SCHOOL BUDGET PREVIEW CITES ENROLLMENT HIKE, NEW ACCESS AND EQUITY POLICY COSTS

School district kindergarten enrollment continues to climb beyond expectations, School District Business Administrator Cheryl Schneider revealed Monday night as part of a budget analysis that indicated that will lead to a greater enrollment increase in coming years.

Schneider's 17-page analysis also noted that the new access and equity policy that allows greater choice in placement will likely require more staffing and resources to implement, while also indicating legal costs have been inching up and the district has been involved in more litigation than usual.

Finally, she said the district is reviewing the cost of so-called "courtesy busing," which is provided to students at Jefferson and Marshall schools and other special situations. 

State law requires that the district bus students in grades K to 8 who live more than two miles from their school and high school students who live more than 2.5 miles away.

The report indicates the district spends $5.2 million on busing each year, about 4.5% of the entire district budget. $3.2 million of that goes to special education students. But about 443 students are bused in situations in which the law does not require it.

Hear her summary of the report below: