The District 87 school board held a public meeting on Wednesday to review and adopt the 2025 district budget that totals $95 million, and comes with a $3 million deficit and a working cash balance of $20 million.
The district’s most expensive expenditure is the education fund, coming in around $60 million, most of which is for salaries and benefits. Building costs also make up a significant portion of the budget.
“What we have seen this year is a significant increase in local sources,” finance director Michael Cornale told WGLT. “Some tax revenue associated with that ... really fills some of those gaps that were left with the federal funds that rolled off.”
The district also is pulling $1.2 million from its cash reserves for capital projects. Cornale said “most of that” will pay for a tennis court rehabilitation project.
There has been a 9% increase in property tax revenue due to growth in home values within the district. The board will vote on a property tax levy in December.
Cornale said the growth “is excellent for the community … it really shows the prospering environment that we’re living in” as home values rise in Bloomington.
“We intend to use that, obviously, to educate the students that that is bringing into the community,” said Cornale, adding dips in enrollment during the COVID years are now trending upward.
Cornale did not address the upcoming property tax levy vote in his comments.
Academics and behavior
The board also heard a report Wednesday about efforts to boost test scores and lower behavioral incidents at district schools, called the “Level Up” initiative.
So far, attendance has remained stable between last year and this school year, hovering around 95%, which is the district’s goal.
Nicole Rummel, assistant superintendent of teaching and learning, said office referrals for behavior have seen a “slight increase” since last year at the same time, but this could be due to previously non-standard reporting procedures at the district’s elementary schools. This issue has since been rectified.
The district is starting several new initiatives to try and meet its goals in both academics and behavior, including a pilot program at the high school where new teachers and their mentors observe each other.
New initiatives also include “teacher-led learning cohorts,” a coach hired to support math and behavioral problems, and bringing back the district’s multi-tiered system of supports [MTSS] team.
Rummel reported that of the districts roughly 4,000 students, around 1,300 are on an individualized education plan, and roughly 560 are in need of services for English as a second language. There are currently 72 known homeless students in the district.
