Two Woodland board members' views on bringing A/C, tech to schools
Two Woodland Elementary District 50 school board members say establishing priorities as part of an improved budgeting process is necessary after an unsuccessful effort to raise money for technology upgrades, air conditioning at the primary school and other projects.
District 50 board members Vincent Juarez and Terry Hall are expressing their opinions as the two Woodland elected officials who voted against placing the referendum question on the April 7 ballot to seek permission for a temporary, one-year tax cap of 5 percent.
The referendum question did get on the ballot, and voters said no. The recently announced Consumer Price Index would otherwise set the cap at 0.8 percent for the 2015 levy.
Juarez, elected to the school board in 2013, said Woodland revenue has gone up an average of $1.2 million annually in the past five years. He said the ballot box defeat is a reason to review the budget and make adjustments accordingly.
He said Woodland should explore many areas for potential expense reductions and direct the savings toward upgraded technology and textbooks. He said the district could start by investigating whether a reduction in the number of half school days has potential to save money.
"Woodland should make every effort to prioritize student learning by providing students with the necessary tools to learn," Juarez said.
But Woodland board President Mark Vondracek and others contend the district has been living within its financial means. They've noted budget tightening has included the reduction of 65 positions and the postponement of technology upgrades and capital improvements since 2006.
If last week's ballot question had passed, there would have been an additional $57 for every $100,000 of market value on property owners' 2016 tax bills.
Money from the increased tax collection would have gone into the district's operations fund to pay for air conditioning at Woodland Primary School in Gages Lake and, on a districtwide level, enhanced classroom technology and building improvements.
In January, Juarez and Hall were the dissenters in the 4-2 vote to place the referendum question to the voters April 7.
Hall said it would have been "financially irresponsible" to pursue the primary school air conditioning from the extra money the district had sought.
"As a (certified public accountant), I have felt that we could do better at budgeting our resources and prioritizing our needs," Hall said, "and now, I think we will have to."
Hall said Monday that if Woodland were to defer air conditioning the Elementary East and West buildings, the district instead could use $1.4 million it is receiving from a closed tax increment financing district in Waukegan to give computers to all students and for capital projects.
District 50 has a contract with Siemens Corp. to start the heating, air conditioning and ventilation work in the summer with completion before school resumes in August.