Denver Public Schools Update - March 22, 2011

Received today from Tob Boasberg, Denver Public Schools Superintendent:

Staying Strong through the Funding Crunch

Dear DPS Community:

I wanted to take this opportunity to update you on our budget outlook for next year, in light of recent news on the state’s budget outlook and its impact on area school districts.

It is very true that public education throughout the state of Colorado is facing extraordinary budget challenges.   You have probably heard about how many Front Range school districts are planning on layoffs, furlough days for teachers, charges for transportation and increased class sizes.  We, however, are fortunate that we are not cutting school budgets for next year or raising class sizes across the board.  And, we are not planning any furloughs or layoffs or increased charges for services like transportation.  We will, in fact, have more teaching positions in the Denver Public Schools next year than this year.

The Governor’s updated state revenue forecast last Friday, moreover, provided—at long last—some hints of a recovering economy.  If the Governor and legislature are able to reduce the $35 million of state revenue cuts currently planned for DPS,  it’s possible that we might be able actually to increase modestly our funding for schools next year.  We will know more on this by the end of April.

To deal with the $35 million in cuts the state is considering for DPS, we are currently planning to absorb all of that reduction in funding through cuts to centrally funded programs and the use of pension finance savings in order to keep the cuts away from schools.  We have also been helped by the fact that in the last two years, we have been able to attract more than $80 million in multi-year competitive grant funding from both foundation and government sources, which is helping drive our key reforms around educator effectiveness and support for English language learners. 

As you know, we have made very difficult decisions for the past several years on salary increases and program cuts at the district level to help us weather the economic storm. We are cutting $10 million in centrally funded services for next year in order to maximize the dollars going into classrooms.  Our very clear priority is to keep the impact of funding cuts as far from the classroom as possible and to keep the dollars and spending decisions as close to kids as we can. As evidence of that commitment, we currently spend about 95% of our budget in our schools, with the remaining 5% spent on central costs.

To further offset the funding shortfall from the state and keep cuts from schools, we’re also planning to use about $15 million of savings from our 2008 pension financing next year. As an update on our pension financing, the Board of Education last week unanimously approved a plan to convert half of the $750 million in pension bonds from the 2008 financing to a fixed interest rate. This helps provide more certainty on financing costs, while also continuing to save the district millions of dollars annually over the pension structure in place prior to our merger with the Public Employee Retirement Association of Colorado.

As a result of these savings and efficiencies, we have been able to avoid the severe budget cuts that other local districts are facing. Nevertheless, the recession has hit all segments of the community hard. Our schools have certainly not been spared, and I sincerely appreciate the sacrifice and extra work of our teachers, principals, and support staff in helping us protect the classroom from the impact of funding cuts.

Going forward, it’s clear that there is a strong need for all of us—teachers, parents, students, community members, and business leaders—to come together and have a community conversation about the impact that continual funding cuts have on our city and our state.  We cannot continue this cycle of cuts and more cuts.  As a community, we need to make a significantly higher investment in our schools 

Thank you for your involvement and interest in our schools, and we will continue to update you as the state’s budget is finalized 

Best, 

Tom

For more information, contact the DPS Communication Office at (720) 423-3414 or e-mail  communications_office@dpsk12.org.