Decatur Attendance Down By 66 Students
Ortman working for less money than former superintendent
Last updated Wednesday, August 20, 2008 6:44 PM CDT in News
By Lana F. Flowers
The Morning News
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Decatur school officials are looking for about 66 students who could mean another $382,000 for the struggling district.
Decatur had 473 students attend class Wednesday, 66 less than the 539 that attended class the last day of the 2007-08 school year.
Each student is worth about $5,789 in state per-student funding, money the financially troubled district needs.
However, all teachers and staff will keep their jobs this year, as funding amounts are set. The declining enrollment could affect state money next school year, said Superintendent Leroy Ortman.
"The only cutbacks that we will make in this school year on staffing are due to attrition," Ortman said. "If someone resigns, we will look really hard at whether we have to replace them or not."
He saw the sharpest enrollment decline among high school students, perhaps because of uncertainty over the summer about whether the Decatur district would be annexed into the neighboring Bentonville, Gentry or Gravette districts.
"They kept their options open and some of them exercised their options," he said.
Bobby King, the Decatur High School principal, said Gentry schools had 13 former Decatur students attend classes Monday, and Gravette had 13 former Decatur students.
However, there still are more than 100 Decatur students who enrolled and received schedules, but have not attended classes.
King said he and other school officials are investigating whether those students moved out of the district, are absent or have dropped out.
Every student counts for money in the district's budget.
The Arkansas Board of Education declared the Decatur School District in fiscal distress on July 14, after the district had declining fund balances three years in a row. The district had a $510,251 deficit as of July 21.
The state board took over the district July 31. The district has no school board and state officials fired Superintendent Dave Smith, then appointed Ortman as the new superintendent.
He reports directly to Ken James, the Arkansas education commissioner.
Ortman will earn $72,000 to head the Decatur district this year. Smith earned $89,000 per year.
However, Ortman wasn't satisfied with the salary he was offered.
"With my superior negotiating skills, I got that down to $72,000," Ortman said. "I just don't feel the district can afford to pay much in the situation they are in."
Ortman said he collects full retirement benefits from his years as an Iowa educator and partial retirement in Arkansas, where he was Gravette superintendent for 10 years, until 2006. He also collects some Social Security benefits, Ortman said.
"I don't know what I am going to do with all this money," Ortman said.
AT A GLANCE
Dates To Remember
• Sept. 8: Former bookkeeper Tina LaDawn Murray faces arraignment before Benton County Circuit Judge David Clinger. Murray, 34, 201 Austin Ave., Decatur, was arrested in connection with theft of property, a Class B felony punishable by five to 20 years in prison; and forgery, a Class C felony punishable by three to 10 years in prison. Murray is accused of taking a total of $41,471 in school district money by making out checks to herself, giving herself unauthorized raises and depositing school funds in her bank account. She is free on a $5,411 bond.
• Sept. 15: School officials will have a community information meeting at 7 p.m. at the Northside Elementary School cafeteria, 9083 Mount Olive Road, off Arkansas 102 west of Decatur. District officials plan monthly information meetings to inform patrons about school matters.
Source: Staff Report
Reader Comments (4 comment(s))
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recross1 wrote on Aug 21, 2008 9:58 AM:
Not already registered?
ironfortified wrote on Aug 20, 2008 2:50 PM:
Mr. Ortman should be using his superior negotiating skills to convince Decatur, Gentry and Gravette to merge into one district. Gentry and Gravette could retain their high schools (and their sports teams) for the foreseeable future and the biggest change would be the elimination of Decatur High School and its principal. Decatur students would likely remain in Decatur through 8th grade. Gravette would need a slight millage increase to match Decatur and Gentry. Enrollment at the Decatur elementary and middle schools would likely increase as students that have transferred to neighboring districts return. The existing Decatur high school building could become an alternative school.
But hey, logic has never been an integral part of school arguments and I don't think that's going to change now. "