Brainerd schools to receive $1.4M in federal funds

The Brainerd School District learned this week it will receive an additional $1.4 million in federal funding this school year, its share of the $167 million that Minnesota received as part of the one-time $10 billion federal Education Jobs Fund.

The federal funds, designated to be distributed to save teaching and other education jobs, were approved by Congress in special session and signed by President Barack Obama last month.

Steve Lund, director of business services for the school district, said the district has only the 2010-11 school year to spend the federal funding and it has other strict restrictions on its use.

While the funds will be helpful to the district, Lund said it also prolongs the "fall from the stimulus funding cliff" for another year. He said it is not a long-term, sustainable solution for equitable funding for education.

"How do you make long-term commitments with short-term cash?," said Lund. "Don't get me wrong, we're certainly very respectful and appreciative of the funding, as we will ensure it is spent enhancing the educational experience for the students in our community; however, it's another example of treating a gunshot wound with a Band-Aid."

Lund said in 2008-09, the district experienced a 1 percent decrease in its state funding and during the 2009-10 school year it experienced flat funding, along with education funding "shifts" which delayed the district's state aid payments.

Lund said the district has held its own by managing costs during the past two years and have not deficit-spent, but that won't be the case for the new school year, which starts Tuesday.

Lund said the preliminary budget shows a deficit of $770,000. He said the hope is that the district can use a portion of the $1.4 million to offset some of this deficit. However, as part of the Education Jobs funding, the state also has the ability to cut school state aid by about 1 percent for Fiscal Year 2011, which could further negatively affect the district's budget.

"So here's the bottom line," said Lund. "We anticipate receiving approximately $1.4 million of additional funding and hope that the state doesn't decide to reduce their funding commitment to us by approximately $500,000. If they chose to do this, we are still a net gainer by about $900,000, but it's extremely challenging in determining how to effectively utilize this funding under the restricted requirements and knowing that in approximately a year it's dried up and gone."

Lund said it's too early for the district to identify how these funds will be spent. He said that is something the district and school board will begin discussing soon. Those discussions may begin as early as the next board meeting on Sept. 13.

State education funding formulas determine how much a school district will get. The Star Tribune reported Minnesota's three largest school districts, Anoka-Hennepin, St. Paul and Minneapolis, will receive $7 million, $9 million and $8 million, respectively.

This story contains information provided by The Associated Press.

JODIE TWEED may be reached at jodie.tweed@brainerddispatch.com or 855-5858.