FLINT, Mich. - Lax accounting, enrollment losses and overspending all contributed to the $10 million budget deficit now facing the Flint School District, The Flint Journal reported.
With no fund equity, the district likely will lay off employees and shut schools in order to close the gap, The Journal said in reporting on a presentation by chief financial officer Andrea Derricks. Enrollment has dropped by 25 percent in recent years, leading to a reduction in state aid, Derricks said, but she also pointed to consistent overspending in some departments and too little control over expenditures.
Michele Stinson, president of the United Teachers of Flint, told The Journal that she hopes the school board will look at cutting more than just teachers and support staff.
Derricks said she has put in place controls that limit how much money is spent and who can spend it, The Journal reported, as well as a freeze on purchasing supplies.
SOURCE:
The Flint Journal, "Steep cuts, school closings looming in cash- strapped Flint School District," Nov. 6, 2008
FURTHER READING:
Michigan Education Report, "Detroit not the only school district seeing red," June 30, 2008
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