The Watonga School Board, meeting in regular session Tuesday evening, passed its $8.3 million budget for 2023-24.
That budget estimated the district’s revenue at $8.3 million, including some $2.9 million in expected gross production tax, well below the $4.5 million realized in 202223. It also penciled in a lower ad valorem tax than last year’s and made the assumption that the district would be solely responsible for teacher and staff stipends and raises that the state will repay to the district.
“I like a budget that show revenues are going to be bad and expenses are going to be high,” said board president Aaron Clewell. “That’s what budgets are supposed to do.”
While budgeting on a worse-case scenario, the board encumbered – budget speak for set aside -- 4.6 million in payroll dollars which covers the employees for the year.
The school principals each gave an update on their buildings.
Ashley Riley, the elementary school principal, said her building has 368 students from pre-K through fifth grade, with the biggest population in the third grade, at 68. Runner up was pre-K, with 40 littles this year. Riley noted there was a 99% attendance at the school’s open house and the children were excited to be able to choose their own school supplies from the city and business donations.
“We’re working on getting our routine down,” Riley said, and recounted how the construction at the school and the remodel were progressing. The gym has been repainted to tie the space to the rest of the school with its colors of black, white and red.
Middle school principal Ty Hussey said he believed there were 166 students in his building, but there were new students since the last count, so that would be revised soon. He spoke about the first day of school and how it was different from previous years. Students met their instructors, but also got acquainted with quiz bowl, the new food app where students can pre-order meals, heard from the student council and ran an obstacle course. They got introduced to law enforcement’s drug sniffing dog as well. School supplies for middle and high school students were also donated by the city and businesses around town but instead of student selection, these were prepacked into carry bags so that the students could just grab a bag and go. Hussey noted that there were extras provided so that new students could be accommodated as they enrolled.
Incoming high school principal Lauren Coleman said there were some 207 students for the first day back, and in addition to meeting their teachers, the students were advised on how to change a car tire and how to respond if they are stopped by law enforcement while driving. She also noted the first cross country home meet is Saturday and that the course looks great since being purchased recently and receiving more maintenance.
Superintendent Kyle Hilterbran said it was a great start to the year which began with teachers completing in-service days and new teacher training. That training acquainted incoming teachers with the mentoring program that is part of the Professional Learning Community that Watonga schools espouse, as well as Google classroom where teachers log in to record attendance and grades. Hilterbran’s head count on students was 758, differing slightly from the individual building counts, but close. He spoke about the safety drills presented by the Sheriff’s Office and police department, and trauma training given to the staffers. He also noted that the staff was fed regularly by various churches and community organizations.
“And the great people of Watonga and the city partnered with us to provide supplies for every student. You figure about 50 bucks times 758 kids, that’s a lot of money. It makes you proud to be in Watonga.
“I couldn’t be more proud of the whole process. Maintenance had the schools looking great, we’ll have an elementary cafeteria by fall break and a parking lot by December,” he added. Parking for the upcoming football season could be a little dicey, he agreed, but it was a situation that would be remedied soon.