Committee passes school budget

A 2005-06 general fund budget featuring a handsome 9.2 percent increase from the current year was approved by the Sisters School Budget Committee Monday evening. The committee posed no criticisms and few questions for Superintendent Ted Thonstad before giving unanimous approval to numbers that were nearly identical to those he first unveiled two weeks ago.

In fact, the committee barely managed to muster a quorum. Four of the five lay members failed to attend. All five school board members were present, making it still possible to conduct business.

The budget is still available for public comment. The last opportunity will be June 27 when the board will hold a public hearing and, barring the unexpected, give the budget final approval. The hearing will begin at 5:30 p.m. in the Sisters High School lecture room.

Thonstad explained that he is still betting that the 2005 Legislature will approve a state school fund at least as large as the $5.25 billion now recommended by Gov. Ted Kulongoski.

As proposed, the 2005-06 Sisters school budget will accomplish at least two high priorities besides maintaining current programs and staffing. It will enable the district to add to its calendar five days that were cut this year for lack of funding. And it will make possible the addition of one English teacher to provide more electives at the high school and hopefully reduce the number of students, seniors in particular, who are released early during the day for lack of attractive class options.

Even so, the added money will not be enough for the district to add teachers to relieve overcrowding in fifth and sixth grade classes. Nor will it permit the needed replacement of servers for the technology system.

One change the superintendent made in his latest proposal boosts the estimate of local option revenue to $895,000 compared with an original estimate of $877,000.

That means this source of funding is expected to rise 8.7 percent, reflecting increased taxable property values.