Chris Speckman, Daily Reporter

     FORTVILLE — Hancock County school districts continue to close in on budget cuts that include teacher layoffs. 

    Mt. Vernon this week became the second county school system to commit to teacher layoffs. On Monday, the school board voted to cut 10 full-time teachers from the payroll next school year. It joins Greenfield-Central, which has said it will eliminate 14 positions, in annoucing teacher layoffs. 

    Southern Hancock plans to announce its plan on April 12. Eastern Hancock has accepted early-retirement applications from five teachers but likely will have to trim its faculty payroll further. 

       The board’s 4-0 vote will enable MV Superintendent Bill Riggs to identify and notify teachers who will be part of the district’s reduction in force. Before the teachers are officially let go, the board will have the opportunity to approve or reject the cuts. 

    Riggs said although he provided the board with a list of recommended teaching positions to be eliminated for the 2010-11 school year, including physical education instructors at the three elementary schools, the process of determining exactly who will be cut is just beginning. He said a number of factors, including work experience, licensing areas and contributions to the corporation, will be considered when selecting which teachers won’t return. 

    The superintendent said the process likely will continue right up until June 1, the mandated date when classroom teachers must be notified of job cuts. 

    The recommended reductions offered by Riggs would save the district about $600,000, which when coupled with the money saved from using teaching assistants and volunteers to cover classes in lieu of paying substitutes, takes nearly $700,000 off the corporation’s books. Riggs estimated that MV must cut its general fund budget by $915,000 to comply with a statewide reduction in educational funding. 

    Riggs said more teaching positions might be trimmed before June. 

    The most noticeable of Riggs’ reductions is the proposed elimination of physical education teachers at Fortville, McCordsville and Mt. Comfort elementary schools. Physical education instructors will be retained at the intermediate, middle and high schools. 

    In terms of numbers, Mt. Vernon High School would be the hardest hit, with four teaching positions recommended for reductions. Should the board accept the cuts, two business education teachers, one art teacher and one family and consumer science teacher will be let go. 

    Next would be Mt. Comfort Elementary, which would drop two classroom teaching positions, in addition to physical education. Riggs said the recommendation was based on a declining enrollment projection for the 2010-11 school year. 

    Riggs also recommended the trimming of one classroom teacher at McCordsville Elementary School, and the elimination of half-time media specialists at each of the elementaries. Other personnel recommendations included replacing a retiring guidance counselor with a social worker at Mt. Vernon Intermediate School and having one media specialist split time between MVIS and Mt. Vernon Middle School. 

    Because of a large incoming seventh-grade class, Riggs said the corporation will need to add one full-time classroom teaching position at MVMS.