Infobox
MEETING INFORMATION
Greenland Schools
Greenland Superintendent Charles Cudney plans to hold a series of meetings in August to learn more about the school district and its patrons. Other meetings are planned as dates are confirmed. The dates, so far, are:
• Monday — 5:30 p.m., Elementary School PTO meeting
• Aug. 14 — 11 a.m., Winslow Mercantile
• Aug. 17 — 5:30 p.m., Elementary School open house
§ Aug. 26 — 5:30 p.m., Town Hall meeting
Source: Staff Report
GREENLAND — The Greenland School District ended its 2010 budget year in the black with more than $1.3 million in the bank.
That balance was on the books after the district gave employees a small bonus, costing a total of $92,600.
That’s a far cry from two years ago when the district had to borrow more than $600,000 to stay afloat and ended the 2008 budget year with $1,994. Greenland’s budget year ends June 30.
Charles Cudney, the district’s new superintendent, presented the fiscal breakdown at his first town meeting Thursday.
Several community members said the district is headed in the right direction after hearing Cudney’s report.
Bill Groom, former school board member, praised Cudney’s presentation as visionary and down-to-earth.
“I think we’ve turned the corner,” said Groom, one of about 20 people who attended Thursday’s meeting in the high school cafeteria.
Cudney is a former Missouri superintendent with ties to Washington County. He was hired in April by State Education Commissioner Tom Kimbrell and will continue to report to Kimbrell until a new school board is seated in October.
“We ended the year (June 30, 2010) with 27 percent of the revenue on hand,” Cudney said, in an interview Wednesday before the town meeting.
“We have to look ahead for the next three years,” he said, pointing to a loss of revenue over the next three years.
Losses will occur with a decline in the assessed value on property, resulting in a decline in the amount of property tax collected. The district will also lose the 1-cent sales tax in August 2011, approved by voters two years ago, and American Recovery and Reinvestment Act money will go away next year.
The district also will lose about $360,000 in state funding because of students who left the district two years ago when the state took over the district.
“It is not an option to be in fiscal distress again. I’m framing the issues,” Cudney said, adding that most school districts are experiencing difficult financial problems because of the economy and slow recovery.
Cudney also said Greenland was identified for financial difficulties, not academic problems. The district received full accreditation for its three campuses earlier this month by the Arkansas Department of Education.
“He seems to have his focus in the right direction,” said Dennis Caudle, another former school board member.
Pat Anderson, who also served on the old school board, said he thinks he will do a great job.
“He sees things with the economy and sets realistic expectations,” he said.