WESTVILLE — Westville schools could forego teaching business, industrial technologies and some music education beginning this fall, according to Superintendent James Thorne.
Thorne, citing a pending budget shortfall, confirmed four teachers have received notice their positions could be eliminated at the end of the current school year.
The elimination of the positions, which include a band, business, industrial technology and physical education teacher, will save the corporation $82,000 during the first four months of the next school year, Thorne said.
“This kills me because I was a business teacher,” Thorne said, “but we can’t be cutting math and science right now.”
Music, choir and art will remain as students must fill a fine arts requirement to graduate.
Thorne explained if the corporation was to receive funding by the School Board’s May meeting, one or more of the reduction in force notices could be rescinded.
Thorne and the corporation’s teachers have been at odds recently over how best to preserve teaching positions. Thorne said some of the cuts could have been avoided if teachers, represented by the Indiana State Teachers Association, would forego a scheduled 2.9 percent raise guaranteed in their current contract.
The teachers union voted against giving up the increase. The teacher’s increase will cost the corporation some $100,000, according to Thorne. The district is trying to fill a $278,000 budget shortfall.
ISTA representative Andy Borelli declined comment, saying he “didn’t want to get in the middle of (the dispute).”
The corporation already has implemented cost-saving changes. It hopes to save $63,000 by reducing the hours of teacher aides, $8,500 by replacing a retiring elementary teacher with a non-tenured teacher and $5,000 in the fall by cutting the part-time positions of dean of students, assistant athletic director and activity director.
The district also hopes to save another $36,000 by requiring food services to pay its operating expenses, reducing $8,500 from the extra curricular budget, $19,000 by changing one full-time custodial staff position to part time and $51,000 by transferring money from the Capital Projects Fund to pay custodial salaries and other expenses, such as trash pickup.
Reductions also include a $5,200 savings by requiring the administrators — Thorne and the high school and elementary principals — to pay the same amount into their health insurance plans as the teachers.
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