Homewood District 153 Superintendent Scott McAlister said “it breaks my heart” to outline cuts that would affect classroom teachers, staff and programs, but the reality is the state requires a balanced budget.
Board members said the situation hit home when McAlister unveiled the proposal at the Oct. 11 board meeting. If the Nov. 8 tax referendum fails, District 153 would eliminate:
- All band, choir and music programs.
- All after-school activities, including clubs and sports.
- Staff cuts in the administrative office.
- Staff cuts at each school building.
- Larger class sizes by eliminating one teaching positioning each grade level kindergarten through fifth grade.
- Eliminating physical education positions and possibly moving away from daily PE classes.
- Eliminating one certified staff at each building.
- Eliminating teacher assistant positions.
- Eliminating one clerical position at each school.
McAlister said the list will get the district $2.3 million in cuts to cover the red ink in the budget, but it will be painful.
“The number is so large that we have to look at everything,” he said. “Unfortunately we’re in a position where if we don’t get the additional revenue to support these programs, difficult cuts will have to be made, and I think it would difficult for the kids and the culture and identity that we’ve established for decades now.”
Board President Shelly Marks said the cuts are sickening, especially because she knows each person who would be affected by a job elimination cares deeply for the students and the work they do.
“Every single position is one we need to contribute to student success academically, emotionally, socially. There isn’t one person working in this district that doesn’t contribute to student success, doesn’t create our vision of what Homewood schools should be,” she said.
Voters are being asked to support the Nov. 8 tax referendum to help cover the $2.1 million structural deficit in the district. The district has been making do by passing referenda in 2011 and 2016 to sell bonds that help cover the deficit. This time the board is asking for an increase in the educational fund that will provide a permanent fix so the board can stop asking for approval of short-term borrowing measures.
The referendum for funding for Willow, Churchill and James Hart Schools calls for an increase from the current rate of $4.40 per $100 assessed value of property to jump to $5.60. At the same time, the overall tax rate will drop within the next three years because the district is paying off its general obligation bonds.
Board members believe strong schools will mean a strong high school and a strong community.
“We know how much this changes not just this district tremendously, but this community tremendously. It’s not just 153. We’ve got to make sure this happens for these kids,” said board member Jim Schmidt. He said programs, like the district’s outstanding music offerings, are what make the district so special, and the schools are one of the reasons people move to Homewood.
“If this doesn’t pass, we become the same as all those other districts out there,” Schmidt said. ‘The uniqueness (of Homewood schools) is gone. We’ve got to get together on this as a community, and we’ve got to make sure this message comes out in order to maintain all that we do, have done and want to do for this district and our families.
“If this doesn’t happen it changes this district, it changes the community and that also includes the high school. The foundations of our community are 153 and the high school.”