St. Paul schools warn about a $25 million deficit next year

The St. Paul School District announced Friday that it is projecting a $25 million deficit for the 2009-10 school year and almost certainly will cut it 6,300-person workforce.

The shortfall is $9 million more than the district projected last fall. But the district has lowered its expectations about how much money it will receive from the state, which is facing a $5.2 billion deficit of its own, as well as how much the district's investments will bring in and how many students will walk through its doors.

At 5 percent of the district's operating budget, it's the largest budget deficit the district has faced in at least a decade, according to chief business officer Lois Rockney.

"We're trying very carefully to look at how we spend each and every dollar," said Rockney.

"Eighty-five percent of our expenditures are salaries and benefits," she said. "We're a service organization, so I think you're going to see fewer people. It has to be that."

The St. Paul School District is the second-largest in the state, with 38,500 students and a budget of about $628 million for the 2008-09 school year. In the past nine years, the district has made more than $90 million in cuts to its projected school budgets.

St. Paul is not alone in its budget situation. Officials in the Minneapolis public schools announced in December that they expect their budget to be short $28 million for the coming school year.

"We are increasingly concerned about our ability to provide a world-class education under incredibly challenging financial conditions, but our focus remains on our students' needs and our strategic plan priorities," Superintendent Bill Green said at the time.

The volatile economy affected Minneapolis much as it has St. Paul, and the district came up with the $28 million figure based on enrollment projections, staff costs and the assumption -- like St. Paul -- that state aid to schools won't increase.

Across the state, "it's looking relatively bleak right now," said Charlie Kyte, executive director of the Minnesota Association of School Administrators. "I have a hard time seeing where schools are going to get more money."

Kyte said he's hearing from superintendents statewide that they may have to cut their projected 2008-09 budgets by anywhere from 5 to 8 percent. That concerns him.

"In the long term, if you want to have a strong economy, you're going to have to educate the next generation," said Kyte. "You can't cut your way to success."

Staff writer Patrice Relerford contributed to this report. Emily Johns • 651-298-1541