Miss-Delectable
New Member
- Joined
- Apr 18, 2004
- Messages
- 17,158
- Reaction score
- 7
Idaho board to oversee deaf and blind school - Northwest - The Olympian - Olympia, Washington
The century-old school for the deaf and blind children in Idaho will be eligible to tap into an education reserve fund and potentially soften the blow of deeper cuts in state spending next year.
Public schools under the state Department of Education used the fund to cover about $85 million in losses last year, but deaf and blind programs were supervised under the state Board of Education and could not access the reserve.
The school was forced to cancel summer programs for blind and deaf students, among other measures, to trim $503,700 from its budget after Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter ordered state agencies to cut 6 percent during the last fiscal year.
But legislation passed in the 2009 Legislature moved the school out from under the education board and created the Idaho Bureau of Educational Services for the Deaf and the Blind to oversee it instead, starting July 1.
The shift is part of a reorganization plan Idaho Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter unveiled earlier this year as part of his proposal to revamp the agency. The plan included a slew of changes for the board, shuffling things like education programs for inmates and jobs rehabilitation for people with mental or physical disabilities away from the agency.
The board supervises public schools, colleges and universities and tracks testing and grants. Otter wants the agency to steer away from managing programs and focus on policy.
Legislation passed earlier this year turned the deaf and blind school into an independent agency, supervised by a board of directors that includes trustees from the state Board of Education and Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Luna.
The school is now funded as a line item in the public schools budget, allowing access to the education stabilization fund in case of further cuts in state spending next year, state Department of Education spokeswoman Melissa McGrath said.
The fund, which lawmakers created in 2003 to avoid harming the Idaho's K-12 system with cuts during the middle of the school year, was drained by about $85 million amid holdbacks in state funding last year. Lawmakers were able to restore the reserves after using federal stimulus dollars to bolster Idaho's public schools budget.
The fund now holds about $114 million.
At the deaf and blind school in the rural farming town of Gooding, the money could help provide a safety net administrators have been without while bearing the brunt of statewide holdbacks.
"I don't know how we could cut back anything more without decreasing the services we provide, either here on campus or through outreach programs," said Jeff Woods, director of finance for the Idaho School for the Deaf and the Blind.
The school operates with a yearly budget of about $8.8 million, with nearly 80 students in Gooding and another 1,000 taught through outreach programs at school districts.
The school was forced to cancel summer programs, reduce heating bills down by lowering thermostats on nights and weekend, shutdown cooling systems more frequently, cut down on office supplies and travel, leave vacant positions unfilled and decreased salaries to balance the budget for this fiscal year, which began July 1.
"We took a look at everything and made hard decisions," Woods said.
The century-old school for the deaf and blind children in Idaho will be eligible to tap into an education reserve fund and potentially soften the blow of deeper cuts in state spending next year.
Public schools under the state Department of Education used the fund to cover about $85 million in losses last year, but deaf and blind programs were supervised under the state Board of Education and could not access the reserve.
The school was forced to cancel summer programs for blind and deaf students, among other measures, to trim $503,700 from its budget after Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter ordered state agencies to cut 6 percent during the last fiscal year.
But legislation passed in the 2009 Legislature moved the school out from under the education board and created the Idaho Bureau of Educational Services for the Deaf and the Blind to oversee it instead, starting July 1.
The shift is part of a reorganization plan Idaho Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter unveiled earlier this year as part of his proposal to revamp the agency. The plan included a slew of changes for the board, shuffling things like education programs for inmates and jobs rehabilitation for people with mental or physical disabilities away from the agency.
The board supervises public schools, colleges and universities and tracks testing and grants. Otter wants the agency to steer away from managing programs and focus on policy.
Legislation passed earlier this year turned the deaf and blind school into an independent agency, supervised by a board of directors that includes trustees from the state Board of Education and Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Luna.
The school is now funded as a line item in the public schools budget, allowing access to the education stabilization fund in case of further cuts in state spending next year, state Department of Education spokeswoman Melissa McGrath said.
The fund, which lawmakers created in 2003 to avoid harming the Idaho's K-12 system with cuts during the middle of the school year, was drained by about $85 million amid holdbacks in state funding last year. Lawmakers were able to restore the reserves after using federal stimulus dollars to bolster Idaho's public schools budget.
The fund now holds about $114 million.
At the deaf and blind school in the rural farming town of Gooding, the money could help provide a safety net administrators have been without while bearing the brunt of statewide holdbacks.
"I don't know how we could cut back anything more without decreasing the services we provide, either here on campus or through outreach programs," said Jeff Woods, director of finance for the Idaho School for the Deaf and the Blind.
The school operates with a yearly budget of about $8.8 million, with nearly 80 students in Gooding and another 1,000 taught through outreach programs at school districts.
The school was forced to cancel summer programs, reduce heating bills down by lowering thermostats on nights and weekend, shutdown cooling systems more frequently, cut down on office supplies and travel, leave vacant positions unfilled and decreased salaries to balance the budget for this fiscal year, which began July 1.
"We took a look at everything and made hard decisions," Woods said.