Port Washington-Saukville School District Responds to Budget Bill

Working with the recently passed budget repair bill “is not going to be easy,” said Jim Froemming, Port Washington-Saukville School District director of business services. So the district plans to be careful with its next moves.

“No one’s looking to rush decisions,” the board’s vice president Jim Eden said.

Gov. Scott Walker’s bill cuts roughly 8 percent of funding for public schools, and District Supt. Michael Weber said there “will be a significant reduction of the amount of money spent per child." 

Teachers’ contracts for the 2011-13 cycle are now being carefully considered by the district, keeping the budget repair bill in mind.  Weber said that he is not anticipating layoffs, especially since 11 experienced teachers will be retiring later this year and will be replaced with individuals earning potentially lower starting salaries.

Froemming said that he doesn’t anticipate any drastic changes in the next year as the district still has funding. It won’t be until the state’s biennial budget is approved that any official decisions will be made regarding cuts to the district, Froemming said.

However, even if cuts are made, the district is “going to try to sustain programs as much as possible,” Froemming said.

For now, the main goal for the schools is “to have the least negative impact on students,” said school board president Patty Ruth.  

Although no official decisions have been made, Froemming said that one thing is for certain regarding changes in the budget: “It’s going to create challenges.”