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About Polk County itemizer observer. (Dallas, Or) 1992-current | View Entire Issue (April 13, 2016)
Polk County News 2A Polk County Itemizer-Observer • April 13, 2016 FCSD officials: Schools need more room Polk’s budget Board members see gym bond addressing academic and athletic needs By Jolene Guzman The Itemizer-Observer FALLS CITY — In the last three years, Falls City School District’s enrollment has in- creased by 36 students, ac- cording to the latest enroll- ment numbers. That doesn’t seem like a big jump, but for a district with fewer than 200 stu- dents, it’s notable. “For a district of this size, it’s huge,” said Superinten- dent Jack Thompson. Thompson said the dis- trict enrolled 145 students when he took over as super- intendent three years ago. The last tally has the student count at 181. He attributes the growth to efforts to improve the at- mosphere in Falls City schools, engaging teachers and simply making school more fun. “Staff in this district w o rk e d re a l l y h a rd t o change the culture and the way people view Falls City,” Thompson said. It appears to be working, as Falls City schools have enrolled students from Dal- las, Monmouth and Kings Valley in recent years. Falls City has always prid- ed itself on small class sizes, but the bump in the number of students is making that claim a stretch in some cases. With 30 kids in the sev- enth-eighth grade class now and if enrollment holds, 35 next year, Thompson is rec- ommending separating the grades for the 2016-17 school year. Not that school officials are complaining, but the growth creates a planning challenge. “We’re starting to get ade- quate funding and a little more sustainability that we can hire and fund a teacher, but we lack the space,” said Jami Kidd, the school board chairwoman. That scenario brings to plan approved Committee ‘tentatively’ approves the county’s 2016-17 fiscal year budget By Jolene Guzman The Itemizer-Observer AC + Co/ for Itemizer-Observer This preliminary drawing provides the basic idea of what a new multipurpose gym would look like if built next to Falls City Elementary School with bond proceeds. light one of the reasons members of the school board believe it is critical the district build an elementary school gym: It wouldn’t just be for athletics, but academ- ics, too. Currently, the multipur- pose room in the basement of the elementary school is the “gym” and music room. It’s not half the size of a true gym, but it could be converted into two class- rooms if indoor play could be moved elsewhere, Kidd said. The district is asking vot- ers to approve a $2 million bond the May primary to build the gym. If approved, the district would get $2 mil- lion more from the state to pay for the project through a grant program. Falls City is one of nine districts in the state to be approved for the state fund- ing, Kidd said. The multipurpose facility would include two full-sized courts and a cafeteria, solving the problems of inadequate sports practice space and cramped kitchen facilities. Preliminary plans include space that is yet-to-be deter- mined that could be used for locker rooms or more class- room space. Board members see this election as an opportunity that shouldn’t be missed, both because of the state’s offer of a dollar-for-dollar match and the need for room to grow. K i d d s a i d Fa l l s C i t y schools need to grow to have a strong future and provide a quality education to stu- dents. If enrollment and funding decline, the outlook is dire. “It is all of our beliefs (school board members) that we will not provide a mediocre education for a small group of students,” Kidd said. “If it starts getting to that point and we are los- ing funding, we will close.” The current trend points in the opposite direction, which comes with difficul- ties of a different nature. “Our student population is increasing, which we ap- Falls City March Enrollment Pre-K — 10 Kindergarten — 14 First grade — 10 Second grade —12 Third grade — 10 Fourth grade — 12 Fifth grade — 8 Sixth grade — 15 Seventh grade — 20 Eighth grade — 10 Ninth grade — 20 10th grade — 10 11th grade — 11 12th grade — 19 Total: 181 Source: Falls City School District preciate, but it is causing a problem,” she said. “We tried to answer as many problems as we could with one solution. That we get something that we can grow on, but meets the most amount of our needs right now.” POLK COUNTY — Fol- lowing four days of hear- ings, the Polk County Budget Committee “tenta- tively approved” the 2016- 17 budget with no major changes from the proposed budget. Thursday’s approval is not final. The budget com- mittee will reconvene in May to make any adjust- ments necessary. “We will probably have some revenue adjustments between now and May,” said County Administrator Greg Hansen. The overall budget pro- posal is $64.9 million, an increase of 10 percent over the current budget. The general fund — the fund that contains budgets for such departments as the sheriff’s office and jail, dis- trict attorney, community corrections and assessor — comes in at $22.2 million, a 12 percent increase. Next fiscal year’s budget carries a $3,931,378 contin- gency, a $1,139,902 in- crease from the current year. About half of the gen- eral fund increases of $2.4 million was placed in con- tingency to offset anticipat- ed cost increase, mainly due hikes in the Oregon Public Employees Retire- ment System rates coming next year. Transfers from the gen- eral fund to support other programs increased by 27 percent, including two new transfers for the fair fund and soon-to-be-added vet- erans services program. The transfers include: $830,000 to the juvenile fund; $275,000 to public health; $107,500 to dog 2016-17 budget basics: General Fund: $22.2 million Contingency: $3.9 million. Total budget: $64.9 million. Source: Polk County control; $75,000 for the fair for operations; and $40,000 to veteran services. Public works also re- ceived $80,000 from the general fund, but that transfer is the result of state timber revenue sent to the county for road work. Approval included rec- ommended salary adjust- ments for all elected offi- cials that would increase pay by 4 percent, excluding the district attorney, who is paid by the state. Polk’s Compensation Committee, consisting of the three non- elected member of the budget committee, made that recommendation in January. The Polk County Board of Commissioners has the final say on that. For the current fiscal year, the commissioners increased pay for other elected offi- cials, but declined a raise for themselves. The budget committee will meet to vote on a final recommendation on May 25 at 10 a.m. in the Polk County Courthouse confer- ence room, 850 Main St. Dallas. “In May you will have a fine-tuned budget for your approval,” Hansen said, adding he anticipates the meeting going smoothly. “I d o n’t s e e a n y m a j o r changes on the horizon.”
