Budget cuts are once again a point of tension for Dunlap School District 323.
When the original agenda for Wednesday night’s Board of Education meeting was made public, budget cuts were listed as an agenda item, but were removed in the days leading up to the meeting.
Superintendent Dr. Scott Dearman opened the meeting by addressing the reversal, saying new information caused the board to reconsider the cuts. The most promising update was news of another stimulus on its way to the district worth $1.17 million.
“That money, of course, has stipulations tied to it, but some of those stipulations were things that we were going to need to do anyway...so that’s certainly going to help our bottom line,” said Dearman.
Dearman also mentioned that, according to a conversation he had with the Illinois State Board of Education, the second round of funding would be available by the end of this fiscal year. After approving a budget with a deficit of nearly $5 million, these federal funds and updated projections have helped to brighten the year ahead.
“When these projections were made, you got to remember at that time what was happening in the Peoria area...and the concern that all of us had about what impact was that going to have locally on our economy,”said Dearman. “Fortunately...things have actually come in better than projected.”
Dearman continued to defend the district, saying that officials have made cuts in transportation and maintenance to chip away at the losses, but Dunlap High School senior Elijah Clar feels that any budget cut is harmful, no matter the sector.
“The back and forth that this board has done on cuts this year is completely unacceptable,” said Clar. “Back in November, we were promised that no cuts to jobs and programs would be proposed or made, but the board has gone against their word, and this back and forth is playing with people’s jobs, lives, and mental health.”
Board member Mike Wisdom rebuffed Clar’s assertions, saying the board would not move forward with cuts that would “impact people’s lives” untilit knows the full extent of the impact.
“We did not say we won’t make any cuts,” said Wisdom. “We said we’re going to do the right thing, we’re going to make sure we know where the district stands, and do our duty not only to the teachers and students, but the taxpayers as well.”
Other public comments at the meeting highlighted confusion in the community around the budget discussions and the desire for accountability within the board itself.
Dearman and the board are set to revisit the budget issues once all information regarding funding is available.
“Things have come in better than projected,” said Dearman.
“We want to keep Dunlap as it is, so that’s the reason it was pulled (from the agenda).”
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