THE CHALLENGES OF QUALITY PUBLICATION EDUCATION: 

THE COMMUNITY HIGH SCHOOL DISTRICT 99 STORY 

Community High School District 99 serves seven different communities located in DuPage County. The District's 5300 students are housed in two large high schools (Downers Grove North and Downers Grove South). The District had a long history of providing quality educational experiences with balanced budgets. Since the inception of the tax cap, however, our District has struggled to sustain the caliber of program and services expected by our community. 

The challenge began immediately with the implementation of the tax cap in 1991 Just prior to the inception of the cap, the school board had lowered its levy request in several funds.  The reduction had been the local board's effort to maintain accountability to the community by setting tax rates at the necessary level to cover expenses. The first year of the cap thus found the district facing even less revenue because of the lowered rates. The tax cap also carne after a new three-year contract with the teachers had been ratified. That contract had been predicated on a revenue stream which was seriously disrupted by the tax cap. The expenditures for salary and benefits were exceeding available revenue, but the contracts had to be honored. Consequently, in the early '90s expenditures exceeded revenue and this difference resulted in a serious dwindling of reserve levels. 

Faced with growing deficits and dwindling reserves, the Board had to take drastic action. The Board set a goal of cutting $5 million out of the annual operating budget to achieve balanced budgets and stop the hemorrhaging in the reserve level. This cut represented 12% of the operating budget. 

Over a two-year period significant cuts were made across the board. Supply budgets, capital equipment budgets and other service budgets were reduced. Capital improvements to the facilities were curtailed, which was problematic due to the fact that one of the buildings was 70 years old. Many support staff positions were reduced in hours or totally eliminated. Ultimately, however, the $5 million cut required a  significant increase in our staffing ratio. Class sizes in English, Mathematics, Social Studies, and Foreign Language rose from an average of 27 students per class to 34 students per class. This resulted in a teacher's student load being increased by almost an additional class. These were not the student teaming conditions which our community expected. The athletic and activity arena was also impacted by the 12% budget cut. Assistant coaching positions were eliminated and many club sponsors could no longer be supported, which reduced student to participation in co-curricular programs. In addition after school bus service to get students home after an activity was totally eliminated. This created severe hardships for many families where both parents worked. The geographical size of our district made it impractical for students to walk home. All of this impacted the participation level in the co-curricular program. 

Paralleling the significant cuts in expenditures, actions were taken to increase revenue. For years the district had a registration fee to cover textbook rental, towel service, Ids and mailings. In 1993 the fee was approximately $75 per student. Two years later the fee had jumped 100% to $150 per student. A family with two or three students was suddenly feeling a major financial burden. In addition, for the first time a participation fee was imposed on all students participating in interscholastic programs. The $40 fee per student per activity further burdened our parents. It is important to note that all of these cuts took place at a time when the district enrollment was growing. The growth was compounded by an increasing number of students needing special services. 

After several years of major cuts and local revenue enhancements, we turned the comer. The 1995-96 budget was the first balanced budget of the decade. The range of programs and level of services to students was not at the 1990 level. But the budget was balanced, and our small reserves were stabilized. 

Over the last five years the District has worked hard to be financially prudent while attempting to maximize opportunities for student learning. The community supported the sale of working cash bonds to provide us with an internal savings account from which we could borrow annually. This arrangement allowed the District to eliminate the use of Tax Anticipation Warrants, and it also allowed the June tax payment to be credited to the following school year.   

Five years after our budget cuts, we still have not been able to resume the level of programs and services offered prior to the tax cap. Class sizes are too high. There is no after school busing for students in athletic/activity programs. The textbook replacement cycle does not meet the curricular needs of students. The capital improvement program has had to unduly lengthen replacement cycles. And on the revenue side, parents are still responsible for the high registration fee and individual activity fees. We continue to face growing enrollment as well. 

As the new legislative session approaches with its requirement to address school funding, District 99 is very concerned. For the.2000-01 school year, our Total General State Aid plus Hold Harmless Allocation equals 3.1% of total revenue. That amounts to $325 per student. The Hold-Harmless Allocation represents 20% of our total state aid. If that provision is eliminated, we would drop from $325 in state support to $259 per student. Unless we were to reduce our current service level, we would be forced to ask our parents to pick up the difference with higher fees. Yet the tax payers in our District already provide a significant amount of revenue to the district. Ninety percent of our income is from local sources, with the remainder being from the state and federal levels. Thus the Hold Harmless revenue is essential if the District is to sustain its current level of educational programs.