From Staff Reports
Corsicana Daily Sun
Corsicana —
Trustees for the Corsicana Independent School District took final action on the district’s 2010-20111 budget Monday, approving the spending plan and tax rate for the coming year.
The district’s ad valorem tax rate will remain unchanged from the current year’s budget, at $1.283 per $100 assessed valuation — $1.04 for maintenance and operation, and 24.30 cents for debt service. The general fund budget for the coming year is just over $36.4 million.
Board president Terry Seth was pleased with the budget adopted, and praised both current and former administration personnel for getting through the process.
“First of all we need to thank Chip Curington,” Seth said. Curington held the post of deputy superintendent of finance and administration prior to his retirement this summer. “Before he left he did a lot of work for us, and kept us abreast of things in the state and what were going on, and really helped prepare this budget, and I think that was a very big key.”
Seth said Mike Neilsen, who took over the finance post, has done a great job of carrying forward in helping to finish the plan.
“It is a long, tedious process, but between those two guys really working hard making sure it was done correctly, I’m really pleased with what we’ve done.”
Seth said the budget process next year could present some new challenges, much like many school districts in the state are facing this year, with reduced programs and cuts in spending that the CISD has avoided so far.
“We’re going to have to look at programs, everything,” he said. “Some districts are having to do that now,” he said. “We were warned two or three years ago by Donnie Denbow that sooner or later this was going to happen here.”
However, Seth remains optimistic about the future and the job of educating Corsicana’s youth.
“We’ll make it work, whatever we have to do,” he said. “We’ll do what’s best for kids, and that’s what we’re here for.”
In other board action Monday, trustees approved the district’s continued participation in the training program offered through the Center for Reform of School Systems. This is the third year the CISD has been invited to participate in the training programs offered for district trustees. The program comes at no cost to the district.
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