By JESSICA SIEFF
Edwardsburg Argus

Edwardsburg school officials passed a budget amendment Monday night reflective of the financial struggles that continue to plague districts across the state, while speaking briefly about the challenges facing educators nationwide.

The district’s school board reviewed the amendment following a summary by Chief Financial Officer Anne Flautt.

The district’s state funding fell short of its expected $614,342 by $425,697 – a result of shrinking state aid.

Quoting Superintendent Sherman Ostrander, Flautt said, “Things are changing on a very frequent basis.”

Districts lost $165 per student in state funding most recently and were expecting another $127 per student cut which was held off.

That left the district $188,645 to work with in state funds.

Ostrander and Flautt made clear their desire to control costs and avoid cutting programs or eliminate teacher positions.

And Flautt said that the news was not all bad. Because the district attracted an unexpected but additional 86 students for the year, it was able to benefit from additional funding including federal aid.

That’s a more optimistic view than some surrounding school districts that have been dealing with cuts and declining school populations.

Still Ostrander said there were no guarantees for the future and seemed not to ignore the severity of the situation regarding schools and state funding.

“Projections moving into next fiscal year were not very positive,” Ostrander said.

Overall, the district projected revenues of $20.1 million with expenditures of $20.65 million. An amount of $750,000 was transferred to the Public Improvement Fund for future projects.

In total the district is looking at a little more than a $1.3 million deficit.

Ostrander said the district also had the benefit of being able to handle some of the pressure byway of savings.

“That gets us through the year,” he said. “And I can make no promises beyond that.”

Though tough decisions lay ahead for all of Michigan’s districts, Ostrander said he still believes the district is better off than it could have been.

“It’s going to be a challenge,” he said. “But I’m sitting here, telling you this with a thankful heart.”

In addition to state funding challenges, there are the new mandates being handed over through the Race to the Top initiative, a contest for additional federal funds for which Michigan recently threw its hat in the ring.

“Whatever we experienced” in school – Ostrander told the board, “is now going to be completely different. We’re looking at a nationalized curriculum.”

Though no state or school district knows yet whether or not it will see additional funds handed down through Race to the Top, “we still need to move forward,” Ostrander said. “We need to be prepared.”

New standards and mandates are on the way, he explained, whether they receive additional funding or not.

Still, he said, “I’d like to think we were racing to the top before it was mandated.”