State aid cuts cost South Dakota 465 full-time jobs
Posted Wednesday, November 16, 2011
Recent education funding cuts have cost South Dakota 465 full-time jobs and school boards may not be finished cutting staff, according to a new report from Associated School Boards of South Dakota.
The state school board association released on Wednesday the results of a statewide school finance survey that asked school officials to detail how district budgets have changed following the recent $52 million cut in state aid to education. The data, featured in a new publication titled Costly Cuts: A Survey of South Dakota Schools, provides a comprehensive first look at how school boards are working to maintain the quality of education in South Dakota. The full report is available on ASBSD’s website at http://www.asbsd.org/page226.aspx.
Survey responses tell the story of how state aid cuts have affected school budgets, property taxpayers and school personnel. ASBSD Executive Director Dr. Wade Pogany hopes Costly Cuts helps South Dakotans understand the impact recent education funding cuts are having on the state as a whole.
“School boards have done a great job explaining how cuts will impact their communities, but we need to document what they mean to the state of South Dakota,” Pogany said. “Based on this data, we already know that school boards are cutting their budgets, people are losing their jobs and education costs are being shifted to property taxpayers.”
In response to decreased state aid, school boards have cut budgets by more than $38 million and eliminated 465 full time jobs, including 266 classroom teachers. To fill remaining budget gaps and save vital education programming, education leaders are dipping into reserves and leaning on short-term financial fixes. The data also clearly shows that education costs are being shifted toward local property taxpayers.
According to Pogany, the results show that education leaders are coping with financial uncertainty and doing whatever they can to maintain the quality of education in their communities.
“School districts are doing their job and local education leaders have made very difficult decisions,” he said. “But, we’re not out of the woods yet. Local property taxpayers have really come to the rescue, but school boards know that there are still significant challenges ahead.”
ASBSD sent the voluntary electronic survey to public schools in August. To ensure the data reflected final adopted budgets, ASBSD collected responses through the end of October. Districts that responded collectively serve approximately 85 percent of the state’s public school students.
HIGHLIGHTS OF COSTLY CUTS: A SURVEY OF SOUTH DAKOTA SCHOOLS
COSTLY CUTS: SCHOOL BUDGETS
This section details how school budgets have changed following recent state aid cuts. The report shows:
- Statewide, school districts have enacted general fund budget cuts totaling $38.3 million.
- On average, school district general fund budgets decreased 5.8 percent.
- Statewide, school districts plan to reduce general fund balance levels by $25.6 million.
COSTLY CUTS: COST SHIFTS
This section details how education costs are being shifted to local property taxpayers following recent state aid cuts. The report shows:
- Statewide, school districts plan to use $15.9 million in capital outlay revenue to supplement and balance their general fund budgets.
- Statewide, school districts will collect $2.4 million in new pension fund levy revenue to supplement and balance their general fund budgets.
- Statewide, school districts were approved to receive $7.6 million in new or expanded opt-out revenue to supplement and balance their general fund budgets.
COSTLY CUTS: JOB LOSSES
This section details how school staffing levels have been affected by recent state aid cuts. The report shows:
- Statewide, school districts have eliminated 464.8 full-time positions, including 27.8 administrative positions, 265.8 certified positions and 171.2 classified positions.
Exclusive Video: Education community helps gather 34,000 signatures
Posted Thursday, November 3, 2011
ASBSD was on hand as officials from Moving South Dakota Forward submitted nearly 34,000 signatures in support of a ballot measure to dedicated new sales tax revenue to K-12 education and Medicaid.
Moving South Dakota Forward submits 33,850 petitions from Associated School Boards of SD on Vimeo.
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This day in history: 33,850 signatures filed
Posted Tuesday, November 1, 2011
A plan to reverse recent cuts to K-12 education has cleared another hurdle.
Moving South Dakota Forward submitted today to the Secretary of State nearly 34,000 signatures in support of a ballot measure that would dedicate new sales tax revenue to K-12 public education and Medicaid. The total is more than twice the signatures necessary to qualify the measure for the 2012 ballot.
Representatives from local school boards will meet at the ASBSD Delegate Assembly on Nov. 18 to consider whether ASBSD will support the ballot initiative. The ASBSD Board of Directors voted unanimously to recommend support, but the membership has the final say.
Read more about the filing from the Argus Leader, and full Moving South Dakota Forward Press Release is below.
Dave Hewett, Bryce Healy and Andy Wiese, three organizers of the Moving South Dakota Forward initiative, carry boxes of petitions into the state capitol on Tuesday Morning.
MOVING SOUTH DAKOTA FORWARD SUBMITS OVER 33,850
PETITION SIGNATURES
Overwhelming Response from South Dakotans Interested
in Properly Funding Education and Health Care
Sioux Falls – Earlier today, Moving South Dakota Forward submitted to the
Secretary of State over 33,850 petition signatures, more than twice the number
of signatures necessary, in order to place a measure to fund K-12 public
education and Medicaid on the ballot for the November 2012 general election.
Moving South Dakota Forward is a broad-based coalition concerned about the
level of support for education and health care funding in South Dakota
The measure would create an additional dedicated funding source for K-12
public education and Medicaid by adding one penny to the state sales tax.
"The overwhelming response from across the state shows that South Dakotans
want to have a voice in the future of education and health care funding. We
expected the initiated measure to be well-received, but even we did not expect
over 33,850 signers. Doubling the necessary signatures in less than two months'
time is truly historic," said Dave Hewett, president and CEO of the South
Dakota Association of Healthcare Organizations.
"The sheer number of signatures we were able to collect illustrates how
concerned South Dakotans are about the level of funding for education and
health care in our state. We had a large network of individuals engaged in this
effort and the response they encountered was just incredible. Nearly 500 South
Dakotans circulated petitions in this effort and we collected signatures from
every county," added Bryce Healy, Executive Director of the South Dakota
Education Association.
"The petition process was just the first step to ensuring quality
educational opportunities and health care service in South Dakota," said
Hewett."We look forward to having a serious conversation about the funding
of these essential programs over the next year. We built an organization during
the last two months that puts us in a strong position for the educational
campaign ahead and sends a message that these two critical programs that
provide basic, essential services are important to the citizens of South
Dakota. We look forward to engaging everyone—whether or not they signed the
petition—in the conversation moving forward."
Over the coming weeks, the Secretary of State's office will confirm that
Moving South Dakota Forward submitted the 15,855 valid signatures necessary to
place the initiated measure on the November 2012 ballot.
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