The Oconto Unified School Board issued nonrenewal notices to four teachers during a special board meeting April 27 as it continues to trim its budget following a failed referendum.
The elimination of three full-time positions plus one part-time was the same as the plan that was approved during its April 20 meeting, but not finalized at that time. The district had considered cutting up to five positions prior to its May 15 deadline.
Superintendent Emily Miller said the board lowered its cuts to the 3½ positions after considering the classroom size impact at the elementary school and program impact for another half-time position.
“We’re in a deficit of a million [dollars] and we are trying to at least cut at around the $500,000,” Miller said. “We’re willing to go into our fund balance for that remaining [amount]. So the impact, if we do not pass the referendum in November, isn’t as hard the following year to cut – because we’ll have to cut another million on top of that other $500,000.”
The cuts will be combined with not filling positions of other staff who are retiring or leaving for another job. Plus salary increases will not be given to those in administrative roles – the superintendent, principals, assistant principal/athletic director, finance director and IT director.
Other staff will see just a slight increase in pay, with contracted staff receiving a 1% increase, less than the full 2.63% cost‑of‑living pay raise that is allowed.
Miller said that increase was scaled back from what the district had projected prior to the referendum failing, but implemented “to continue showing respect for our staff while aligning with fiscal responsibility.”
“So with those changes and a couple other tweaks, we’re pretty close to being [near the $500,000 in cuts],” Miller added.
The April 7 operational referendum, which failed by a 1,059-918 vote, or 53.6%, asked voters to allow the district to exceed state-mandated spending limits by $1.2 million a year over five years for ongoing, day-to-day expenses to sustain current services and opportunities for its students. The district has operated under a similar five-year, $800,000-per-year referendum that expires at the end of the current 2025-26 school year.
Another referendum is likely to be put before voters in November, but that isn’t finalized yet. Miller said she is working with her business manager to see what figure should be put on the ballot. Right now, it is shaping up to be somewhere between an extra $900,000 to $1.2 million per year.
“We’re not trying to ask for more than we need,” Miller said. “So we want to make sure that we are going back to the community and letting them know that we took a hard look at our numbers and this is where we’re at.”
This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: Oconto school board cuts 3.5 positions after failed referendum
Reporting by Kevin Dittman, Green Bay Press-Gazette / Green Bay Press-Gazette
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