BY STACI WILSON
Faced with a $2.2 budget deficit, Mountain View School Board announced plans to cut 10 teaching positions at its Monday, Apr. 11 work session.
In addition to the teachers, the board also plans to eliminate the assistant high school principal position, currently held by Michael Beamish.
Business manager James Mirabelli said the district was looking at any available avenues for deficit reduction.
Board member Mark Phillips disagreed with the proposal to cut the assistant principal and asked the superintendent to reconsider the recommendation.
“My concern is there will be a possible domino effect with these cuts,” Phillips said. “There needs to be a foundation at the administrative level that needs to be maintained.”
Board member Dava Rinehart-Cowan said, “It’s not an easy time. These cuts run deep. I would rather keep a teacher in a classroom than an extra administrator.”
Rinehart-Cowan said taxes in the district were raised to the maximum allowable levels last year and would probably be raised again this year.
Student enrollment in the district is dwindling – down 149 students since 2007.
One district rep said there are not enough students to warrant the current staff size.
District wide there is one teacher for every 11 students; in the high school alone the ratio is one teacher to 19 students.
Lay-offs are also planned for up to five support staff employees.
Superintendent Andrew Chichura said that in addition to areas looked at a previous meeting he was also looking at several new areas in which to make cuts, such as department head positions and elementary intramurals.
He said the district could pick and choose those positions that were absolutely needed.
He also put forth cost-saving measures for the athletic program.
Chichura said the district could maintain its Adult Education program but make it self-sustaining by increasing the registration fee to $15 and not reimbursing the tuition to district residents.
Bus routes will also be looked at and reconfigured.
Chichura also put forth the suggestion to eliminate the bus and car program that brings students to the school early to catch the bus to the Susquehanna County Career and Technology Center.
It would then become the responsibility of parents and students to arrive at the school to catch the bus to the vo-tech.
Some of the proposed cuts will be acted on at the next board meeting, Monday, Apr. 18 at 7 p.m.
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