Harlan Kirgan
The end of the St. Landry Parish School Board’s fiscal year this month has two board members questioning new Superintendent Patrick Jenkins’ spending.
Jenkins, who was hired in October to lead the school system, assured them his staff changes are saving money and the school system’s books will be in the black at the end of June.
The School Board met Thursday at the Resource Center in Opelousas.
Milton Ambres, an Opelousas board member, said, “Mr. Jenkins, I’m still looking at your proposals and I have not seen yet where we cut anybody and they didn’t get a higher salary. I’m trying to figure out where these cuts are that you are talking about.”
Another Opelousas board member, Hazel Sias, said, “We seem to be doing a lot of hiring at the top and I know some of the positions we need, but ... we need ways of cutting at the top and place funds in the schools with the chidren.”
Ambres and Sias raised the same concerns at the May 23 Finance Committee.
At that meeting, Jenkins went over the cost-savings of a revised organization plan, which included additions of a director of operations, supervisor of elementary, supervisor of secondary, supervisor of STEAM and media specialist. Eliminated positions are computer repair technician, computer program analyst, coordinator of English, coordinator of career and technical education, coordinator of science, coordinator of music and custodian at the Resource Center.
Those changes added up to a $136,585 savings, according to a handout.
Additionally, there is a decrease in salary for the curriculum director and computer manager and a grant is paying a personnel facilitator’s salary.
The total stated savings is $248,420.
Jenkins said some of the savings result from consolidating jobs and retirements, which reduces the salaries amount and benefits.
Jenkins noted that a negative ending balance was projected at the beginning of the year.
“We are very hopeful at end of this fiscal year, at the end of this month, we will be in the black. So, we are trying to be very good stewards of the funding that we have,” he said.
At the Finance Committee meeting, Tressa Miller, finance director, said, “We are still projecting a break-even or better” ending general fund balance.
Miller said in the past two years the school system experienced ending losses of $2 million and $3 million.
Even though she projected a positive end to the budget year, Miller said, “...there are a lot things that haven’t happened yet.”
At the end of April, the general fund for the year was showing a positive balance of about $5 million with revenues of $89.5 million and expenses $103.9 million. Transfers to the general fund include $9.5 million for a sales tax fund for salaries.