Keokuk, IA – The Keokuk School District's administration is proposing a roughly $1.4-million reduction in the budget for the 2011/2012 school year.
The Keokuk School Board would approve roughly $450,000 in cuts and use $950,000 in one-time funding to fill in the rest.
On top of that, the district is also anticipating a nearly $0.75 increase in the property tax rate.
The district's proposal calls for the elimination of three classrooms (3rd, 4th, & 5th grades). Superintendent Lora Wolff says the district's declining enrollment means the cut would only boost class sizes by two-to-three students each.
The Keokuk School District also wants to eliminate the position of one elementary school nurse, remove some middle and high school department head designations, and reduce days for library staff.
Wolff does not believe the district will have to lay anyone off. She says almost all of the vacancies will be addressed through attrition caused by early retirement.
The budget proposal also calls for the district to use $440,000 in federal education money and $250,000 in reserve accounts as one-time transfers.
Business Manager Greg Reynolds says Keokuk's declining enrollment is playing a factor in the budget process. He says the district is already facing a $1.6-million shortfall in the 2012/2013 budget.