Sawyer said the vote was called so administrators could present the question to the PIAA District 9 governing board at its April 10 meeting.

He emphasized the resolution was only a preliminary step, and even if the PIAA would approve, the two school districts would have a lot of details to work out and decisions to make before the sports co-op could become a reality.

The board voted 8 to 1 in favor of the resolution; board member Mike Cyphert cast the lone ‘no’ vote.

Sawyer explained the move is being considered because of a $350,000 deficit in C-L’s 2007-08 budget, and the district is expected to have as little as $300,000 left in its reserves by the end of June.

“If we run one more budget they way we have this year, we will be broke by the end of the 2008-09 school year,” he said.

The budget crunch is affecting all parts of district operations – “technology, tutoring, textbooks, staffing, maintenance, transportation, everything. Because of the shape we’re in, the board will have to start to look at things we’ve never looked at before,” Sawyer said.

The latest labor contract includes concessions by teachers on health and retirement benefits, the district recently refinanced a bond issue and it will soon finalize a gas well lease on district property.

Now the district is considering cost-saving collaborations with other school districts, including a letter-writing campaign to reverse recent state subsidy cuts.

“We’re looking for long-term solutions,” Sawyer said. “We’ve made a lot of progress, but there is still a lot of work to be done.”

Coaches, boosters to help

Sawyer opened the floor to comments from the audience, and teacher and girls’ track coach Dave Schirmer said that he and other coaches have pledged to coach for no pay.

The crowd applauded as Schirmer listed the coaches who have so far agreed, and applauded again when Schirmer said, “That’s the least we could do, I wish we could do more.”

He also suggested that transportation costs could be saved if parents would take student athletes to sporting events rather than using district busing, and that money for supplies and officials could be raised with bake sales, car washes and similar activities.

“We want to keep sports in our communities so our kids have the chance to wear the blue and gold,” Schirmer said.

C-L Athletic Booster Club president Sheila Miller said business sponsors are willing to step up to help cover the cost of sports officiating and other expenses.

She said a merger of teams with Clarion Area would mean not as many C-L students would have the chance to participate in athletics.

Miller noted that budget problems are driving the merger proposal and acknowledged the budget has to be cut, but that the boosters “can help keep the sports teams here. I’m asking the board to give us that opportunity.”

Why the pinch?

“How did we get to this point?” asked Mike Smith of Clarion Township about the budget problem. “We pay our taxes, people.”

Mike Fornof of Clarion Township asked about C-L’s total athletic budget; Sawyer said it was around $215,000 a year.

Responding to a question from a Limestone Township resident, Sawyer conceded it may have been a mistake for the board to keep property taxes low.

The new formula for state subsidies reduces funding for districts with a lower proportion of district revenues from local taxes, and the property tax reform measure known as Act 1 limits tax hikes to four mills for C-L, unless voters approve more through a ballot referendum.

A 10-to-12-mill tax increase would alleviate the budget crunch, Sawyer said.

Dr. Jeff Karls of Millcreek Township said he is a physician and not a businessman, but he still makes long-term business plans; he asked why the district did not do so.

Sawyer later said the district actually has been working under a five-year plan; earlier he noted the districts budget problems were affected by state subsidy cuts and the Act 1 limitations on tax increases.

He said the school board has discretion over only 10 to 15 percent of the total district budget – the rest is controlled by employee contracts and mandates from the state and federal governments.

Consolidation?

The same questioner asked if the sports co-op was actually a way to move toward a total merger of the C-L and CA school districts.

Sawyer noted the district merger idea was circulating when he graduated from C-L 30 years ago, and such proposals are still being discussed – one theoretical scenario about a year ago had C-L merging with Brookville.

Such ideas come up because many rural school districts are having a hard time. “Expenses are up, revenues are down. When you’re teetering on the edge, every dollar counts,” Sawyer said.

“School mergers can be ugly. A lot of kids pay the price,” said C-L teacher and girls basketball coach Gus Simpson

Sawyer said any prediction would be complete conjecture. Consolidation would likely take several years and the state Department of Education might take control of a consolidation process.

Doug Kepler of Union Township asked if the board had considered merging not the schools but the schools’ administrations.

“As a matter of fact, it has,” Sawyer responded. The board discussed this recently and in order to learn more, is planning to visit school districts in Beaver County that are considering consolidating their administrations.

Losing the teams

Kepler asked what would happen if the PIAA rejects the sports merger proposal.

Board member Fred Port said he is on the committee discussing the sports merger with Clarion Area counterparts. He said he knows little about how the PIAA works, but is learning quickly.

Port said it is possible the school could “risk sports entirely. Are we trying to seek alternatives? Absolutely.

“Could the PIAA reject us? Absolutely. We have a lot to do in a short amount of time….These decisions aren’t easy and they aren’t taken lightly…if we don’t get the budget balanced, sports will not be a part of that.”

A district parent said her family had lived in the C-L district, moved to the Clarion Area district in recent years and now has moved back.

“My son said he did not want to wear the black and orange (Clarion Area school colors), he wanted to wear the blue and gold (C-L’s colors). I want you guys to explain to these children why they won’t be wearing the blue and gold,” she said tearfully.

“So much can be done before deciding to join (sports) with Clarion Area,” she concluded to applause.

Sarah Meals of Limestone Township asked about the cost of a co-op sports program.

“I can’t even ball-park it right now,” Port said, adding that his committee is working to determine the cost. “It has to be a significant savings for this to make sense.”

Cindy Clover of Strattanville said the coaches at C-L “helped make me the person I am today. It makes my heart glad I’m in this community. I’m begging the board, please don’t sell these kids short.”

Simpson asked how long a co-op program would last, noting that at least a third of the student athletes would not be able to participate.

Port said that it would depend on budget matters, but the committee was considering a five-year time frame.

Sawyer set a time limit on public comments, saying the board still had to hold a closed executive session to discuss personnel matters that evening.

“Every comment tonight has been listened to by the board,” he assured the crowd, and he invited concerned citizens to attend the board regular committee session, set for the following evening.

“We’re looking for suggestions and long-term solutions,” Sawyer said. “We must look past next year’s budget – we have to.”