AL - Mistake costs Autauga schools

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Mistake costs Autauga schools

By Marty Roney Montgomery Advertiser

PRATTVILLE — Bogus enrollment figures could wind up costing Autauga County public schools about $2 million over the next two years, on top of this year's proration cuts of $2.16 million.

Enrollment figures turned in to the State Department of Education by the previous school's administration were higher than the actual enrollment. The mistake will cost the system about $633,000 this year, and possibly $1.3 million next year, said Superintendent Larry Butler.

The result means a cut in classroom supplies, custodial work and office equipment for the system, which has an enrollment of about 8,700.

"This was promised money from the state, based on enrollment figures," Butler said. "The money was built into this year's budget. So when we received word from the state the money wasn't coming, because enrollment figures were different, we had to cut about $633,000. Then proration comes along, and we get hit with another $2.16 million we have to cut."

Butler took over as schools chief in January, about six months ahead of schedule. He took office following the retirement of former superintendent Sarah Murchison. Butler inherited the current budget from Murchison's administration.

It's not uncommon for systems to lose enrollment, said Tom Salter, a spokesman for the State Department of Education.

"What is unusual is to have a system make this level of adjustment," he said. "It's very unusual for a whole system to be penalized like this."

The state uses average daily membership numbers from each system to determine how much state money a system gets. The higher the enrollment, the more money a system gets, Salter said. If average daily membership doesn't match with actual enrollment numbers, the money doesn't come, Butler said. The average daily membership is calculated on the 40th day of each new school year.

Lori Murphy, of Prattville, wants to know just what is going on. She has two stepchildren in the system.

"For years we've been told we are one of the fastest-growing school systems in the state," she said. "For years we have been told by the BOE we need to build more schools and we need more money going to the schools. There's even talk of upping property tax again to go to schools. Now we're told we have lost so many students, we basically have to give money back to the state. Something weird is going on somewhere.

"If the board of education wants more money from me, they had better get their story straight."

Board members are also looking into the matter. For months the board has been trying to get a handle on how the enrollment figures were so off base.

Butler declined to comment on the reasons why the system is in this current financial fix.

"I will say this, it's not going to happen again," he said. "I feel like we are increasing our enrollment as this year goes along. Not by much, but we are growing. We will physically count every student to get future enrollment figures. And we are going to build budgets on hard figures, not on what may be coming.

"If it winds up we get more money from the state, that's good. But we're not going to have to take a meat ax to the budget again for these kinds of mistakes."

Mitch Johnson of Autauga County likes what he hears from Butler.

"You can't blame Coach Butler for this. He kind of inherited the problem," Johnson said. "It may never come out why this happened, but we don't need it to happen again. It looks like the Coach has a pretty tight handle on it."

Butler served as a coach in the system before becoming principal of Prattville Junior High and being elected superintendent.

Coming up with a plan on how to deal with less money is not easy, Butler said.

"In proration, you can't cut salaries, and that's about 85 percent of a system's budget," he said. "Money going to transportation, building and child nutrition programs are earmarked, so they can't be touched. That doesn't leave a whole lot of wiggle room."

http://www.accessmontgomery.com/1news/autauga/021001_autuga.htm

-- Doris (nocents@bellsouth.net), February 10, 2001


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