Board of Education Meeting Recap

Board of Education meetings can be viewed live on YouTube here and previous meetings can be reviewed here.

Congratulations to Verona Area High School student Sharriah Bartlett on being awarded a scholarship to attend the National Flight Academy Summer Program at the Naval Air Station in Pensacola, Florida. She will be sponsored by Delta Airlines and the 100 Black Men of America, Inc. The NFA aims to inspire youth by showing them the amazing things they can achieve when they believe in themselves. Sharriah will participate in learning experiences designed to enhance STEM exploration during her time at the NFA. She also makes history as the first Black female student in the nation to receive this scholarship! Way to go, Sharriah – we are so proud of you!

Budget, Finance, and Operations Update

Relevant Policy: Operational Expectations (OE) 6: Financial Administration

Deputy Superintendent Wiese and Director of Finance Pete Grender provided an update on several budget, finance, and operations issues.

2024-25 Budget and Finance Update

Deputy Superintendent Wiese and Director Grender provided a year-end estimate for the 2024-25 budget, predicting that the Verona Area School District (VASD) will end the year with a slight surplus (minus the land purchase). This has been a trend in VASD in recent years and aligns with our annual goal when building the budget. VASD is currently $235,000 over budget in interest earnings, our Special Education aid projections indicate we will be about $250,000 under budget, and we’re at a $100,000 margin for open enrollment. We’re monitoring payroll and benefits and are currently on track with slight savings.

Debt defeasance for a school district refers to the process of setting aside sufficient funds in an irrevocable trust to cover the repayment of outstanding capital debt, effectively removing the liability from the district’s financial statements. This is typically done by purchasing U.S. government securities whose cash flows match the debt service payments. By doing so, the district eliminates the obligation from its books while ensuring bondholders are repaid.

Defeasance can be used to:

• Reduce financial burdens by refinancing debt at lower interest rates.

• Free up the district’s borrowing capacity for future capital projects.

• Improve the district’s credit rating and financial flexibility.

This process is commonly used when a school district wants to restructure its debt, comply with legal or financial requirements, or manage its financial obligations more effectively. Deputy Superintendent Wiese recommends that the Board of Education (BOE) consider a total defeasance amount of $7,000,000, with $6,780,000 built into the original 2024 ($5,980,000 from Fund 39 (additional levy) and $800,000 from a Fund 10 transfer). With this plan, VASD would realize $10,464,935 in debt service savings.

Member Murphy asked if a scenario emerged and VASD needed funds, could we access this money? Deputy Superintendent Wiese clarified that VASD cannot use Fund 39 for Fund 10 expenses. We must use it for defeasance, or we can carry forward a small balance. Member Hanes pointed out that our debt management strategy has yielded $10,000,000 in interest savings, which is being accomplished while we’re managing to lower the mill rate.

2025-26 Budget and Finance Update

Deputy Superintendent Wiese and Director Grender updated the 2025-26 budget development, starting with the 2025-26 budget timeline (below).

Step advancements for 2025-26 are expected to cost about $1,100,000, with the Consumer Price Index (CPI) increase at 2.95%, costing an expected $3,250,000. They highlighted additional specific budget impacts, including healthcare renewal (+$1,517,000), the onsite health clinic (-$700,000), staff reductions and Fund 10 adjustments (+847,000), School Resource Officer contract (-$80,000), and other (+183,000). They noted that our forecast model includes a CPI increase of 2.95%, a decrease of 5.5 Full-Time Equivalent (FTE) in staffing, and a 7% decrease in healthcare costs associated with VASD’s recent switch to a different healthcare insurance carrier. Looking further into the future, we anticipate decreasing the mill rate by $0.01 and then holding steady, but we’re estimated to be facing an increasing budget shortfall starting in 2026-27.

Member Stier Christensen wondered how VASD is shoring up for any upheaval that might come to public education funding. Deputy Superintendent Wiese reviewed VASD’s recent history of managing debt and flattening the mill rate as evidence of budgetary efficiency. He pointed out that the effort that went into our healthcare renewal for 2025-26 and beyond provides additional proof that we’re willing to do the hard work of making system changes to save funds to maintain services for students and ease taxpayer burden. Member Stier Christensen pointed out to the community that the 2025-26 budget and VASD’s fiscal management show that VASD is thoughtful, careful, and strategic about how we spend funds and where we can find efficiencies.

Wisconsin School Nutrition Purchasing Cooperative Agreement (66.03)

The Wisconsin School Nutrition Purchasing Cooperative (WiSNP Co-op) is a consortium of school districts, pursuant to section 66.0301 of the Wisconsin Statutes, authorized to enter into agreements for intergovernmental cooperation in connection with the procurement of food, beverages, supplies, and services for member districts’ Child Nutrition Programs. VASD and many other school districts have been part of the cooperative agreement for decades. Food sourced through this cooperative meets United States Department of Agriculture guidelines and requirements. The WiSNP Co-op agreement bid contract for food and paper supplies is recommended for approval with an estimated cost of $1,500,000 for 2025-26. The BOE previously approved the WiSNP Co-op agreement.

Member Medina asked if the WiSNP Co-op puts out a Request for Proposal (RFP) for other food vendors such as Cisco. Deputy Superintendent Wiese confirmed that the vendor is selected through an open Request for Bid process. Member Medina wondered if there are any potential disagreements regarding WiSNP Co-op participation. Deputy Superintendent Wiese said the WiSNP Co-op participation has always been positive except during the COVID-19 pandemic because of supply chain issues. He shared that being part of the WiSNP Co-op does not mean we have to order every item through it, but gives us access to greatly reduced pricing. An advantage of co-op participation is that it allows VASD to collaborate with other larger districts to develop and request a greater overall quantity of menu items through the co-op, thereby decreasing costs. Member Medina said he values cost savings while maintaining flexibility when developing menu offerings.

Click this link for the most recent expanded agenda/past agendas/minutes

Directions to access agendas and minutes:

• Click the link above

• Select "meetings"

• On the left-hand side, you will see a display of all of the meetings

• Select your desired meeting

• Once you have selected the meeting, select "view agenda"