Next Minooka 201 School Board Meeting

The next meeting of the Minooka CCSD 201 school board is Wednesday, December 14, 2011. The Committee of the Whole Meeting starts at 6:00 p.m. in the board room (the old library) at the Minooka Primary Center located at 305 Church Street in Minooka. The Committee of the Whole Meeting will be followed by the regular Board Meeting at 7 p.m. Please be sure to mark your calendars. You can find the agenda for each of the meetings here.

Next Minooka 201 School Board Meeting and Finance Committee Meeting

The next meeting of the Minooka CCSD 201 school board is Wednesday, November 16, 2011. The Committee of the Whole Meeting starts at 6:00 p.m. in the board room (the old library) at the Minooka Primary Center located at 305 Church Street in Minooka. The Committee of the Whole Meeting will be followed by the regular Board Meeting at 7 p.m. Please be sure to mark your calendars. You can find the agenda for each of the meetings here.

Also, there will be a meeting of the Minooka CCSD 201 Finance Committee on Tuesday, November 15, 2011 (the day before the school board meeting). The Finance Committee meeting starts at 6:00 p.m. in the board room (the old library) at the Minooka Primary Center located at 305 Church Street in Minooka. If you want to have some input into the Minooka CCSD 201 finances, you may want to attend this meeting. You can at least get some information about when and by what amount the school board will eventually seek to raise your property taxes. It may not be this year or next year, but you can be assured that in the next few years the school board will seek, either by a rate hike referendum or a "back door referendum," to raise property tax rates. (For an explanation of a "back door referendum" see here.)

Is Rhode Island the "Canary in the Coal Mine"?

The problem of state and municipal pensions is something that has been building for decades. Years of over-promising and under-funding created the problem. But the burst of the housing bubble, the financial crisis of 2008 and the subsequent three years of little to no growth and high unemployment have brought the problem into sharp focus. When the economic tide was rising, many of the problems could be hidden and politicians and the public could engage in the ever popular game of denial called "kicking the can down the road." Now that the tide has gone out, it is becoming clear who was swimming without any pants. This crisis will lead many municipalities to declare bankruptcy in order to get out from under the crushing burden of their pensions. States will face a similar crisis, but since they currently can not declare bankruptcy, they will deal with the problem in other ways. Rhode Island seems to be further along in the process than some other states. However, many other states, including Illinois will face similar problems (to understand the scope of the problem, click here). Illinois has already enagaged in one round of pension reform. It is likely many other rounds will follow.

What does this have to do with schools you may ask? Plenty. You see, many states, such as Illinois, will be forced with the choice of cutting back on its pension promises or cutting back on funding for current services such as education. The reason is simple. The state legislature will realize (hopefully soon) that raising taxes is not the answer, since it will lead to capital and human flight from the state to "greener pastures." The most recent Illinois state income tax increase has already contributed to this process. Such capital and human flight reduces the tax base in Illinois thereby leading to lower tax revenues than anticipated (indeed it is possible that such rate increases could lead to lower tax revenues than previously collected under the lower rate). Further tax rate increases have a similar effect, leading into a self-reinforcing cycle of economic destruction. Many states and municipalities have already learned this lesson the hard way (see here and here). (Economics teaches that human beings respond more or less rationally to incentives and change their behavior in response. Even journalists understand it.)

How will this affect Minooka 201 taxpayers? Well, I expect that more of the burden of funding education will be shifted from the state to the local taxpayer. Currently, the state of Illinois provides 15% of our education fund revenue (approximately $4 million) and 67% of our transportation fund revenue (approximately $1.7 million). If the state decreases its contribution, then we will be faced with the following dilemma: the school board with either have to increase the tax levy on local taxpayers or cut expenditures to offset the decreased state funding (or some combination of the two). Bear in mind that if the school board seeks to raise the levy on the local taxpayers, a similar process to the one described at the state level is likely to occur at the local level. As the levy is raised, this will tend to induce capital and human flight out of the school district (businesses and people, after all, have a choice in terms of where to locate, and some will not be able to afford the increased taxes). In essence, the state will have kicked some of their problem "downstairs" to the school district. (They may, of course, kick some of their problem to the municipalities as well.) Another option, and the one that I recommend, will be to do what many private businesses have done in this economic crisis . . . find ways to deliver the same quality product or service at lower cost. This, of course, is easier to say than to implement.

These budget problems at the state and local (and federal) level are not going away any time soon. These issues are going to be with us for many years to come. The game of "kicking the can down the road" is no longer an option.

Next Minooka 201 School Board Meeting

The next meeting of the Minooka CCSD 201 school board is Wednesday, October 26, 2011. The Committee of the Whole Meeting starts at 6:00 p.m. in the board room (the old library) at the Minooka Primary Center located at 305 Church Street in Minooka. The Committee of the Whole Meeting will be followed by the regular Board Meeting at 7 p.m. Please be sure to mark your calendars. You can find the agenda for each of the meetings here.

Next Minooka 201 School Board Meeting and Budget Hearing

The next meeting of the Minooka CCSD 201 school board is Wednesday, September 28, 2011. The Committee of the Whole Meeting starts at 6:00 p.m. in the board room (the old library) at the Minooka Primary Center located at 305 Church Street in Minooka. The Committee of the Whole Meeting will be followed by a Budget Hearing at 6:45 p.m. in the gymnasium. The Budget Hearing will be followed by the regular Board Meeting at 7 p.m. Please be sure to mark your calendars. You can find the agenda for each of the meetings here.

The proposed budget for fiscal year 2011-2012 can be found here. The proposed budget shows deficits in a number of budget categories: Educational, Operations & Maintenance, Debt Service, Municipal Retirement/Social Security, and Capital Projects. Of these, the two operating funds, Educational and Operations & Maintenance, are the most critical. The proposed budget shows a deficit of $899,418 (or approximately 4%) in the Educational fund and a deficit of $714,200 (or approximately 33%) in the Operations & Maintenance fund. Current fund balances will only carry the district for a few years. So the choice facing the school board, like so many other government entities, will be to either cut expenditures or raise taxes and/or fees (or some combination of the two) in order to balance the budget over time.

Next Minooka 201 School Board Meeting

The next meeting of the Minooka CCSD 201 school board is Wednesday, August 24, 2011. The Committee of the Whole Meeting starts at 6:00 p.m. in the board room (the old library) at the Minooka Primary Center located at 305 Church Street in Minooka. The Committee of the Whole Meeting will be followed by the regular Board Meeting at 7 p.m. Please be sure to mark your calendars. You can find the agenda for each of the meetings here.

Next Minooka 201 School Board Meeting

The next meeting of the Minooka CCSD 201 school board is Wednesday, July 27, 2011. The Committee of the Whole Meeting starts at 6:00 p.m. in the board room (the old library) at the Minooka Primary Center located at 305 Church Street in Minooka. The Committee of the Whole Meeting will be followed by the regular Board Meeting at 7 p.m. Please be sure to mark your calendars. You can find the agenda for each of the meetings here.

Next Minooka 201 School Board Meeting

The next meeting of the Minooka CCSD 201 school board is Wednesday, June 22, 2011. The Committee of the Whole Meeting starts at 6:00 p.m. in the board room (the old library) at the Minooka Primary Center located at 305 Church Street in Minooka. The Committee of the Whole Meeting will be followed by the regular Board Meeting at 7 p.m. Please be sure to mark your calendars. You can find the agenda for each of the meetings here.

Link to Agenda for May 25, 2011 Board Meeting

The next meeting of the Minooka CCSD 201 school board will take place this Wednesday, May 25, 2011. Click here to be taken to the agendas for the Committee of the Whole Meeting and the regular Board Meeting. The Committee of the Whole Meeting starts at 6:00 p.m. in the board room (the old library) at the Minooka Primary Center located at 305 Church Street in Minooka. The Committee of the Whole Meeting will be followed by the regular Board Meeting. Each of the meetings is open to the public and everyone is welcome and encouraged to attend.

Next Minooka 201 School Board Meeting

The next meeting of the Minooka CCSD 201 school board is Wednesday, May 25, 2011. The Committee of the Whole Meeting starts at 6:00 p.m. in the board room (the old library) at the Minooka Primary Center located at 305 Church Street in Minooka. The Committee of the Whole Meeting will be followed by the regular Board Meeting at 7 p.m. I will post the agenda once it is available, but we will be announcing the winners of the American Legion Essay Contest for the 7th and 8th grade students. Please be sure to mark your calendars.

Link to Agenda for April 27, 2011 Board Meeting

The next meeting of the Minooka CCSD 201 school board will take place this Wednesday, April 27, 2011. Click here to be taken to the agendas for the Committee of the Whole Meeting, the Reorganizational Meeting and the regular Board Meeting. The Committee of the Whole Meeting starts at 6:00 p.m. in the board room (the old library) at the Minooka Primary Center located at 305 Church Street in Minooka. The Committee of the Whole Meeting will be followed by a short Reorganizational Meeting to seat the newly elected board members. The Reorganizational Meeting will then be followed by the regular Board Meeting. Each of the meetings is open to the public and everyone is welcome and encouraged to attend.

Next Minooka 201 School Board Meeting

The next meeting of the Minooka CCSD 201 school board is Wednesday, April 27, 2011. The Committee of the Whole Meeting starts at 6:00 p.m. in the board room (the old library) at the Minooka Primary Center located at 305 Church Street in Minooka. The Committee of the Whole Meeting will be followed by the regular Board Meeting at 7 p.m. Please be sure to mark your calendars. The agenda has not been published yet, but we should be discussing a possible new running track and related facilities for the Junior High School and Intermediate School campus, as well as seating the recently elected members of the school board.

Unofficial Election Results for Minooka CCSD 201 Board Seats

Based on the returns from Grundy, Kendall and Will counties, the following are the unofficial results of the April 5th election for the Minooka CCSD 201 school board:

Alan Skwarczynski (incumbent) 903*
David C. Hill (incumbent) 736
Kevin Hannon 749*
Joe Frieders 514
Kathe Brozman 894*
Timothy Guy Bartoli 537

* Indicates three highest vote totals.

Consolidated Election is April 5, 2011 for Minooka CCSD 201 Board Seats

Tuesday, April 5th is the Consolidated Election for many municipal, school board and special district positions. Early voting is already underway (March 14 to March 31). The following are links to Grundy, Kendall and Will County early voting information. For the Minooka CCSD 201 school board, six people are running for three seats. Below are the names of the six candidates:

Alan Skwarczynski (incumbent)
David C. Hill (incumbent)
Kevin Hannon
Joe Frieders
Kathe Brozman
Timothy Guy Bartoli

Click here to view the entire sample ballot/candidate list for Grundy, Kendall and Will County.

Next Minooka 201 School Board Meeting

The next meeting of the Minooka CCSD 201 school board is Wednesday, March 16, 2011. The Committee of the Whole Meeting starts at 6:00 p.m. in the board room (the old library) at the Minooka Primary Center located at 305 Church Street in Minooka. The Committee of the Whole Meeting will be followed by the regular Board Meeting at 7 p.m. Please be sure to mark your calendars. You can find the agenda for each of the meetings here.

Next Minooka 201 Finance Committee Meeting and Our Deficit Problem

The next meeting of the Minooka CCSD 201 Finance Committee is today, March 10, 2011. The Finance Committee meeting starts at 6:00 p.m. in the board room (the old library) at the Minooka Primary Center located at 305 Church Street in Minooka. Finance Committee meetings are open to the public, so everyone is welcome to attend. We will be discussing a new deficit reduction plan to further address our operating deficit.

Next Minooka 201 Policy Committee Meeting

The next meeting of the Minooka CCSD 201 Policy Committee is Tuesday, March 8, 2011. The Policy Committee meeting starts at 5:30 p.m. in the board room (the old library) at the Minooka Primary Center located at 305 Church Street in Minooka. Policy Committee meetings are open to the public, so everyone is welcome to attend. Please be sure to mark your calendars and plan to attend.

Link to Agenda for February 23, 2011 Board Meeting

The next meeting of the Minooka CCSD 201 school board will take place this Wednesday, February 23, 2011. Click here to be taken to the agendas for the Committee of the Whole Meeting and the regular Board Meeting. The Committee of the Whole Meeting starts at 6:00 p.m. in the board room (the old library) at the Minooka Primary Center located at 305 Church Street in Minooka. The Committee of the Whole Meeting will be followed by the regular Board Meeting. Each of the meetings is open to the public and everyone is welcome and encouraged to attend.

Next Minooka 201 School Board Meeting

The next meeting of the Minooka CCSD 201 school board is Wednesday, February 23, 2011. The Committee of the Whole Meeting starts at 6:00 p.m. in the board room (the old library) at the Minooka Primary Center located at 305 Church Street in Minooka. The Committee of the Whole Meeting will be followed by the regular Board Meeting at 7 p.m. Please be sure to mark your calendars.

Next Minooka 201 Finance Committee Meeting and Our Deficit Problem

The next meeting of the Minooka CCSD 201 Finance Committee is Tuesday, February 15, 2011. The Finance Committee meeting starts at 6:00 p.m. in the board room (the old library) at the Minooka Primary Center located at 305 Church Street in Minooka. Finance Committee meetings are open to the public, so everyone is welcome to attend. We will be discussing the state of the District's finances. As I have said before, we are still operating at a deficit and are currently projecting deficits for the foreseeable future as shown in the chart below:

Without additional incremental deficit reduction measures now and over the next few years, there will come a time in the next few years (after the District has burned through its cash surplus) when the District will be faced with a choice to make very large cuts that may affect entire student programs or raise property taxes (or a combination of the two). I believe that if we take additional steps now and over the next few years, we can avoid being faced with a huge deficit problem in the future.

If you pay property taxes to the District and/or have children who attend District schools and you would like to share your views regarding how to deal with our deficit problem, please be sure to attend the Finance Committee meetings.

Six Candidates Run for Three Minooka 201 School Board Seats

Six people have submitted petitions to run for the three Minooka CCSD 201 school board seats that will be filled in the next Consolidated Election on April 5, 2011. The six people are Al Skwarczynski (incumbent), David Hill (incumbent), Kathy Brozman, Joseph Frieders, Tim Bartoli and Kevin Hannon.

Next Minooka 201 Policy Committee Meeting

The next meeting of the Minooka CCSD 201 Policy Committee is Monday, February 7, 2011. The Policy Committee meeting starts at 5:30 p.m. in the board room (the old library) at the Minooka Primary Center located at 305 Church Street in Minooka. Policy Committee meetings are open to the public, so everyone is welcome to attend. Please be sure to mark your calendars and plan to attend.

Link to Agenda for January 26, 2011 Board Meeting

The next meeting of the Minooka CCSD 201 school board will take place this Wednesday, January 26, 2011. Click here to be taken to the agendas for the Committee of the Whole Meeting and the regular Board Meeting. The Committee of the Whole Meeting starts at 6:00 p.m. in the board room (the old library) at the Minooka Primary Center located at 305 Church Street in Minooka. The Committee of the Whole Meeting will be followed by the regular Board Meeting. Each of the meetings is open to the public and everyone is welcome and encouraged to attend.

Link to Updated Financial Projections for Minooka CCSD 201

Click here for a link to the updated financial projections which Mr. Gegenheimer presented to the Finance Committee on January 13, 2011. I encourage you to review this presentation. Pay particular attention to page 18 of the slide show. This shows the deficits that Minooka CCSD 201 will run in the future unless we adopt additional deficit reduction measures. Click here for a link to the Finance Committee page on the district's website. The meetings of the Finance Committee are open to the public, and everyone is welcome to attend.

Next Minooka 201 Finance Committee Meeting

I almost forgot!!! The next meeting of the Minooka CCSD 201 Finance Committee is tomorrow, January 13, 2011. The Finance Committee meeting starts at 6:00 p.m. in the board room (the old library) at the Minooka Primary Center located at 305 Church Street in Minooka. Finance Committee meetings are open to the public, so everyone is welcome to attend. We will be discussing the state of the District's finances. As I have said before, we are still operating at a deficit, so we may be discussing additional budget cutting measures. If you are interested in the District's finances, please be sure to attend.

Next Minooka 201 School Board Meeting

The next meeting of the Minooka CCSD 201 school board is Wednesday, January 26, 2011. The Committee of the Whole Meeting starts at 6:00 p.m. in the board room (the old library) at the Minooka Primary Center located at 305 Church Street in Minooka. The Committee of the Whole Meeting will be followed by the regular Board Meeting at 7 p.m. Please be sure to mark your calendars.

Next Minooka 201 Policy Committee Meeting

The next meeting of the Minooka CCSD 201 Policy Committee is Monday, January 10, 2011. The Policy Committee meeting starts at 6:00 p.m. in the board room (the old library) at the Minooka Primary Center located at 305 Church Street in Minooka. Policy Committee meetings are open to the public, so everyone is welcome to attend. Please be sure to mark your calendars and plan to attend.