Kalamazoo Public Schools issued the following announcement on May 30.
Kalamazoo Public Schools has scheduled three virtual public meetings to present information on the proposed 2020-21 school year budget and to seek input on possible reductions. The meetings are scheduled for 7 p.m., Monday, June 1; 7 p.m. Tuesday, June 2; and 3:30 p.m., Monday, June 8.
The meetings will be livestreamed on Public Media Network’s Discover Channel. Anyone wishing to provide suggestions on budget reductions beforehand can do so using the link provided on the KPS website. In addition to the public meetings, there are seven additional meetings with KPS employee and stakeholder groups.
As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has dramatically reduced state and local revenue and placed enormous pressure on the state budget, the School Aid Fund is predicted to be more than $1 billion below previous estimates for the next two years. As a result of this state shortfall, the foundation allowance that KPS receives for each student could be cut by as much as $650, resulting in a loss of approximately $8 million for the current school year and for the 2020-21 school year.
The COVID-19 pandemic has created tremendous uncertainty as to how to provide quality education for students while maintaining safe conditions for both staff and students. School districts face new expenses and challenges for the upcoming school year, including: providing personal protective equipment; creating new health screening procedures; increasing cleaning costs; reorganizing learning spaces to accommodate social distancing; and expanding access to school-based mental health services. At the May 28 Board of Education meeting, trustees unanimously approved a resolution calling on the federal government to provide additional financial support to schools during this state of emergency.
A preliminary 2020-21 budget will be presented at the Board of Education meeting on June 18. On June 25, there will be a public budget hearing with the Board of Education at 6:45 p.m. to allow for additional comments on the proposed budget. The Board of Education will be asked to approve the budget at their regular meeting which begins at 7 p.m. on June 25. Both the budget hearing and regular meeting will be held electronically. A link to a sign-up sheet for speakers and a link to the livestream of the meeting will be posted at www.kalamazoopublicschools.com. Written suggestions may be sent to communications@kalamazoopublicschools.net.
Original source can be found here.
Source: Kalamazoo Public Schools
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