PRESCOTT – At the May 15 Prescott School Board meeting as in past meetings, much time was spent discussing how to cut the operational budget after the failed referendum, and this time the Arts Department was on the chopping block.

A budget reduction of $96,000 in the arts is needed which includes the open position of the middle school choir instructor. It was noted that the district will retain three staff members which will cover music education for grades 6-12. School Board President Matzek later noted that the MS choir position was vacated by attrition.

“We will take advantage of the savings there first,” Matzek stated, “knowing that this is a position that is absolutely going to be one at the top of the list if we can bring it back; we'll have a discussion and decide what's one of the most important positions to bring back, so I just wanted to point that out.”

Before middle and high school principals presented the theater department reductions, Superintendent Dr. Rick Spicuzza talked about Fund 21, which is money raised from outside sources that can and has been used to support programs that Fund 10 cannot cover.

“We're trying to maintain what we started this past year,” Prescott Middle School Principal Kyle Igou began. “So that's where Fund 21 can come into play and fundraising and trying to engage with some other stakeholders in the community to see what we can generate or using our historical Fund 21 budget. But all together, what you'll see is the high school in that way is reducing by 15% and the middle school by reducing out $5,100 from theirs and splitting it up is also going to see a reduction. Mr. Speltz was pushing in to help out the two directors there. He no longer would be helping out with that winter play. He has some other opportunities, but the two historical directors at the middle school are still there.”

The plan presented would not reduce the number of theatrical productions but would reduce the number of director stipends from three to two. After extended discussion, a motion passed to accept the administrative proposal of reducing personnel. The ECA language in the employee handbook will restrict the fall, winter and spring stipend. The theater director stipend will remain in full for spring only until a future decision by the school board reverses this decision.

Reading requirements

Intermediate School Principal Mike Kosmalski presented the new curriculum and reading requirements mandated by the state and went over a highly condensed version of the Act 20 Handbook. Schools are required to provide science-based early literacy instruction in both universal and intervention settings; schools are prohibited from implementing instruction and/or curriculum materials that utilize three-cueing in universal and intervention settings; the Joint Committee on Finance approved four resources to date for districts to consider adopting and districts do not have to adopt or implement materials from the recommended materials list in order to be complaint with Act 20.

Kosmalski said all Wisconsin students 4K-third grade will be assessed on a single reading readiness screener and there is no ability for any child to opt out as there is now. The screener will be given to 4K students twice a year and K-3 three times per year. Any child below the 25^th percentile on the single statewide reading readiness screener must be administered a diagnostic reading assessment within 10 days. Districts are responsible for selecting, procuring and administering diagnostic reading assessments that meet Act 20 standards. The district must communicate results to parents no later than 15 days after an assessment is scored. The DPI will provide screeners, but diagnostics is at the districts’ expense.

The DPI change that poses the most challenges both money and time-wise is new training requirements for teachers. By July 1, 2025, all 5K-grade 3 teachers will need to begin a reading training and by July 1, 2025 all individuals employed as a district reading specialist or an elementary school principal must have completed a reading training.

“For us that's about 21 staff,” said Kosmalski. “From a teaching and learning perspective, and I'll ask you guys to weigh in on this later, I really think it behooves us to train all of K5 so that would be approximately an additional nine staff on top of that, that would come with an additional cost.”

CESA provides this training. It offers one virtual day and five full days which all but one date is on a school day. This poses an issue with scheduling and trying to find subs for nearly all the staff to be gone on those days.

Kosmalski said there may be some funding available through the state. Schools who choose to purchase a new curriculum from the recommended materials list after March 11, 2024, are eligible for a grant reimbursement for up to 50% of the cost of materials adoption. If the money goes through, the grants will be prorated based on the number of districts that apply and will not receive reimbursement until 2026.

“On top of all the training and all the other stuff, the fiscal, it's also the human side of this that takes time,” Kosmalski said. “This takes time to communicate, this takes time to figure out different options. Funding, our legislatures will say they are funding this. One of the things that they are funding is if we were to purchase one of the recommended materials from the list again, there's only four they will have a grant reimbursement for up to 50% of the costs, but it will be prorated based on how many districts are asking for reimbursement and also will be prorated on how much money gets allocated to this; as of right now for the entire program, including hiring coaches to go into low performing districts.

“About a million dollars has been released from the Joint Finance Committee to fund this. If this goes through, if we were to get up to 50%, they're already telling us you would not see any of those dollars until fiscal year 2026. So, I know our legislators say they're supporting public schools, we are putting more money into schools than ever before; the money put in the bill says $50 million. It would not cover the cost of the diagnostic, it would not cover the cost of our training. It would not cover most of this cost and half of the curriculum it would not cover as well.”

He then addressed the lawsuit from GOP lawmakers against Gov. Tony Evers and Evers’ counterclaim against the Joint Finance Committee.

“He used a line-item veto,” Kosmalski stated. “They're arguing that was not okay because it dictated how the $50 million were to be spent. He's saying the $50 million was already part of this literacy program. They should release it and if they don't, then he should have the right to veto the entire bill. So, he may end up vetoing the entire $50 million. Either way, it doesn't really matter for us because we're being told you have to implement all these things under Act 20 starting next year, with or without the money and the money that's there won't be a lot when you take $50 million and you spread it over coaches, committees, resources and then all the districts that are trying to do this at the same time.”

Spicuzza said this was just an appetizer, that Kosmalski will be returning each month through teaching and learning to give updates. The board will need to decide the best way to handle the training days and where and how they will be implemented.