Levy to increase slightly, still lower than last year’s however
By Kellen Olshefski
Editor
The Elkhorn Area School District Board of Education took a look at the district’s official head count as of the third Friday in September at its Oct. 12 meeting.
According to the annual tally, the district has a total of 3,263 students enrolled at this time, spread out across the district’s numerous schools. District Administrator Jason Tadlock said this up from last year, up about 76 according to numbers from District Business Manager Bill Trewyn.
Trewyn said this report represents the district’s official head count at this point in the year, one of numerous tallies the district does including membership and open enrollment.
Trewyn said for the report, which organizes student counts out by school and grade, student’s were placed into the school or program at which they spend more than 50 percent of their day at. As a result, the 69 students listed under the OPtions program does not account for all students enrolled in the program, just those who spend less than 50 percent of their days in a physical school setting.
Tadlock said in terms of open enrollment numbers, the district is up again, though this number is still fluid because the district’s OPtions program does continue to add students because of its open enrollment exception. Overall, Trewyn said with the third Friday count, the district had 66 students open enrolled, with 60 of these students at a full-time equivalent.
“So overall, in open enrollment and regular membership, both are up from last year,” Trewyn said.
Additionally, looking back at the past 20 or so years, Trewyn said the 743 students at the middle school represents one of the largest, if not the largest, middle school enrollments Elkhorn has ever had.
Across the district, enrollment numbers are:
- 499 students at West Side Elementary
- 386 students at Tibbets Elementary
- 743 students at Elkhorn Area Middle School
- 896 students at Elkhorn Area High School (including Elkhorn students at the Alternative High School)
- 176 students in day care settings.
Budget impact
Tadlock said because of the increasing student numbers, there is a short-term effect on the district’s annual budget.
Tadlock said this affects the district negatively because the district loses the declining enrollment exemption, though he said it’s not something to be concerned about as before the district can increase revenue limit, it has to increase its student numbers.
Trewyn said with this information, and two other key factors – evaluation of the district and final state aids – the district now has a better understanding of what this year’s finalized budget’s impact on district taxes will look like.
While the district is still waiting on final state aids, Trewyn said having the student enrollment has allowed the district to calculate its revenue cap for the upcoming year.
Trewyn said with an increase in enrollment in the OPtions Program the district has found a need to create an additional Teacher of Record position and the district has also added part-time vision and hearing impaired services as part of the Walworth County transfer of service program. This, Trewyn said, has a result on the revenue cap, thus affecting the tax levy.
As a result of changes to the budget, the total proposed tax levy has increased from $18,825,012 to $18,925,012. While the levy has increased, the levy is still about a .99 percent decrease from last year, all while still including debt payments on the $20.42 million referendum approved in April as well as about $200,000 in other costs.
“The last piece to the puzzle is that state aid number and we’ll get that figure on the 15th of October,” he said.
“I can tell you the estimate won’t be the final number, it will change slightly from that either up or down, and that does have a corresponding impact on the overall levy.”
