Budget woes turn into harsh realities for Hutto ISD
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The Hutto Independent School District needs to find another $1.2 million for its next school year to make ends meet and that could mean chipping away at the classroom.
Statewide cuts, paired with voters' decision to nix a six-cent tax hike last year, have led the district to its current state.
Emede Gonzalez has been teaching music at Cottonwood Creek Elementary in Hutto since the school opened nearly six years ago.
Now, his program could be on the chopping block.
"I thought it would be a safe choice thinking that they always need educators and the past three years have definitely been shaky ground and to think there are more cuts to come. I don’t feel safe at all," Gonzalez said.
The district has already cut about $4.5 million from its budget, and now faced with even more financial setbacks, Hutto ISD may now have to eliminate elementary music and art teachers at some locations.
"We’re at a point where there’s not a whole lot of room for us to go, so we’re throwing everything on the table and looking at everything we can," Hutto ISD Spokesperson Emily Grobe said.
Other proposals include increasing class sizes, charging students to ride the bus and upping extra-curricular fees.
"The hardest thing about this is because we’re having to go so deep and these cuts have been so debilitating to us. We’re at a point where it’s almost impossible to not touch the classroom and not affect our children’s education and that’s not fair," Grobe said.
Heather Almendarez has already experienced the first round of cuts when her kids' school closed last year and they were forced to find another classroom. Now, hearing that more cuts are coming and additional fees could be down the pipeline, Heather is rethinking public education altogether.
"To have to pay for school, I would much rather send them to a private school if I have to pay," Alemendarez said.
Hutto ISD has joined one of the lawsuits against the state over the school funding system. It is among the property-poor districts seeking change after experiencing rapid growth and then a down economy.
In the meantime, there will be two public hearings next week over the proposed cuts.
They will take place Feb. 20 and Feb.22, both at 6:30 p.m. at Hutto High School Performing Arts Center. Click here for more information.