Financial Future

At the April 21 school board meeting, Executive Director of Finance and Operations David Brecht and Chief of Staff and Executive Director of Strategic Communications Celi Haga presented a budget planning and revenue options report. The report, which reviewed the district’s financial position, cost containment strategies to date, and potential avenues to generate revenue, was a precursor to a board decision this summer on a potential operating referendum.

Earlier this year, the board directed district staff to move forward with a cost containment plan that targeted $5 million in cuts for Fiscal Year (FY) 25-26, $4 million in cuts for FY26-27, and $4 million in cuts in FY27-28. The initial $5 million in cuts were approved earlier this year as part of budget assumptions for next school year. Executive Director Brecht walked through the impact of those cuts on the fund balance, as well as budget revisions approved in March. Every single one of these cuts is difficult, and the loss of positions and programs will be felt by the entire district community, especially our students.

Also presented were early draft strategies for the additional $8 million in cuts necessary in FY26-27 and FY27-28 should no additional revenue be added to the budget. These proposed strategies are not final, and consideration would go through the same engagement process used earlier this year should they be necessary. Without additional funding, these cuts represent significant impacts to ECCS programs and staffing.

“Our community made the choice long ago to invest in smaller schools - two high schools, three middle schools, and seven elementary schools,” Haga said. “That’s part of what makes us so special, those opportunities kids have, on the stage, in sports. The relationships our students have with all of the staff in the buildings set us apart. Our elementary music programs, our media specialists, that’s the ECCS difference. The potential cuts touch all of those areas, which is why this conversation is so important.”

If the board decides to go out for a referendum at the $742 per pupil level, it would bring almost $7 million a year in new revenue to the district. The tax impact on a $500,000 home - the average home value for our district - would be $23 per month. They will vote at their July meeting, with a community survey and other stakeholder engagement planned between now and then.

Presentations and Resources

Finance Update: 5-Year Budget Projections & Referendum Resolution (07.28.25)

Potential Referendum Review (06.23.25)

Morris Leatherman Community Survey Presentation (05.19.25)

Referendum Presentation (04.21.25)

FY 25 Budget Revisions Presentation (03.17.25)

Cost Containment Presentation to School Board (02.24.25)

Cost Containment Feedback Presentation to School Board (02.10.25)

Community Engagement Presentation (02.03.25)

Cost Containment Presentation to School Board (01.27.25)

Financial Future Presentation to School Board (01.06.25)

Referendum Renewal School Board Discussion (01.06.25)

Renewal Engagement Report to School Board (12.09.24)

Financial Future Presentation to School Board (09.30.24)

Legislative Update - Financial Impact Report to School Board (09.30.24)

Budget Timeline

State of the District

Superintendent Communication

Update from the Superintendent (January 27, 2025)

ECCS Community,

As you know, there are some tough financial decisions ahead for our district, and I am committed to making sure you are informed about our process, the impacts, and how you can engage. At tonight's School Board meeting, Monday, January 27, we will begin outlining potential areas for cost containment. Tonight's presentation will specifically look at areas we are considering as we target $5 million in budget reductions for the 2025-26 school year. This discussion marks a critical step in our efforts to responsibly manage resources while upholding our commitment to serving all students effectively.

Our regular board meetings are always live-streamed, and then archived for later viewing. You can find that information on our board page here: https://www.district112.org/community/school-board. We will be tracking the budget process and all of our past and future budget and cost containment related presentations and information at our Financial Future page here: https://www.district112.org/district/financial-future.

I encourage you to join the conversation at our Community Engagement Session on February 3 at 7:00 PM at the Chaska High School Auditorium. You'll hear from our board chair, Sean Olsen, myself, and our executive director of finance and operations David Brecht about the convergence of factors that brought us to this moment and the district's process in developing a plan to address them. It will also provide an opportunity to listen to our community.

Here is an overview of our current financial landscape. Despite a 4% increase in the education funding formula for the 2023-24 school year and an additional 2% for 2024-25, our funding has not kept pace with inflation, resulting in an ongoing shortfall. Additionally, the introduction of new mandates from the recent legislative session adds financial pressure, with many initiatives lacking adequate funding. Rising costs in utilities, transportation and supplies has put a further strain on our budget. As we face an estimated budget shortfall of $5 million for the 2025-26 school year, we are committed to making thoughtful adjustments and engaging our staff and community in the process while maintaining our quality and standards of education.

We know it's going to be a difficult process, and we know that it's going to impact people. This is a multi-year process, and we are committed to proceeding with care, balancing fiscal responsibility with our mission to support every learner. I am grateful for the partnership and dedication of our entire community as we navigate this process together. Thank you for your ongoing support and engagement in shaping the future of our schools.

In Partnership,

Dr. Erin Rathke

Superintendent

Eastern Carver County Schools

Past Communication and Engagement

Updates from the Superintendent

Update from the Superintendent (October 15, 2024)

Dear ECCS Community,

I want to share important information about the current state of education funding and the challenges we are facing as a school district. While the 2023 legislative session brought a historic increase in education funding, many districts, including ours, continue to face significant budget constraints. You might be wondering why this is the case.

The reality is that several key factors are creating a difficult financial environment for schools, despite the funding increases.

1. Funding Hasn't Kept Up With Inflation

Though we received a 4% increase in the education funding formula for the 2023-24 school year and an additional 2% for 2024-25, this still falls short of keeping pace with inflation. If the basic funding formula had kept up with inflation since 2003, we would have an additional $1,356 per pupil in FY25. Local Optional Revenue (LOR), another key funding source, has been frozen since inception, leaving us $196 per pupil behind where we would be if it had kept pace with inflation. Together, the basic formula and LOR make up approximately 75% of our district’s general education revenue—the funds we rely on for essential operations like staff salaries, transportation, and day-to-day costs.

2. New Requirements and Mandates

The 2023 legislative session also introduced a number of new programs and requirements for school districts, some of which were funded, others partially funded, and many with no funding at all. These include universal meals for students, summer unemployment benefits for non-certified hourly workers, and additional professional development for paraprofessionals. While many of these initiatives are positive and support our students and staff, they come with added costs and a significant increase in the demands on our staff’s time.

3. Rising Costs and Staffing Challenges

Inflation has impacted nearly every area of our budget—utilities, transportation, supplies, and insurance have all increased in cost. Additionally, we are facing staff challenges in hard to hire areas, which has led to salary increases across several job categories in order to retain and attract the workforce needed to support our students. On top of that, significant changes to the Public Employment Labor Relations Act (PELRA) are likely to add further costs.

4. The End of Federal COVID Relief Funds

During the pandemic, federal relief funds allowed us to avoid significant budget cuts. However, these funds are not a permanent solution, and they are winding down over the next year. As we look ahead to the 2024-25 school year, we are facing an approximately $4 million estimated budget shortfall, and we will need to make adjustments as part of a multi-year process to right-size our budget.

5. Increased Salary and Benefits

As we continue to prioritize the well-being and success of our students, we also recognize the vital role our staff plays in achieving these goals. Recently, we have made adjustments to salary and benefits across all bargaining units to ensure that we continue to attract and retain the dedicated professionals who serve our students each day. While these increases reflect our commitment to fair compensation, they also present budgetary challenges that we must navigate carefully. We remain dedicated to maintaining a balanced budget while upholding the high standards of education our community expects.

In the coming months, we will work diligently to gather feedback from staff and the community to determine how best to manage this shortfall. Our goal remains to minimize the impact on any one school, grade level, or department, while ensuring we continue to provide a high-quality education for all students.

For more information, please refer to the September 30th Board Meeting: https://vimeo.com/1000584737.

I understand that these are challenging times, but I remain confident in our ability to navigate this together. Your support and engagement are more important than ever as we make decisions that will shape the future of our district as we continue to carry our district's torch together.

Thank you for your continued partnership and commitment to our students.

In Partnership,

Dr. Erin Rathke

Superintendent

$829 Auto-renewal

$829 Auto-Renewal (Fall 2024)

There are two primary factors that impact the overall district budget - revenues and expenses. An operating levy provides funding to the district’s general fund to provide critical support and has historically been voter-approved. In 2023, the Minnesota legislature passed a law providing school boards the authority for one-time approval of existing operating referenda. Among the rationale for this change were the high voter approval for renewals, no generation of new taxes, and the investment of district resources both in expenses and staff time in running referendum campaigns. The ECCS School Board used this new authority in 2023 to renew an existing $150.35 per pupil operating referendum.

We now have an opportunity to renew an existing $829 per pupil operating referendum that is set to expire after the 2025-26 school year. This referendum must be renewed no later than November 2025 to keep this funding that amounts to approximately $7,500,000 per year. This funding is critical to creating some predictability in the district’s financial picture and is eligible for one-time auto-renewal by the Board. There would be NO NEW tax impact to taxpayers given it is is a previously voter approved referendum. The School Board has directed Dr. Rathke to convene its Public Engagement Committee to identify opportunities to hear from the community on an auto-renewal.

As always, the Board welcomes feedback at schoolboard@district112.org, or individual contact information can be found here: https://www.district112.org/community/school-board.

Community Engagement 2024

ECCS Financial Future Learning Opportunities

Office Hours with Dr. Rathke and Executive Director of Finance and Operations Brecht in the DEC Board Room

Monday, October 28, 5:00 - 6:00 p.m.
Tuesday, November 12, 5:00 - 6:00 p.m.
Monday, December 9, 5:00 - 6:00 p.m.

Virtual presentation and Q&A

Thursday, 11/14, 12:00 p.m.
Recording below:

Virtual Q&A

Monday, 11/18, 6:30 - 7:00 p.m.

Join via Zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81404117805

In-person presentation and Q&A

Monday, November 18, 7:00 - 8:00 p.m., District Education Center Board Room

Additional opportunities for public comment

School Board Meeting Open Forum:

October 28
November 12
December 9

January 2025 Update

Executive Director of Finance and Operations David Brecht reviewed and outlined a proposed cost containment plan at the Jan. 27 school board meeting that, if approved, would reduce the district's budget by $5 million for the 2025-26 school year.

A convergence of factors has led to expenditures outpacing revenue, including rising costs, increased salary and benefits, new requirements and mandates, enrollment changes including low birth rates and large senior classes versus small kindergarten classes, and the fact that funding hasn't kept up with inflation.

Cost containment is not just limited to Eastern Carver County Schools. Many neighboring school districts are in the same position.

What would this mean for our district? Cost containment impacts programs, resources, services, class size, and people.

If approved, some departments within administration would be restructured, increasing the workload of remaining staff while reducing support to buildings and in programs.

Class sizes would increase by .5 students for grades 1-2, and one student for grades 3-12. Additionally, there would be a reduction in band and orchestra lessons at the middle schools and a restructure of student supports impacting kindergarten paraprofessionals.

Also included in the proposal are a 10% reduction in building and department supply budgets, adjusting the district calendar to remove one instructional day, and administration is proposing a decrease in the projected budget expense for future salary and benefits. The district will look to increase revenue through facility rental fees, high school parking fees, and student participation fees.

A community engagement session is planned for 7 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 3 at Chaska High School to give members of the community an opportunity to provide feedback on the proposal. The event will be livestreamed and recorded for those who cannot attend. A community engagement report will be presented at the school board workshop on Feb. 10 to summarize that feedback. The Board will approve a final cost containment proposal at its February 27 meeting as part of its approval of 2025-26 budget assumptions.

"I know this is a difficult and uncertain time. Budget discussions naturally bring stress, especially as we consider how they may impact our work and the students we are so dedicated to serving. I want to acknowledge this reality and express my gratitude for your continued dedication during these times of uncertainty," Dr. Rathke said in a message to all staff on Monday.

Elementary Schools

Middle Schools

High Schools

District Services