R-II School Board Approves Revised Budget For Current Year, Calendar For Next Year

Ste. Genevieve R-II School District Board of Education members approved an amended fiscal year 2018-19 budget and an official 2019-20 calendar at the February 19 board meeting.

Dr. Julie Flieg, superintendent of schools, talked with the board about the process for her first school budget, which drew upon the work of her predecessor, Dr. Jeff Lindsey.

“I reviewed how Dr. Lindsey approached budgets,” Flieg said. “I remember the conversations we had. My philosophy is very similar to his. It’s a balance between what our kids need and being responsible to our patrons.”

She said she was being conservative in estimating income and tried to be “extremely accurate” in estimating expenditures for the budget year.

“The one huge challenge this year is that we have done a complete accounting code structure change,” Flieg said. “It’s not just me learning the process; everybody is relearning the process.”

She praised bookkeeper Kristen Ritter of the district office for her work in the process.

“Kris Ritter knows it backwards and forward,” Flieg said. “She’s amazing, and she’s keeping us all in line like she always does.” …

The school district’s calendar committee met in January and again in February to finalize the 2019-20 calendar. Comments were solicited by employees and staff.

Flieg said that 28 comments and/or suggestions were made on the proposed calendar. One, from the tech department, complained about the school registration dates.

“This year, they experienced some problems because we had the registration dates for the elementaries, middle school and high school all set on the same two days,” Flieg said. “That stretched them very thin … and they didn’t feel like they [gave] the middle school the support they needed as parents were coming in to register students.”

Registration for the elementary schools is therefore being moved to Tuesday, August 6, and Wednesday, August 7, while leaving middle school and high school on Wednesday, August 7, and Thursday, August 8.

Another change was the addition of professional development time. “Early-outs” will take place, with school dismissing at 1 p.m. on Wednesday, September 25, and Friday, February 14, with professional development time beginning at 1:15 p.m. both days.

See complete story in the February 27 edition of the Herald.