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District 87 Preparing For Another Year Without State Budget

Mike Miletich
/
WGLT

School district superintendents across the state of Illinois are upset with the lack of a state budget again. District 87 Superintendent Barry Reilly said unlike some districts, Bloomington schools will open in the fall.

Reilly said if the state doesn't get a budget, the district will get around six million dollars from the state. Reilly said most district money will still come from property tax revenues and federal funds.

"We have revenues that are coming in at the same time we have reserves in the bank savings account. The money that's coming in will not cover every cost we have over the course of the year so those reserves will ultimately start to dwindle down," said Reilly.

Reilly said the district is already spending more than it takes in and has had the deficits for several years because the state has not even fully funded basic amounts per student. Reilly told the board he doesn't see any sign that lawmakers and the governor are "anywhere near to reaching a budget agreement." He said drawing down the reserves can make it more difficult or more expensive to borrow money for other projects.

During the meeting, the board talked about updating their policies for dealing with student discipline policies for the fall term. Reilly said teams of teachers, principals and social workers are looking into the best way to create alternatives to suspending students.

Reilly said some alternatives to suspension include taking away extra-curricular activities or not allowing a student to go to a dance. He said the main goal is curbing bad behavior.

"We have to be able to understand our role in helping to minimize the risk of elevating behaviors of kids because we're human too. When you see emotional outbursts or conflicts with kids, it only heightens anxiety in adults as well," said Reilly.

Reilly said he wants his staff to respond to misbehavior in a way that reduces anxiety and lowers tension before it leads to a physical altercation.

The proposed policy changes were designed to match a state law passed last year to take effect this September. Reilly said District 87 is already fulfilling most objectives of the revised mandates even without the changes. The changes will not be voted on until August when the school board resumes their regularly scheduled meetings.

Mike joined GLT's staff as a student reporter in February of 2016 having worked previously as a reporter at Illinois State University's student radio station, 103.3 WZND. He acted as a director for the WZND newsroom for two years. Mike was also seen as a reporter, producer, and anchor at TV-10 News. He graduated with a bachelor's degree in broadcast journalism in May of 2017 before starting his post-graduate career with the Public Affairs Reporting Masters Program at University of Illinois Springfield.