Administrators from Evanston/Skokie School District 65 announced last week that the district will implement a deficit reduction plan that will likely include layoffs, school closures, audits, and potential bus route decreases to avoid being taken over by the state.
Robert Grossi, a financial consultant hired by the district, said the district is in danger of an Illinois State Board of Education takeover if the district does not find a way to balance its budget. The district has seen deficits of over $10 million in the last three school years due to increasing expenses and decreasing revenues, all as it prepares to build a school in Evanston’s Fifth Ward.
Superintendent Angel Turner presented initial plans for an expense-cutting program to the Board of Education at its Board meeting last Monday. The plan’s specifics will be presented to the board in January 2025 by Grossi and the District’s chief financial officer.
“Status quo will lead the district into either financial or academic bankruptcy,” Grossi said. “I’ve been appointed by the Illinois State Board of Education to oversee school districts that have been taken over by the state to fiscal insolvency. Unless decisions are made that are bold and immediate, it is my assessment that the District is heading in that direction.”
Last year, the district received property tax revenue from Cook County in December instead of the usual time in August. The delay cost the district $35 million for the four month gap, and if it were to happen again, the district would need to seek short-term loans to cover the cost of paying for teachers and staff salaries and other expenses, Grossi said.
The Illinois State Board of Education typically takes over local school districts that have repeatedly failed to pay their bills. Such a takeover would dissolve a locally elected Board of Education, with Board members being appointed by the Illinois State Board of Education.
According to Turner, the district’s five-point deficit reduction plan will be used to cut $15 million of yearly expenses to rectify economic problems. Tamara Mitchell, the district’s chief financial officer, said the changes would not be for this school year but implemented in the 2025-2026 school year.
Turner said the first point of the plan is for the district to reduce non-classroom positions and also reduce classroom positions by creating target class sizes. Before- and after-school programs will be evaluated for “effectiveness and return on investment,” she said.
The second point of the plan would be for the district to prepare for consolidations or school closures where attendance is lower.
“I know sometimes it’s a tough conversation to have, but the reality is that we will have to take that (school closures) into consideration. The district must weigh master facility projects and the consolidations decisions, and we will also have to develop guidelines for building utilization and facility usage,” Turner said.
The third point of the plan would be for the district to use proceeds from the sale of the school’s facilities and debt issuance to cover the cost of capital needs, such as Foster School.
The fourth point of the plan would be for the district to find cheaper solutions for special education. The fifth point would be to cut transportation expenses, which could mean reducing certain bus routes, Turner said, adding it could also mean changing the start and end time for the school day.
In June the board made a controversial decision to close Dr. Bessie Rhodes School of Global Studies in a 5-2 vote. In previous public hearings on the Bessie Rhodes closing, Turner said the district is not financially able to support 19 schools. With the district incurring costs by building a new school in Evanston’s Fifth Ward, Turner said difficult decisions need to be made, including closing other schools within the district.
