While the community education and adult education budgets dwindle at the state level Clarkston Schools continues to adjust to the changes.
The community education department will start the fiscal year of 2006 with a $229,862 deficit.
Director of Business Services Bruce Beamer said the deficit includes planned operation costs for the new building which have more square footage than the old building.
‘State aid has dropped significantly in the last two years,? said Beamer. ‘The state has decided it is not as big a priority as classroom instruction.?
At a June budget meeting, Beamer said these cuts will be absorbed by the general fund. He also expects that when the new community education building is running and generating revenues, these numbers would drop.
Community Education offers a wide variety of tuition-based programs including enrichment programs, kids club, Renaissance High School and the new Funshine Early Childhood Center.
Community Education estimated revenue for 2006 is $462,100, down from $463,800 in 2005. However, the 2003 actual revenue was $784,580, a decrease of 41.1 percent in less than three years.
Clarkston Schools vocational education revenues for 2006 are $23,091. Adult education revenues from state aid for 2006 are $21,000, down from $29,335 in 2005.
Representative John Stakoe said three years ago the state adult education bud Stakoe said this decrease was because of a request by Governor Jennifer Granholm.
Stakoe said the following year the adult education budget raised $1 million and will remain so this year at $21 million.
Stakoe said the proposed state school budget is $12.6 billion with a per pupil minimum of $6,700, which will increase $175 per student this fall. This is state a per pupil increase of $360 million.
Clarkston Schools will have a per pupil fund of $7,122 for 2006.
‘The state has prioritized to maintain the per pupil across the board,? said Stakoe.
Stakoe added that the state budget is $40 billion with almost $15 billion going to education.
‘They (state legislature’s) would like to see more money going into adult education, but they are getting a lot of pressure to maintain the per pupil funding and what we are hearing from the schools is that $175 is not enough,? said Stakoe.
Watch for articles on Community Education’s summer camps in next weeks Clarkston News.