Mahomet-Seymour School Bd OKs $700K Budget Cut

A Mahomet-Seymour school board member said the $700,000 in budget cuts approved Monday night were difficult to make, but unavoidable.

School Board Vice President Vicki Niswander said the reductions for the 2012-2013 school year were made necessary by cuts in state funding --- and the school district will feel the impact.

"You know, as a school district, most of our money goes into personnel," Niswander said. "That means that personnel are going to have to be eliminated. And that's probably going to mean administrators; it's going to be mean teachers. It's going to mean other support that. I have no idea at this point, how we're going to that, but we have to."

The cuts include the elimination of several teaching positions ---- some through attrition. Also, the district is eliminating most of its library assistants. Superintendent Keith Oates said the loss of the library assistants will have a real impact. He said they have done more for their school libraries than just check books in and out.

"There's a lot of reading assistance, book selection, book bags that go home, especially at the elementary level," Oates said. "So, there's a lot that goes on in our libraries, they're very high quality. And a very, very difficult decision to reduce those library assistants out. That will affect the service of our libraries, without a doubt."

The Mahomet-Seymour district will also close down enrichment programs at its two elementary schools, and end its junior high football program ---- although the district notes that they had already lost many participants to a community football program.

Oates saud the state funding cuts forcing them to make budget reductions are hurting schools throughout Illinois. He predicts the Mahomet-Seymour will have to cut up to $800,000 in the following school year as well. But Oates said the district will continue to strive for excellence, even as it resigns itself to making do with less money.