North Slope school budget would use more savings than its draft audit shows

The North Slope Borough School District's board is scheduled to vote Wednesday on a budget change that would draw $7.7 million from the district's savings this school year, about $2 million more than the $5.6 million its draft audit shows the district had at the end of June.

The audit shows the district's savings fell by about two-thirds in a single year, from $17.2 million. Most of what remains is set aside for instruction or tied up in prepaid costs and inventory. About $655,000 isn't earmarked for anything, less than 1% of what the district spends in a year.

The board is meeting Wednesday at the Wildbirch Hotel in Anchorage. Finance Director Megan Williams and the district's auditors, Altman, Rogers & Co., are scheduled to present the draft audit before the board takes up the budget.

The budget change would add about $2 million in spending, bringing the district's operating budget to about $94 million, according to a budget memo from Williams. The budget the board passed in May assumed an 8% vacancy rate, meaning it budgeted 8% less for positions across all schools and departments, expecting some to go unfilled. The change would drop that assumption and pay for the positions the district has filled, including about $1.4 million more in teacher pay.

Expected revenue would rise about $3.4 million with one-time state funding and energy relief, so the draw on savings would be smaller than the $9 million planned in May. The memo doesn't say how much the district has left in savings.

The district counted 1,544 students in kindergarten through 12th grade this fall, down from 1,605 a year earlier, according to an enrollment report for Wednesday's meeting. Barrow High School in Utqiagvik dropped to 195 students from 224. Alaska's school funding formula is based largely on enrollment.

The district's teacher retention rate was 70% in each of the last two school years, up from 61% in 2022-23 but below 75% in 2017-18, according to a recruitment update. As of Oct. 4, Fred Ipalook Elementary, Eben Hopson Middle School and Barrow High had 15 open teaching jobs among them.