State of the School-- A District 116 Progress Report

Last Thursday morning I attended the Round Lake Area School District presentation that they made in conjunction with the Round Lake Chamber of Commerce. The presentation covered and touted two major areas educational and financial. I am going to talk about the financial aspects of the turnabout here however. Five years ago when I took office, the mayors with major stakes in the district were approached, by numerous state legislators about our feeling about putting a state oversite panel in place to attempt to fix the morass that the district had become. While I had reservations about losing some local control I did recognize that something needed to be done. The appointment of the SFA (State Finance Authority) and the hiring of Dennis Stonewall as CEO, Wally Korpan as CFO and Dr. Janet Elenbogen as Chief Education Officer have shown dramatic results.

• In 2001, Round Lake Area Schools had a student population of 5,775 K-12 students.
• The assessed valuation of District 116 is the second lowest in the county with the second highest tax rate.
• Most of the taxes are generated from homeowners.
• In 2001 40% of our real estate revenue, or approximately $7,060,000 out of $17,800,000 tax distribution was intercepted by bankers who felt that we were a poor risk.
  
• In 2001, the homeowner of a $150,000 home was paying $2,630 in taxes to our school district. Of this money, $1,578 was going to pay off debt.
  
• The district borrowed $14,400,000 in short-term debt to make payroll and pay for educational supplies.
  
• There was a possibility in 2001 that the health insurance program that the district had for its employees would not be available due to a lack of funds.
  
• In March 2001 the school district tried, unsuccessfully, to pass a referendum to sell bonds to fund a health insurance program. The long-term debt was as high as $88,172,636 and $14,500,000 in short-term .
  

Today things are dramatically different.

• The long-term debt has been reduced to $77,532,228, and short-term debt is eliminated.
  
• The first step of recovery began in 2001 with the implementation of fiscal management. Business operations were established, individuals trained and procedures were followed.
• The Board received an accurate Treasurer's Report for the first time in several years.
  
• Today, Round Lake Area Schools celebrates its 5th year of a balanced budget.
  
• Buildings and grounds have improved with the help of several companies and organizations. Round Lake Area Schools provides a cleaner and healthier learning environment.
  
• Changes have occurred without the addition of new money because business policies and procedures have been communicated to the staff and the stress of accountability is behind the positive change.
  
• Many of our existing buildings have been identified for Life Safety repair. Chief among these are asbestos abatement, boiler and heating unit replacement, plumbing repair and lighting repair or replacement.
  
• Technology opportunities are behind other school districts and equipment replacement and training are paramount in improving our educational climate.
  
• There is an active participation by members of the Business Office with members of the Curriculum and Instruction Department to make sure that grants are properly budgeted, expended and accounted for.
  

However there are still things that need to be done going forward.

• Round Lake Area Schools has a very diverse population and economic structure; more than 59% qualify for either free or reduced price breakfast and lunch waivers.
• Instructional needs still include textbooks and textbook adoption testing and assessment tools. Current library books and software need to be purchased as well.
  
• Our school population is rising at a very fast pace. Currently, our schools are at their peak enrollment. The current student enrollment has prompted the consideration of adding new mobiles at Indian Hill to house students for next year.
  
• Additional teachers will need to be hired and supplies and capital outlay items need to be purchased to outfit these classrooms. These will all require additional dollars.
  
• The prospect of selling bonds is necessary. Round Lake Area Schools will be forced to have a manageable debt in order to provide the space and service the community will demand. This will be no different than other school districts. These financial improvements are important, however, the quality of education must also be improved.
  

It is important to know that in the past year Round Lake Area Schools has become the envy of other area school districts for the financial improvements it has made. Other districts have visited to ask questions on how we made improvements. These are the same districts that a few years ago lost confidence in Round Lake Area Schools.