169 Positions Cut as Hazel Park Schools Approves 5-Year Deficit Elimination Plan
(Hazel Park Schools Press Release, March 31, 2015)
On Monday, March 30, 2015, The Hazel Park Board of Education approved the district’s deficit elimination plan and have submitted it to the Michigan Department of Education. On June 30, 2014 the district had a $6.2 million deficit. That deficit is expected to nearly double to $11.8 million by June 30, 2015.
The approved deficit elimination plan requires expenditure reductions of $6.3 million beginning on 7/1/15 including:
~$2.1 million in collective bargaining concessions (completed)
~$3.9 million in workforce reduction savings (completed)
~$200,000 savings by outsourcing food services (completed)
~$90,000 savings in workers compensation insurance (due to lower overall wages)
To successfully eliminate the $11.8 million deficit in five years, it was necessary to reduce the workforce. Workforce reductions eliminating 169 positions beginning July 1, 2015 was also approved by the Board of Education on March 30, 2015. Of these, 46 are teaching positions. The plan relies on at least 116.8 position eliminations (27.3 of these are teaching), so it is likely some positions will be recalled.
There were 508 positions in the district this year. The reductions represent 33% of the staff. The workforce reduction will not impact class size and no school closings or consolidations are included in the deficit elimination plan
“This is a challenging time for Hazel Park Schools, but I have witnessed great cooperation, collaboration and determination among our staff, union representation, administrators, Board members, Oakland Schools and the Michigan Department of Education to get us through these challenging times. We have demonstrated how working together yields results,” Dr. Rick Repicky, stated Interim Superintendent of Schools for Hazel Park.
More information about the deficit elimination plan will be available on the Hazel Park Schools website at www.hazelpark.k12.mi.us.
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Previous stories:
https://oaklandcounty115.com/2015/03/22/hazel-park-interim-superintendent-gives-turnaround-update/
https://oaklandcounty115.com/2015/03/17/hazel-park-school-administrators-resign-oakland-schools-steps-in/