Budgeting For Results Committee - May 10, 2010

[Guest sullinss]

School District No. 2, Yellowstone County

High School District No. 2, Yellowstone County

Billings, Montana

May 10, 2010

Call to Order

 

The Budgeting For Results Committee of School District No. 2, Yellowstone County and High School District No. 2, Yellowstone County, Montana met at Lincoln Center, 415 North 30th Street, Billings, Montana, on Monday, May 10, 2010. Committee Chair Joel Guthals called the meeting to order at 5:20 p.m. and led those assembled in the Pledge of Allegiance. Committee members present were: Joel Guthals, Peter Grass, Paige Darden, Barbara Bryan, Bruce MacIntyre, Joan Sleeth, Rod Gottula, Sandie Mammenga, and Charlie Loveridge. Members absent were Don Stanaway, Kelly Donovan, Deana Elder, and Tom Bick.

Also in attendance were Thomas Harper, Gail Surwill, Barb Buss, Daniella Walsh, Bette Hunt, Carrie Miller, Teresa Stroebe, Karen Palmer, Ginny Mermel, and members from the Energy and Environmental Innovation Committee Ed Gulick, Sandy Abraham, Rich Whitney, and Lew Anderson.

Chair Joel Guthals welcomed Charles Loveridge, a new community member on the BFR Committee, and introduced new Trustee Connie Wardell.

 

Communication from the Public

 

There was no communication from the public.

 

Chair Guthals commented how wonderful it is that the voters approved two mill levies recommended to the Board by this Committee. Chair Guthals gave special thanks to Bruce MacIntyre and Paige Darden for their hard work and tremendous extra public relations effort to get the mill levies approved through the Yes For Kids campaign.

 

Consent Agenda

 

Rod Gottula moved to recommend the Board approve the Consent Agenda items as follows:

A-1 BFR Minutes of April 12, 2010

A-2 Addition of Library ECA Account at Beartooth

A-3 Addition of BPEF Trust Fund Accounts for Scholarship/Award/Memorial

A-4 Addition of BPEF Trust Accounts for BPEF 2010 Classroom Grant Recipients

Bruce MacIntyre seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously.

 

Bills Paid – April, 2010 (summary sheet)

 

Rod Gottula moved to recommend the Board approve the bills paid for April, 2010. Bruce MacIntyre seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously.

 

Financial Reports – April, 2010 (unaudited)

 

The year is 83% complete. Committee members reviewed the Financials. There are no material variances.

 

Health Insurance Financials – March, 2010 (unaudited)

 

The total liabilities and fund balance is $4,215,502.81. Thomas Harper believes the Plan will break even at the end of this year based upon total revenue less expenditures comparison of the first nine months of FY2010 to the same period FY2009. Claims incurred but not paid are comparable between the same two time periods. This District pays the full premium amount for employees’ single coverage. Thomas will provide industry standards information at the next meeting.

 

Teachers on Special Assignment (TOSA’s)

 

Gail Surwill, K-12 Executive Director of Curriculum and Instruction, presented information on Teachers on Special Assignment. TOSA’s are certified classroom teachers on special assignment that do not require direct regular contact with students. The four TOSA’s are: Lisa Scott, Curriculum and Assessment; Rob Wells, Arts Program; Desiree Caskey, Technology Integration Specialist; and, Jennifer Smith, Indian Education for All.

 

Instructional Coaches are teachers that provide professional development to improve teachers’ instructional skills, and are in contact with teachers almost every day. The District has 6 Math Coaches, 6 Literacy Coaches, and 4 Special Education positions. These positions are funded with Title I, Title II, Math grants, Indian Education For All, and Special Education funds. Only one Special Education position is funded by the General Fund. Gail reviewed a Google survey completed by teachers regarding roles and responsibilities of the coaches. Gail trains the coaches, and they examine what’s available for best practice. There is little rotation of personnel in these positions. The four coaches paid from ARRA Title I funds were hired for a two-year position, and they will return to the classroom at the end of that time. Coaches work with all new teachers and also by teacher request.

 

Gail clarified that Reading Tutors are Parapros and are not certified. Parapros are 3.75 hours at every elementary building. Some Reading Tutors are assisted by Coaches.

 

Green Team – UnCommon Sense Presentation

 

Rich Whitney and Carrie Miller are Co-Chairs of the District’s Green Team and were involved with the UnCommon Sense project, a program with the Yellowstone Business Partnership that encourages area businesses to become more environmentally friendly. They completed the two-year program and received plaques from the Yellowstone Business Partnership and from the Montana Department of Environmental Quality recognizing their efforts. The project involved making and meeting goals in eight different areas including waste management, energy and water management, responsible purchasing and transportation efficiency.

 

Rich Whitney said our District has an energy conservation program committed to reducing energy consumption by 20% over five years through Energy Management Systems, energy saving projects, and education and training of personnel. The District has saved over $654k in energy cost savings over the last 17 months. Lew Anderson, Energy Conservation Specialist with Energy Education, Inc. under contract with our District, addressed the Committee on what we are doing to address utility savings in each of the buildings. Last year we had $360k in savings. Lew has set a goal to save $500k by the end of June, 2010 for this year. Our District Energy Star Rating average is 83. Only three sites do not have Energy Star Rating at this time: Will James, Washington, and the Career Center; however, there are projects in the works for improvement. The District will continue to move forward to monitor and make improvements in our systems, continue communication and share successes with the community.

 

Food Service Contract

 

It is a USDA requirement that we have a contract once every five years for food service. A bid from Sodexo was the only one received. At the last Committee meeting members reviewed the contract and requested it be referred to the School Health Advisory Council to provide best recommendations to be included in the contract about quality and other performance requirements as well as conducting a building survey for qualitative input.

 

An informational meeting with BFR Committee Chair Joel Guthals, Trustee Barbara Bryan, General Manager of the Food Service Dept. with Sodexo Bette Hunt, Chair of BPS School Health Advisory Council (SHAC) Ginny Mermel, and CFO Thomas Harper was held to discuss best recommendations for improvements as the District goes forward to a five-year contract renewal. Bette and Ginny reported on recommendations from that meeting.

 

 

 

Bette Hunt explained food service initiatives (including options and costs being explored):

• Expand annual report to the Board to add information on enhancements to food quality, nutrition education, environmental initiatives, local foods initiatives, and barriers to progress.

• Explore options for students to purchase additional entrees at discounted rate.

• Increase nutritional information at point of service.

• Environmental initiatives, i.e., use hydration stations and washable dishes, and recycling opportunities.

• Explore locally grown food options.

• Continue work on automatic certification of families and neighborhoods for free and reduced lunch.

• Recommend to BFR school improvements that improve quality and/or reduce costs (cooking on-site, etc.).

 

Member Bruce MacIntyre left the meeting at 7:40 p.m.

Ginny Mermel, Chair of the BPS School Health Advisory Council (SHAC), investigated composting of kitchen scraps, switching to recyclable or compostable dinnerware, and using locally grown foods in our schools. Ginny believes students and community would be better served if we as a District concentrated on enhancing areas we have actual nutritional deficiencies (breakfast and chronic hunger). We could address trying to provide more dollars for meals, competitive grants, and private funding since we know students perform better if they eat breakfast, and chronic hunger is an ongoing problem in our community. Ginny said we need massive communication with parents regarding food choices for their children. Sodexo has encouraged adults at the school to model good eating habits, and Sodexo has a program to encourage students to try new fruits and vegetables.

Chair Guthals explained the District’s food service program is set up as revenue/expenditure neutral and is paid by the government. Sodexo expressed a willingness to continue working with the District, the SHAC Committee, and the Budgeting For Results Committee within parameters.

Barbara Bryan moved to recommend the Board award the bid (five year contract renewable each year) to Sodexo. Peter Grass seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously.

Deferred Maintenance & Energy Efficiency Improvement Grants

Rich Whitney, Executive Director of Facility Services presented a prioritized list of Deferred Maintenance Energy Efficient Projects to the Committee for their recommendation. These grants are authorized by the American Recovery & Reinvestment Act (ARRA) and administered through the MT Dept. of Commerce. The award to Billings SD#2 is $1,234,596.31 Elementary and $613,289.02 High School. Funding is based on the number of quality educators we have, and 90% of the money is in hand. Funds must be spent by September 30, 2010, and funds not spent will revert back to the Dept. of Commerce. All projects listed meet the criteria of deferred maintenance or energy efficiency. We will be required to submit documented quarterly reports on how project dollars are spent. Rich said we have $121M of deferred maintenance needs, and many of the projects are necessary to keep the building open.

The list includes $602,158 of elementary projects previously approved by the Board; however, the District did not get the Quick Start money to complete them. The remaining elementary projects for $680,075 have not yet been Board approved, for a total of $1,282,233 in Elementary projects. $530,500 of high school projects was previously approved by the Board; however, the District did not get the Quick Start money to complete them. The remaining high school projects for $112,050 have not yet been Board approved, for a total of $642,550.

Peter Grass moved to recommend the Board approve the list of projects as submitted. Rod Gottula seconded the motion.

Sandy Abraham questioned the Energy Management System projects as a great idea, but not necessarily an educationally appropriate temperature for those kids sitting next to windows. Sandy asked if putting in new windows would be more efficient. Sandie Mammenga advised at Big Sky they are not able to effectively manage temperature manually; they need a computer system. Rich said our custodial staff is doing a good job; but it is expecting too much of them to monitor energy savings without assistance from a computerized program. Building need new windows also; however, we submitted window projects to the Dept. of Commerce for Quick Start and Quality School Grants, but they weren’t funded. Superintendent Copps is reviewing these projects with the Dept. of Commerce. Ed Gulick, on the EEIC Committee, agreed that quality windows can reduce heating and lighting costs; however, EMS systems provide the quickest payback. Barbara questioned whether we should use this discretionary funding for window replacement. Rich said because the General Fund budget is underfunded for day-to-day maintenance, he doesn’t have enough money to repair things that break down. Most of the items on the project list are critical to keeping that part of the building functioning; and, it is Rich’s opinion that we have to fund these projects. Paige asked if there was any comprehensive long term facilities plan. Thomas reported we are in line for $2M in QZAB bonds we can issue and can repay at no interest. We also have $10M set aside as part of the ARRA funding. Thomas said this District does not have enough cash flow to issue those bonds without going to the public for a bond levy. The District must decide before September 21st if they want to ask the public for a bond levy because other districts are in line to get these bonds. Thomas explained QZAB bonds are geared for areas with high free and reduced lunch counts. QSCB bonds have no limitations on where they can be used. Both types of bonds are either tax free or have a tax credit. The State will pay a portion of the QSCB bonds. Chair Guthals said we did run a building reserve bond levy a couple years ago and it did not pass. The EEIC Committee has recommended the EMS system control concept to be installed in all of our buildings to reduce energy expenditures; we have six buildings left to install them in. BFR Committee members support a long term facilities plan for the District.

Rich Whitney said we need to add the Will James fire alarm project for $130k to keep it operational. There were no objections to adding this item to the list.

The motion carried unanimously.

Quality Schools Grant Program

Rich Whitney reviewed a prioritized list of projects for the Quality Schools Grant application with Committee members. This program is a competitive application based grant administered through the MT Dept. of Commerce. We were turned down on our current grant application; and, a conference call is scheduled for Thursday with the Dept. of Commerce to discuss why these projects were turned down and what they expect in the application. The next grant is due June 18th to the State. These projects will go to the Legislature in January; and, a final decision is expected in April, 2011 with funding provided for projects to be completed in the summer of 2012 and 2013. Rich listed critical maintenance projects that qualify and have a high probability of closing schools or severely interrupting the educational process in that building. The grant application listed the following project criteria: 1) serious public health and safety problems; 2) bring the facility up to current local, state, and federal codes; 3) enhance the school district’s ability to offer specific services related to accreditation standards; 4) energy efficiency design; 5) incorporate long term cost effective benefits to school facilities including technology; and, 6) educational enhancement.

Project costs are: Elementary $440,487; Middle School $254,271; High School $8,473,882; Joint/Elem,MS,HS-Admin $115,000; for a total of $9,283,640.

Barbara Bryan moved to recommend Board approval of the Quality Schools Grant Program project list as presented. Peter Grass seconded the motion.

The Committee discussed the safety and liability need to approve the projects; however, it was suggested that some items like bleachers may need more public support in the future. The $1 seat surcharge at Daylis is reinvested back into Activity problems but is not enough to cover major needs; and, the Booster Club support for the bleachers did not materialize.

The motion carried unanimously.

Technology Programs Update

 

Karen Palmer, Director of Technology, explained they are examining their department’s budget for cost saving measures. The largest ongoing expenses are servers and licensing. The District will be implementing Cloud Computing which is technology hosted by a large service provider through the internet and includes hardware, software, maintenance and utility costs. Karen estimates by going with Google Enterprise our District will save an estimated $80k per year. Google offers this service for free to school districts starting in July. Our e-mail system through Google is free, available from anywhere, includes word processor spreadsheet presentation, drawing tools, storing documents, use from any computer, more space to store email and files, and staff and students can collaborate. The Career Center has been testing this since February along with a number of individuals, and all feedback has been positive. The downside is we lose local control; so, if the system is down repair is internet dependent. If the internet is down, some work can be done off-line. Part of the savings is in Technology overtime which will free personnel up to do network infrastructure.

 

Budget Update

 

Thomas Harper stated the Elementary Mill Levy was voter approved. We now have a preliminary budget we will bring to the Committee in June. Thomas related that the Superintendent will propose the Elementary District cuts that this Committee approved will be bought back with the passage of the mill levy. This will mean no cuts and no pink slips for those employees. We still have the issue of funding the Middle School activities program at 80%. The Superintendent proposes we fund this at 100% which would be at the same level prior to the Memorandum of Understanding with the BEA two years ago. Details will be provided next month. Passage of the Elementary mill levy does impact the FY2012 budget. That budget was based on assumptions put in effect one and one-half years ago. We need to decide if those assumptions are still applicable for FY2012; or, do we need to adjust those assumptions to what we really think is going to happen. Rod asked for a clarification on what assumptions Thomas was referring to – labor agreements, State Legislature, insurance costs, or all of those. Thomas stated probably all of the above, but the biggest was the revenue assumption based on what we think will happen at the State level. Thomas said in the General Fund we have had $6.2M of one-time money and the question becomes how much of that money will be backfilled by the State.

 

Mill Levy Update

 

This item was not addressed at this time.

 

Committee Members Confirm Membership Intent FY2010-11

 

Chair Guthals stated the Board gave interim approval of the BFR Committee to meet over the summer until the Board reorganizes to authorize next year’s Committee memberships in August. This Committee has excellent involved informed members and Chair Guthals hoped all members would agree to serve on this Committee this fall.

 

All members present indicated a desire to serve over the summer.

 

Adjournment

 

There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 9:20 p.m.

 

 

 

 

 

Joel Guthals, Chair

 

 

 

 

Sherrill Sullins, Recorder