Nicollet superintendent makes

case for adequate school funding

By KEVIN SWEENEY

Journal Editor

NICOLLET -- Lt.Gov. Mae Schunk has visited more than 200 of Minnesota's school districts since taking office. Tuesday it was Nicollet's turn.

Schunk's "getting-to-know-you" trips have taken on a more serious aspect since Gov. Jesse Ventura's current budget proposal. Schunk has been getting reaction to his limited K-12 funding increases that many educators say are inadequate to maintain school operations.

Schunk visited pre-school and kindergarten classes, greeted Nicollet's high school heavyweight champion Ryan Rosin, then sat down with school officials and community members to hear their concerns.

Superintendent John Hornung told Schunk that Nicollet is determined to make its school district work, but that it has been hit hard by declining enrollment. Nicollet has been experiencing 8 percent declines in enrollment for the past few years, and the resulting loss of revenues means the district must cut about $274,000 in expenses to maintain its balance.

"The money's never enough, even if the funding is there," he told Schunk, who is a retired educator.

Hornung said a bill in the Legislature that would allow districts to use their average enrollment over two years to figure its revenue would help even out the effect of dropping enrollment.

Schunk said the governor's proposal for education does aim at equalizing funding for rural districts like Nicollet. She said the tax reform proposal to take school districts off the property tax would be helpful in districts where school property taxes hit farm property.

Schunk also said the governor would provide more tax credits to parents who pay day care. That plan might help Nicollet raise funds by charging for its day-care services, she said.

Hornung said he was concerned that the state taking over a greater share of education financing would mean loss of local control. He was also concerned about part of Ventura's tax proposal that would allow excess tax levies solely on homeowners in a district.

Pay differences between smaller districts like Nicollet and larger districts make it hard for the district to keep teachers, Hornung said.

Larry Hewitt of Hewitt Machine & Manufacturing and Gary Schmidt of Schmidts' Meat Market expressed concern about the problem of keeping people in their businesses, and the cost of health care that has raised costs for all employers, not just school districts. They also talked about the decline of vocational programs in many school districts because of costs, and the effect that has on students coming into the workforce.

Hornung said many programs like industrial arts and domestic science have been trimmed by cost-conscious schools. Some students opt to head to the nearby South Central Technical College for post-secondary-option classes, which hurts Nicollet's revenue, he said.

The message Nicollet sent back with Schunk was help in softening the blow of declining enrollments, more funding for vocational programs, a state insurance program that would help keep health insurance costs down, and more help with transportation funding.

"Forget the rebates, let's take care of our kids," said Hewitt.