to the district's operating fund balance in the budget, which he said South Callaway manages differently than other districts.
About 83 cents on every dollar of the district's revenue, Hillman said, comes from one source: the Callaway Energy Center, which is located in the community. For that reason, he told the board it's imperative that the operating fund balance remain more than 50 percent and, he added, the district tries to budget for more than 60 percent.
Every school will have a different need, Hillman said, and will manage their operating fund balance in accordance with that need. He added that maintaining a 50 or 60 percent operating fund balance is not typical in most districts. But, doing so acts as a safety net for South Callaway since its revenue mainly comes from one source.
"Our community feels that way and our board feels that way," Hillman told the Fulton Sun.
Hillman also highlighted the amount of money budged for athletics in the district. Community members have said in the past that the district spends too much on its athletic program, Hillman said. Two of the district's new school board members expressed that concern when running in April's election.
Dawn Bailey, who is new to the board this spring, previously told the Fulton Sun that she ran for the seat in April's election because she has concerns about the amount of money the district spends on facilities and athletics.
Micah Benningfield, who is also new to the board this spring, previously told the Fulton Sun that he ran for the seat in part because he thinks the district focuses more on athletics than it should.
Hillman pointed out to the board Wednesday that about 2.13 percent of the district's budget goes toward athletics.
"It's a big number but it's only two percent of our budget," Hillman told the board Wednesday.
While about 2.13 percent of the budget goes to athletics, instruction and support make up about 79.31 percent of the district's budget, Hillman told the board.
Additionally, the budget allocates funds for various equipment and technology replacement. Hillman said the district budgets for those items on a rotation so that funds are available if a piece of equipment breaks down or begins to show its age. One piece of equipment which fits that description is the core network switch, Hillman said.
"The core network switch is extremely old but it works. If it goes down though, everything goes down," Hillman said.
In other news, Hillman told the board they will hear a proposal next month for an after school program. He discussed the potential program with the board briefly Wednesday night. It has also been a topic of discussion at previous school board meetings this spring.
If the board approves the after school program proposal at its July meeting, the program could be ready for students this fall.
Hillman told the board in April that a parent survey conducted last fall led the district to determine an after school program was needed.
Some people, he told the board, will want the program to mainly serve as childcare. But the district, he added, is not creating the program to complete with child care businesses in the community. The program, Hillman said, needs to add to instruction and help students improve.
The district needs to decide rates for the after school program. Then, it will be ready to present the program proposal to the board.
Also at the board's Wednesday meeting, the board gave the district permission to request bids for fuel, milk and bread. The board also approved the breakfast and lunch prices for next school year. The breakfast and lunch prices for next year will stay the same and will not increase.
"We've had the same prices for several years and we try to do that for our community," Hillman said of the district's food pricing.