Plans to avoid closing Michigan City schools emerge

MICHIGAN CITY | Plans to avoid closing schools in Michigan City at least for one year have surfaced as officials struggle to close a possible $10 million budget shortfall.

One of the school rescue proposals offered by Michigan City Area Schools board member Beryle Burgwald triggered the applause of many of the more than 200 people who attended Tuesday night's School Board meeting at Elston Middle School.

Burgwald's plan would use a $5.3 million refund from the state to narrow the shortfall to keep Niemann and Edgewood Elementary Schools, originally targeted for closure, open during the 2010-11 school year.

The windfall resulted from a recently discovered accounting error by the state that led to the Michigan City school district being overcharged last year.

Under his proposal, the Eastport Early Learning Center for preschool students would be closed as proposed and those students funneled to other grade district schools.

Burgwald said much of the remaining budget gap could be closed by eliminating student offerings that can be reinstituted later -- such as summer school along with some art and music programs.

He said closing schools would be premature since an ongoing property tax reassessment situation remains tied up in the courts.

Michigan City stands to lose $8 million in tax revenue if countywide reassessment figures from 2005 are instituted as opposed to 2006 numbers.

"Let's say come October we get a favorable decision from the court, it's very difficult to start up a school once you've closed it," Burgwald said.

Another $2 million would be lost from decreased state funding.

Another new plan similar to Burgwald's to prevent the closing of schools and save programs should be submitted later this week by the Michigan City Education Association.

MCEA president Phyllis Stark would not offer details because the proposal is still being finalized.

"Any time you are going to cut or eliminate positions or programs, it impacts the education of kids, and we cannot allow that to happen to our kids," Stark said. "We can find another $2 or $3 million."

School Board President Jim Kintzele said the board -- to prevent being caught off guard -- must approach the budget crisis as if the money that hangs in balance from the reassessment is going to be lost.

Kintzele foresees more public workshops before a final decision is made, whether the reassessment dispute is settled.

"We have to prepare for the worst-case scenario," Kintzele said.