With final decisions on eliminating programs and staff positions at Evanston/Skokie School District 65 approaching next Monday, community members, teachers and administrators have contributed to the debate over a solution to the $1.7 million deficit.

But parents and administrators have not agreed on a way to avoid cutting programs such as band or drama, and still don’t know why the district faces a deficit.

“What made this year seem so severe were the programs chosen to be cut by the administration,” said Hecky Powell, school board vice president.

In a last effort to inform the community, the school board will hold an open forum tonight at 7:30 p.m. at King Lab School, 2424 Lake St. Powell said the forum will attempt to explain the causes of the deficit and allow residents to suggest solutions.

The weak economy and rising prices and expenses worsen the budget in many districts, he said.

“It’s all over the country, not just here,” Powell said. “And there is not one explanation for the deficit.”

Two years ago, D65 cut programs and teaching positions to save $3.7 million. Powell said the short-term plan was only intended to keep the district afloat for two years. Parents and teachers will see short-term cuts again this year, and the district will have to consider budget cuts again next spring, he said.

Jennifer Schweizer, a D65 parent, said she wants to see a long-term plan that will help the district avoid continuous budget problems.

“We need people to manage the money, not just Band-Aids that never fully address the problem and just push it aside,” she said.

Another D65 parent, Kathy Vissman, said she wants the district to examine administrative-level spending before cutting student programs. She said the district may be overstaffed.

But Powell said the administration is not overstaffed and the district needs other ways to raise money. One possibility is eliminating tax increment financing, or TIF, districts which will not generate revenue until 2010, he said.

Dennis Marino, Evanston’s director of planning, said the TIF program tax-exempts some Evanston businesses that help fund schools. Marino said removing TIFs is unlikely because of the financial obligations of the businesses.

“The purpose of the TIFs is to stimulate the city and help the economy as a whole,” he said.

Budget Solutions in NEARBY Districts

Winnetka School District 36 has found success with long-term, five-year planning, said Superintendent Becky Vanderbogert. She said long-range planning has prevented the district from having to make drastic cuts each year.

Avoca School District 37 on the North Side of Chicago also encountered budget problems this year, said Beth Dever, Avoca business manager. Both Dever and Powell said Cook County’s limits on property taxes, instituted in 1994, contributed to deficits in many school districts. Avoca, however, did not have to make cuts because of the district’s high reserves.

“We’ll continue to do belt tightening in smaller areas,” Dever said.

Powell said using reserve money to fix budget problems is unlikely because that money is usually saved for “emergencies.”

D65 parent Laura Nelson said the board should hold a referendum to solve the problem.

“If that means they save drama and music, then any parent will vote for it,” she said. “But the problem is getting the residents without children to vote for it.”

Virginia Clark, Lincolnwood School District 74 business manager, said her district passed a referendum last year that helped alleviate budget problems and saved 20 teachers in the district from losing their jobs.

Insufficient state funding

Clark blames poor state funding for the deficits in local school districts.

Naomi Greene, a spokeswoman for the Illinois State Board of Education, said the board does not receive enough money from the Illinois General Assembly. She said Illinois is ranked 49th in the country for state contributions to education with state funds accounting for less than 5 percent of education funding.

“That’s not fair for property owners,” she said. “It taxes the rich and the poor.”

She said the state board has requested a $600 million budget increase. The state legislature is examining the proposal, she said. A proposal from Gov. Rod Blagojevich would allow an increase of $400 million dollars. Greene said this increase would not be enough to prevent the necessity of budget cuts.

District 65 administrators also want the legislature to provide more education funding.

“If it takes a referendum, fine,” Powell said. “If it takes 20 buses down to the state, fine. We’ll do whatever it takes.”