Unlike last year, major cuts in the district's budget will not be necessary this May, New Bloomfield R-3 School District Superintendent David Tramel predicted Thursday night.
"I feel confident the budget is on track. It's sound, accurate and conservative," Tramel told members of the New Bloomfield Board of Education.
Tramel said he gets more confidence in the budget every month.
"I hope we can end the fiscal year with a $550,000 surplus," he said.
January always has a large influx of money because that's when real estate tax revenue arrives. "Historically," he said, "the average balance for that month is $762,000. But this January we received $833,000."
Tramel said as the year progresses, he uses historic average balances at the end of each month to help guide him on how this year's budget compares with previous years.
Tramel said a committee of the school board members and administrators has been working on an annual review of school policies. He said the review had uncovered many items that need to be addressed. The review process is time consuming, but necessary, he said.
To improve communications within the district, an elaborate plan has been developed by administrator Sarah Wisdom. She presented a preliminary proposal to the board. It involves ways to improve internal communications between the administration and the school staff and also numerous ways to enhance communications between the district and the public.
Board member Terri Sweeten praised the effort and noted that a method needs to be found to better inform the public about major events at the school, such as the science fair.