207-U Budget woes guide the votes

The meeting started off with a consent agenda that board member Ashley Stachniak questioned before the vote.

Stachniak, armed with a packet marked with post-its, questioned the numbers in the ending balance and noted that from last month to this month, the numbers didn’t add up for her. Fulgencio said he couldn’t explain it, because he hadn’t looked into it in detail. He did offer explanations and suggested a credit could’ve been posted, but said he’d need to look into it.

Stachniak then asked what other items were, and Fulgencio suggested dues and fees, but also said he’d have to look at expense reports. Another notation in the budgeted line items was the activity fund balances.

She questioned outstanding athletic fees in the amount of $11,000, and if parents were going to be held accountable to pay the fees before the students are permitted to participate. Fulgencio said it was going to be discussed in the committee meeting.

Stachniak commended the administration for cutting purchasing card expenses from September 2024 at $30,000 to $11,000 for September 2025. But she added, there were still too many transactions over $500. Purchasing card totals are $1,000 each, monthly, and she inquired how many cards are in the district. Fulgencio said there’s more than a double-digit number of cards, possibly 15-20. Stachniak was quick to add she wanted a list of all cards – who’s spending what.

Board President Rick Uthe wasted no time in reminding board members to email their questions to Fulgencio so that he could provide better answers.

Shortly thereafter, John Maxedon was appreciative of Stachniak’s transparency and told her she does not have to listen to Uthe’s request. He also said that for the $156,000 compensation package of the business manager, he should have answers when the board asks; “it’s unacceptable.” Maxedon further said that with the multiple budget amendments and running the district off a fiscal cliff without raising a red flag, he should be held accountable.

The budget presentation and hearing were addressed. Board member Tim Stoub inquired what can be brought to the taxpayers as a significant effort being made to gain their trust. He encouraged serious discussions. The budget was presented with a $4.2 million deficit, requiring more cash bonds to be pulled. This would be the last year that 207-U can pull bonds.

Supt. Brandon Owens addressed that, and said they were planning on having options to review at committee. He added it was his sixth day back from medical leave, and he’s jumped right into having serious conversations to work with the money they have.

Asst. Supt. Carol Zurales added Fulgencio has quarterly budget meetings with administration in which expenses can be scrutinized.

Board member Mark Jones said he was given the information in July and would’ve liked to have known the district’s dire financial situation much earlier.

Stachniak further inquired about special education costs. Currently, 18 students are outsourced, in which the district pays private tuition, with limited reimbursement. Stachniak had inquired about and received a report of expenses and reimbursements for outsourced special education students’ tuition. She had found a discrepancy in the numbers from the special education report to the budget. The response from the special services director was that the reimbursements for the tuition was a year behind. Stachniak inquired again but was told by Johnson she should’ve emailed to get further answers. At last month’s meeting, Johnson said special education outsourced tuition was significantly reimbursed. The report and budget did not match that statement.

Maxedon asked what requires a budget amendment. “The reason I ask is that I’ve sat in meeting after meeting, after meeting and expense, after expense, after expenses had been approved, and over the past year, I’ve heard Tim ask, ‘Is this in the budget?’ And when you’ve given him the answer yes, he’s voted yes. Somehow even though every expense that has come up has been in the budget, the budget gets overrun and has to be amended,” he said. Maxedon asked what triggers an amended budget.

Fulgencio said there was no trigger, and that he amends the budget every March to align with the most recent year-end financial projections, revenue, or expense side. He said it’s a calendar of events that cause the budget to be amended.

Maxedon then asked if Fulgencio presented a “zero based budget to administration so they understood what needs to be done to become solvent and not be out of money by March, so the principals don’t have to tell their teaching staff they don’t have a paycheck at the end of March?”

Fulgencio flatly said no. Maxedon told him he failed.

Board member Stoub and Maxedon exchanged commentary regarding the budget, as well. The result was that Stoub admitted the district is not unfunded for this year but out of credit, and it will be unfunded after this school year.

“So, everything you voted yes to last year, because you were told it was in the budget and it wasn’t, it’s not a failed referendum’s fault that these decisions have to be made. It’s not Tim’s fault. It’s not John’s fault. It is expenses presented and voted yes on. Everyone else has to live within their means, except for the school district,” said Maxedon.

Director of Special Services Crystal Johnson then presented a report on the cost to bring special education students who currently are outsourced back into the district. The district, at present, pays MILLIONS in private special education tuition. Visibly agitated, Johnson ran through her presentation aligning needs to the SOWIC special education cooperative and providing minimal answers. Johnson also reminded Stachniak to email questions, and she would be better equipped to provide answers – those of which Stachniak had been inquiring about since shortly after being elected.

The board then voted on the budget. It didn’t pass, with Stoub, Stachniak, Jones, and Becker voting no. The budget is expected to be approved by September 30. Because it wasn’t, the board will need to meet again in the next week.

While the district administrator’s salaries were approved before the current board was seated, the approval on the agenda was just for the report. As a result, the board approved it, with Becker voting no. The same held true for the teacher’s compensation report; it was approved, with Becker voting no.

Even with a district deficit of $4.2M, a third STEM club sponsor for PES and stipend was on the agenda. The stipend was not disclosed in the public board packet, but Becker, Stoub, and Stachniak voted no. It passed anyway.

Disposal of personal property and approval of the 10-year safety survey reports passed unanimously, but approval of a new club, the Blue Crew, garnered some nays. The club, which would raise its own funds, was created to garner student involvement and increase student engagement in attending school-wide events. It was approved, with Stoub and Becker voting no.

The approval of a Season Assistant Athletic Director Supervisor job description and stipend were not approved, with Moe, Becker, Jones, Stoub, Love, and Stachniak voting no. If it had been approved, it would’ve created two additional positions being paid an hourly curriculum rate to attend games and supervise students at games and lighten the load of the athletic director.

Jones shared he had concerns on who would benefit from the position, and who would it relieve. Jones found the position would relieve building admins more than the athletic director, and he “found that to be completely contrary to the job overview” and saw it as a major concern. Jones went on to say that, with the district’s current financial status, they have the people able to do the work and, essentially, he believed the community would frown upon hiring more people to do the job of the people who currently are employed. He added raises were approved in April, and he would like to continuously see administrators in the community.

Stachniak added that if approved, a principal certification should be required for a supervisory role. She also clarified the hourly stipend would be five-to-eight games per season, per building, and believed that to be a pretty big cost. “I think it’s irresponsible, at this point, from our budget.”

Jones also asked if the union supported the position. Union representatives said it was first approved but, as presented at the board meeting, the union did not support the position.

Board member Jennifer Moe asked to table it. Jones said, “We have the administrators now. It doesn’t make much sense to pay somebody else to do the job they are supposed to be doing.”

Stachniak elaborated that if it reduced an administrator’s responsibility, it should be reflected in their stipend. Uthe asked what the administration’s thought was, and Zurales offered it was a collaborative proposal between junior high and high school administration. Everyone but Board President Rick Uthe voted no.

The facility condition and feasibility study project authorization was approved unanimously. The thought was the study could provide insight into future budget decisions. New architect Wright & Co. representative Nidhi Shah was present at the board meeting to answer questions. The cost of the study was $130,000, along with reimbursable expenses, recommended at $10,000. The study was approved unanimously.