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Board names staff cuts
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BRODHEAD - The Brodhead School Board Monday identified the five teachers and one guidance counselor that will be laid off if the April 6 referendum fails.

Elementary school teacher Karen Rufenacht; high school math teacher Courtney Ring; part-time middle school teacher Marcia Petersen; high school Family and Consumer Education teacher Renee Boston; high school agriculture education teacher Jillian Beaty; and high school guidance counselor Jennifer Flory will be laid off at the end of the school year.

Boston and Beaty will have their hours reduced to 50 percent, but will remain with the district. Because the district reduced their hours, it needed to issue them lay-off notices as well as the staff members who will be eliminated at the end of the year.

The notices had to be given to the staff by April 1.

Board President Peggy Olsen said the six people would be brought back next year if the referendum to allow the district to exceed state-mandated property tax revenue caps is passed.

The lay-offs were approved at the board's March 15 meeting as the district looked at how to make about $260,000 in staffing cuts to help make up the expected $393,000 deficit for the 2010-11 school year.

Unlike the March 15 meeting, there was no discussion by the board about the positions that would be laid-off.

Although there was some speculation about which staff members would receive lay-off notices, it wasn't until Monday's meeting that the names of the staff members were announced.

In another matter that could affect district funding next year, the board approved requests from 146 students to enroll out of the district next year. The board accepted requests from 22 students to enroll in the district next year.

If all 146 students leave the district, it would mean the loss of more than $992,000 to the district in state aid.

The district can't deny a request to leave the district.

Most of the requests were made immediately following the defeat of the Feb. 16 referendum when some district residents believed extra-curricular activities would be canceled because of budget cuts, board members said in previous meetings.

If a district cancels a sports program, students may enroll in another district to participate in the sports that are eliminated.

However, if the district continues to offer the sport, a student must sit out a year before being able to play at another school.

After a public meeting, the school board decided in February to remove extracurricular activities from the list of cuts to the budget. Board members said at the time they were surprised at the number of students who would leave the district if those activities were cut, and said it didn't make sense for the district to cut the programs and lose even more revenue.

The district loses about $6,800 out of the $10,000 it receives in state aid for every student that transfers out of the district.

The school district is asking residents to approve a referendum April 6 to allow the district to exceed the property tax revenue limits by $393,000 in 2010-11; $567,000 in 2011-12; and $797,100 in 2012-13.

The tax rate for 2010-11 would be $8.27 per $1,000 of equalized property value, which is lower than this year's rate of $8.45. In the second year of the referendum, taxpayers will pay $9.52. In the third year, the tax rate will increase to $10.16.

A four-year referendum failed by a 55 percent to 45 percent vote in February.