A four-day school week is coming to Ely.
School board members voted unanimously Monday to make the move, citing budget shortfalls and the chance to cut expenditures as well as surveys showing community and staff support.
But several members told an audience of about 40 people in the school’s media center that it was not an easy decision and instead one out of financial necessity.
“I realize this would be a big change for our school,” said board member Tom Omerza. “But what we are dealing with is big, the financial viability of School District 696. Small changes will not work in my estimation.”
Member Tony Colarich agreed and said that the situation “is almost like living Covid all over again.”
“Those decisions with Covid were really tough to make, and this might be even a tougher decision to make,” said Colarich. “I’m very torn and feel very terrible that we are at this point.”
Finances are driving the discussion, given several years of deficit spending by the Ely district and an updated estimate showing the district could save as much as $195,000 in general fund expenditures next year by making the move.
School officials have explored the four-day week for several months, and conducted surveys that revealed overwhelming staff support, as well as a community survey that showed 77 percent of respondents in favor and just 16 percent opposed.
Yet the board faced some opposition this week prior to the vote.
Three people - all opposed to the four-day week spoke during the open forum segment of the meeting.
Joe Weise, a parent of Ely school children, told the board “the four-day week doesn’t solve the problem,” and asked for more focus on potential impacts on student achievement. He pointed to data showing that reading test scores dropped significantly in a pair of Minnesota districts that have moved to a four-day week.
“The research on student achievement is a warning, not a mixed bag,” said Weise.
Weise also asked the district to step up efforts to recruit children from neighboring communities that have moved to a four-day week, and asked for efforts “on the other side of the ledger,” in an attempt to raise revenue for the district.
Parent Tom Roller voiced similar concerns and said, “I’m strongly opposed. I think it’s too big of a change for our children. I’m afraid it’s too risky and I don’t see any backup plan in place in case this doesn’t work.”
Roller also asked the board to consider other options including a five-day school week with shorter hours or the pursuit of a local sales tax to raise additional funds for the district.
School employee Sheila Angus spoke on behalf of AFSCME Local 295, the bargaining unit that represents most school support staff.
Angus said the savings realized by the district by moving forward with a four-day week comes predominantly at the expense of support staff workers.
“It will affect the support staff the most,” said Angus. “It causes both loss of income and dramatically increased cost of necessary benefits and is a true hardship. Do not ask the support staff to shoulder the weight of these cuts.”
Several area school districts, including the neighboring St. Louis County 2142 (Babbitt-Embarrass and Tower-Soudan), Lake Superior (Two Harbors/Silver Bay), Mt. Iron-Buhl and Littlefork-Big Falls districts have shifted to a four-day schedule and some other regional school districts are exploring the move.
The combined Virginia and Eveleth district, now known as Rock Ridge, however shot down a proposal to move to four days next year.
By moving to four days, schools save money in numerous ways, slashing transportation and hourly wage expenditures as well as substitute costs.
In Ely, district officials have surveyed staff and community members and compiled a document that answered numerous questions about a potential move.
Superintendent Anne Oelke said Monday that some details remain to be hammered out now that the board has opted to proceed.
Oelke recommended the shift to four days and said it was one budget component the district had under its control.
Other measures including legislation that would allow districts to capture operating revenues from seasonal recreational properties are up in the air, and even if approved, would require the district to pursue and gain voter support for an operating levy referendum in the fall.
The four-day week, a gift of nearly $215,000 from the Ely Educational Foundation and still to be determined budget reductions in the neighborhood of $200,000 are all needed to bridge an estimated $600,000 budget gap for next year, Oelke told the audience.
“We’re not out of the woods even if this is approved tonight,” said Oelke.
Prior to the vote, Omerza read a lengthy statement outlining his rationale for supporting the change.
“I feel well informed on the ramifications of moving to a four-day week and not moving to a four-day week,” he said.
Omerza voiced confidence in school staff to adapt to the change and pointed to the strong survey support.
He also voiced some frustration with state government.
“Waiting for legislative solutions has not proven effective over several years now,” said Omerza.
Omerza said he believed the change would minimize the need to cut course offerings, reduce the need for layoffs or moves to bigger class section sized and would “help preserve our district’s independence.”
He added he “believes in our teachers” and that “they can make the four day school week just as good or better” than a five-day week and that the decision may be revisited in the future.
Oelke and Sjoberg both noted that the district delayed a potential move to four days last year, partly in an effort to see if Ely could gain students from other districts by maintaining a five-day schedule.
“When 2142 went to a four-day week I watched very closely who was leaving and who was coming to our district and why, and this had no effect either way,” said Oelke.
Board member Hollee Coombe agreed and said the district could no longer afford to wait.
“We’ve waited for legislation and that hasn’t happened,” said Coombe. “We’ve waited to see if we could get kids from Babbitt and Tower and that didn’t come through. We’re in a corner between unfunded mandates and so many things we can’t control. We have to make a decision because there are so many things out of our control.”
Colarich also lamented a lack of action from elsewhere.
“To be honest with you the state hasn’t helped us with the mandates,” said Colarich. “And there’s falling population, the lack of living wage jobs, a whole number of things that contribute to it. And almost all of it, we have no control over.”
Oelke said it’s difficult to wait for state assistance and said “the climate for public school financing isn’t favorable anywhere in the state.”
Sjoberg compared the shift in part to the move from half-day to full-day kindergarten and said “we have made it through some of these hurdles.”
“This board I know trusts in our entire team to make it the best it can be,” said Sjoberg.
