April 26, 2011 | Volume 23, Issue 8 Athletes juggle dual sports, p. 5
State proposes funding freeze McKinley district schools risk $750,000 loss
“...Education should be the government’s number one commitment. Instead, it feels like they are short changing educators. This is terribly frustrating, I feel like we are getting beaten down, and it’s not about the students. It’s a matter of power.”
• Superintendent Mark Wittmer
0% = proposed financial aid increase for all schools $750,000 = risked loss by McKinley district schools $0.22 = proposed tax increase for Pella residents per $1000 assessed
Caravanned by Gov. Terry Branstad, the proposal of zero percent allowable growth will freeze school-designated state-aid for the next two years. Allowable growth, based on the number of enrolled students, varies each year depending on what the state government decides. For the past four years, it has been substantially decreasing, with last year bringing only two percent growth. But, never in the history of the state has zero percent growth been implemented. If this were to take place, Pella may not be as impacted because of its increasing enrollment, but schools, such as Melcher-Dallas, will be losing more than $136,000. “I understand that we have to tighten our belts, but education should be the government’s number one commitment. Instead, it feels like they are short changing educators. This is terribly frustrating, I feel like we are getting beaten down, and it’s not about the students. It’s a matter of power,” said Superintendent Mark Wittmer. If the government does settle upon zero percent growth (Wittmer believes there is a 60 percent chance they will), schools under Senator Paul McKinley’s district will be losing over $750,000 for the next fiscal year. The district is already planning on raising property taxes as they did last year. They are set to increase from $13.99 to $14.21, which will approximately bring $380,000 into the district. Wittmer believes that most of this money will go to the special education deficit. Fortunately, the district also has $248,000 left from last year’s Jobs Bill that they can rely on if zero percent allowable growth is approved. Even so, Wittmer still seems weary of saying the district won’t have to make cuts. “The list is back, which is where we will look to first if we need to make cuts. We will probably have to look back at the things we reinstated from last year. We added back extended contract days, term-life insurance, pep band, fully-paid flu shots, and more, but we may have to cut some of these things again. In
reference to cutting positions, we always want that to be a last resort. But, I can’t guarantee what the next year or so will hold. We can’t make any definitive decisions until we finish negotiations,” said Wittmer. At the moment, he is staying optimistic to the financial future of the district. With an increase in cash levy reserve and undesignated unreserve from last year, the district should be able to weather the storm. What needs to be taken into account is the amount of solvency rate set up by the district to how much they should be saving each year. For years, solvency has been set between the ratio of five to 10, but after a recent financial session, Wittmer believes the district needs to be closer to 10 to stay afloat. This could put a strain for future expenses, which would require a higher budget to be put in reserve. “We have to stay vigilant to the idea that saving is the key to financial success. This should be our game plan for the next few years, and if we follow it, we should be able to keep providing the same kind of educational opportunities as we were before. We have our own obligations to our staff and students to provide them with the best that we can in terms of material and environment,” said Wittmer. While the district budget has been maintained by the current collaboration of Wittmer and business manager Jon Miller, they are both
PROTEST. Pelladium adviser Ann Vissor pickets at Iowa State’s “First Amendment Day” April 7. •Photo by Tiffany Carter
set to retire at the end of the 2011 fiscal year. While the loss of the two will be felt by the district and future financial decisions, Wittmer feels sure that the two have enough experience to make the best decisions. “Jon and I won’t be leaving the community, so we will be available whenever they need us. We love this district and will continue to be involved for as long as they need us,” said Wittmer. •Megan Card (mcpelladium@gmail.com)
Business manager opening filled by former pastor, coach Local pastor and assistant football coach Roger DeWaard will be the new district business manager effective July 1. He replaces Jon Miller, who had held the position for the past 10 years. Miller will be retiring after 33 years of working in school finances. The business manager is the person in charge of the finances for the school district. This includes payroll, account management and ensuring the execution of the district budget. The business manager works closely with the school board and superintendent to guarantee proper financial execution within the district. “The position involves doing something different all the time, but in a nutshell, the business manager is responsible for all of the district finances,” said Miller. DeWaard is a Central College graduate, where he received his degree in accounting. He worked for a number of years as a certified public accountant, which included a number of audits involving school finances. He also worked as a small business owner in the technology business.
He has spent the past six years working with churches in the area. “I did a lot of work as a CPA, and that included doing audits of schools and districts, so I have some experience in that area,” said DeWaard. DeWaard has a personal interest in the success of the district, as his wife, Wendy, works as an associate at Madison Elementary, working in the pre-school and kindergarten areas. They have three children: Jacob, a junior, Josh, a sophomore and Jessica, an eighth grader. DeWaard has also been a part of the Pella football program as an assistant coach for the past nine years. “I’ve always appreciated the district and have always thought that if there was a job that was a positive fit for me, I’d look into it. I felt qualified to pursue this opportunity and appreciate Jon Miller’s work in the position,” said DeWaard. Being in charge of the district finances places DeWaard in an influential role for the upcoming years. •See DeWaard, p. 3