Facts About PSD Funding Crisis

PSD Cuts $12 Million from 2010-11 Budget

The Poudre School District Board of Education adopted the fiscal year 2010-11 budget on June 8.  Below is important information about the budget crisis, and links to more detailed information.

Colorado’s Funding Crisis Impacts PSD

• Colorado is facing the greatest fiscal challenge in its history, requiring $260 million in cuts to K-12 education.
• The impact on PSD is a $12 million budget reduction for the 2010-11 school year.  The amount PSD will receive per student is $6,472, a 6.3% reduction from last year. 
• PSD is one of the 13 lowest funded districts in Colorado, receiving 95% of the statewide avg.

PSD Cuts $12 Million for 2010-11

• $4.5 million is being cut from schools, with each school cutting 4.5%, resulting in approximately 86 fewer staffing units across all schools, of which 60 are teachers/licensed staff.  School administration is being reduced by approximately 3.6 staffing units.
• Schools are also making cuts to operating budgets, impacting professional development, classroom budgets, and extracurricular programs. The impact of these cuts will be reduced services to families, and ultimately greater pressures on the classroom.
• $5 million is being cut from district departments (non-school areas), with each department reduced by 8-10%, resulting in approximately 52 fewer staffing units in district departments. $2 million in cuts are planned for district departments’ operating budgets.
• $2.5 million in cuts will come from district level reductions, which include administrative reorganization of cabinet level positions (1.0 fewer position), alignment of one-time funds for future debt payments, and adjusting restricted (or non-discretionary) budgets.
• Overall, PSD plans to cut the equivalent of 139 full-time staff in 2010-11, many through attrition.
• Budget savings include closing one school and reducing funding for small schools, changing bus routes, and increasing athletic fees.

2-Year PSD Employee Agreement Stabilizes District Finances

• The district and the employee groups found concessions to arrive at a 2-year contract.  Anticipating no change in revenues for 2011-12, PSD negotiated a 2-year contract with employee groups that included one time only increases in 2010-11, and step increases in the second year.  Early retirement incentives helped contain costs.

Years of Reductions in State Education Funding Impact PSD

• Over 2 years, PSD has cut approximately $13.7 million.
• This is the first year the district has made cuts to schools.

Colorado Trails Nation in Support for Public Education (67 KB) Colorado’s per pupil expenditure has fallen in comparison to national and regional averages.  In 2007-08, Colorado ranked 41st in the nation in expenditures per student.

• The U.S. average in 2007-08 was $1,919 more than Colorado’s state average of $8,638.  Neighboring states Kansas, Nebraska, Wyoming exceed the national average, and New Mexico’s average is $1,452 greater per student than Colorado. 
• By the 2010-11 school year, PSD expects revenue reductions of approximately $11 million when compared to the level that should be funded under Amendment 23.