Editor’s note: 10 former District 65 school board members sent this letter to the current board and superintendent on Monday, Nov. 11. They shared it with the RoundTable for publication below.
Dear board members and Superintendent Turner,
It is not typical for former board and civic leaders to speak out on governance and management issues of current sitting boards of education. Yet the risk is too high to be silent as more decisions unfold at Evanston/Skokie District 65. The level of trust and confidence in the District 65 board and their ability to guide our district through what will be a set of difficult decisions is exceptionally low. Our community needs and deserves a much different approach.
We write today to request a series of public conversations and a decision-making timeline for recommended cost reductions to be considered and voted upon by the current District 65 school board. The board’s governance and fiduciary responsibilities require transparent and timely processes immediately, while adhering to the law.
The 2017 referendum
In 2016-2017, the board led a year-long process with broad community engagement to reduce expenses by $10.5 million annually. Over the previous 10 years, the district added nearly 1,500 students, yet the funding to operate the district had not grown commensurately. These reductions were presented publicly and transparently.
District leadership had two options: significant cuts forcing teacher layoffs, soaring class sizes and school closures, or asking voters to approve a referendum that would ensure a balanced budget through 2025. The board unanimously decided to let the community decide. The 2017 referendum to increase funding for District 65 schools passed with over 80% of the vote, with every precinct in every ward voting to support it. But the board’s work was not over.
With administrative guidance, the board unanimously passed a resolution highlighting how subsequent boards were to use these critical funds in the years ahead. District leadership also negotiated five-year contracts with our teachers and staff, to meet their needs while solidifying District 65’s financial position. The board crafted a roadmap for fiscal responsibility given the overwhelming trust expressed by the community.
That roadmap has not been followed by subsequent administrations and boards.
District 65 finances: 2020 to present
Beyond the additional referendum funds, the board has received revenue increases from both pandemic-related funds and operational revenue increases due to CPI growth. Yet in spite of these increases our expenses have outpaced revenues by record amounts.
Since 2020 the district’s expenses have soared while enrollment has dropped by almost 20%. Upon review, the district’s budgeted expenses for 2024-25 are roughly $30 million higher than the expenses projected in 2019. Inflation has driven expenses higher, but other board decisions, such as hiring more than 75 non-certified teaching positions and lack of management of transportation costs, have exacerbated our financial challenges. The district currently has 1,500 fewer students being served compared to four years ago, thus the average operating cost per student has risen 76% from $14,266 in 2020 to $25,078 per student this past year.
Where do we go from here?
The district is now faced with a historic deficit to address in three short months or risk takeover by the state. The citizens of Evanston and Skokie must have frequent, transparent communication and engagement around how these decisions will be made. Instead, last month District 65 abruptly announced the closure of seventh and eighth grade classes at Bessie Rhodes in less than a month. It has long been the practice of the board to not make any programmatic changes in our schools mid-year given the significantly negative impact this imposes on students and families.
We have too much at risk in the coming weeks and as a result the next set of decisions must be made with significantly more transparency and rigorous inquiry and analysis so that the residents of Evanston and Skokie understand their impact. We urge the board to communicate their decisions and next steps directly to the residents of Evanston and Skokie, through live, in-person discussions, to ensure transparency and accountability. The superintendent and her top deputies should join the board in engaging our residents as a first step to rebuild trust.
In closing, we strongly encourage residents in Evanston and Skokie to run for the District 65 school board to restore our district as the lighthouse for education that it once was.
In commitment to the students, families, teachers and staff of District 65,
Jonathan Baum, former D65 and 202 school board member
Omar Brown, former D65 school board member
Eileen Budde, former D65 school board member
Walter Carlson, former D65 school board president
Candance Chow, former D65 school board president and finance chair
Lindsey Cohen, former D65 school board member
Claudia Garrison, former D65 school board member
Mary Rita Luecke, former D65 school board president
Rebeca Mendoza, former D65 school board member
Richard Rykhus, former D65 school board vice president and finance chair
Open letter: 10 former District 65 board members speak out is from Evanston RoundTable, Evanston's most trusted source for unbiased, in-depth journalism.