Brighton School Board Mulls Possible Cuts As Deficit LoomsBrighton School Board Mulls Possible Cuts As Deficit Looms

2/26/13 - The Brighton Board of Education spent a lot of time Monday night discussing a looming deficit, which is projected to be anywhere from $400,000-to-$600,000 by the end of the fiscal year on June 30 if no action is taken to reduce or eliminate it. The reason for the approaching red ink is a decline of 200 students from last year, which – at $7,000 per pupil - translates into a loss of $1.4 million in state aid. On top of that, $470 per student in state cutbacks to local school districts in the last two years equals another $2.8 million. The district wants to sell the former Lindbom School, whose value has been appraised at between 1.7 and 1.9 million dollars. But that wouldn’t help the immediate financial situation because, according to Superintendent Greg Gray, the proceeds would go to reduce the $7 million legacy deficit inherited from past administrations and boards. Gray added that the district's financial situation was also worsened by the closing of the Miller School three years ago, prior to his arrival, because the 600 or so students at Miller were counted as full-day students for purposes of state per-pupil aid. He says that would have translated into roughly $9 million in additional funding to the district in those three years. In the weeks ahead, the board will be busy trying to come up with ways to balance the budget without affecting program or students, something Gray tells WHMI could entail special meetings between now and the end of June. Board President Miles Vieau says it’s very hard to accomplish significant savings by making cuts since it’s so late in the school year, and says the board might consider absorbing a deficit this year while using the extra time this spring and summer to make cutbacks in the 2013-14 budget. Gray agreed that a half-million dollars in cuts might be easier to accomplish in a budget that spans an entire year than just a few months. The board mulled holding a special meeting next Monday but in the end decided to discuss possible cuts further at the regular meeting in two weeks. (TT)