MONTAGUE — The Montague school district has enough in its fund balance to continue operations through the second pay period in November in the event of a state governmental shutdown, said district director of business affairs Stacey Brown at Monday's regular school board meeting.
The specter of a state shutdown persists amid the lack of a state budget being agreed upon by the Michigan state house and senate. The fiscal year begins Oct. 1, and without a budget, the state government will shut down.
While other factors are in play in the state budget debate, as far as public education funding is concerned, the main issue, according to a Monday analysis by the nonprofit and nonpartisan Mackinac Center for Public Policy, is regarding restrictions being placed on funding. The Republican-led House of Representatives favors a plan with far fewer restrictions for the money distributed to school districts, while the Democratic-led Senate wants targeted budget items such as free breakfast and lunch for students, at-risk student services, special education services and others.
Superintendent Jeffrey Johnson said school districts would likely be sharing more information on the potential aftereffects of a state government shutdown as the Oct. 1 deadline draws nearer.
The board - which is now full again after new trustee Ben Rupert took the oath of office at the meeting after being appointed last month - unanimously approved two new district improvement expenditures at the meeting, both of which will be paid by the sinking fund: A $509,440 improvement in the fire suppression systems at the elementary, middle and high school buildings, and an $84,884 roofing improvement for the gymnasium at NBC Middle School. Between the two, the projects will take up most of the money currently in the sinking fund, though Johnson said the district expects to replenish some of that in upcoming property tax collections.
The fire suppression improvements will be made by Johnson Controls in a bid that was obtained through the Sourcewell cooperative bidding process. Sourcewell is a company that works with public entities to obtain bids for major projects in order to streamline the process.
Arrow Roofing and Supply, a company based in Grand Rapids, will handle the roofing replacement. Johnson said at their suggestion, the district is also renting a pad that will protect the outdoor basketball courts adjacent to the gym from potential damage during the project. He added that the project, weather permitting, will be completed in three days and will be done before this winter.
The district was pleased to report that according to early student counts, there are more students in the district than were budgeted for. Johnson said there are over 40 more than the district planned for. Of course, given the current state budget, it's unknown what the financial benefit will end up being for the district, but presumably it will be significant.
Johnson also reported that over 57,000 pounds of food were distributed in the summer meal pickups that took place both at the high school and at the Rothbury village hall, commending the staff members who helped give them out.
The board unanimously approved an eighth-grade trip to Chicago scheduled for May 29. Johnson said the visit will include an outing at Medieval Times restaurant near the city, as well as a tour of Willis Tower and a meal at deep-dish favorite Giordano's Pizza.
