KSHB 41 News reporter Braden Bates covers parts of Jackson County, Missouri, including Lee's Summit. Send Braden a story idea by e-mail.
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The Lee’s Summit R-7 School District could end the year with a $6.5 million deficit with more funding concerns in the future.
The district's leader told KSHB 41 News Lee's Summit reporter Braden Bates county and state budget decisions will impact schools.
Superintendent Dr. David Buck talked about how the shortfall came about and the possibility of future impacts.
WATCH previous coverage here:
Buck boiled the deficit down to state and county tax credits, funding formula issues and losses in federal funds.
"We had several things happen after the school year started," Buck said.
In a budget update letter by Dr. Buck, he shared more on the outlook for the school district's future budget.
Some of the biggest challenges the district's watching closely are the state funding formula and Jackson County tax credits.
The state uses the State Adequacy Target to lower and raise what the school districts are allocated.
School districts were expecting $7,145 per student for this school year.
According to Superintendent Buck, the district's received $6,900 per student.
"This is about a few people making decisions that really have a large impact on our mission to educate," Buck said.
The deficit is forcing the district to use more of its reserve funds, which are designed to act as a rainy day fund. The school district tries not to let reserves fall below 25%, but expects its reserve levels will go below that.
"You want to make sure you have enough money to pay the bills and pay people’s paychecks," Buck said.
The district already cut $1.3 million in personnel going into this school year, according to the budget update. He said they are not expecting more cuts to staff right now, but the district is not hiring new positions and is looking at various 10% cuts.
Superintendent Buck said when the cuts became public he wanted to share more behind why they're being made.
"We’ve made some cuts and so they understand why," he said. "And I think we have a big year coming up and it’s not all on our hands. It’s what the county’s going to do and what the state’s going to do."
The deficit does not mean less money for teachers, but the impact is not small.
Kristina Seih, is a parent of three children in the school district. Two of her kids were on IEP and she said she knows the importance of well-funded schools.
"I really hope that the future of education is in good hands," Seih said.
She said she is happy with the district's communication and transparency.
"They are very open," Seih said. "They send board meeting updates often. We get a lot of communication from every single school we’ve been a part of. So I think that is wonderful."
Other parents KSHB 41 spoke with raised similar concerns about the district's budget.
One parent shared with Bates they pay a large amount in taxes allocated to the school. They questioned why the district was not in a good position with its finances.
Another parent told Bates it's concerning to see a district lose money, knowing the impact it will eventually have on teachers.
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