Canyons board approves district-wide furloughs for 2010-11 school year

SANDY — The Canyons School District Board of Education voted unanimously Tuesday to take five district-wide furlough days over the course of the 2010-11 school year to help meet a $13 million budget shortfall.

Dave Doty, the district's superintendent, called the decision a "one-time cost-cutting" measure that could save the district a potential $3.5 million.

The furloughs are part of a comprehensive budget to be presented and voted upon at the district's budget hearing June 15. Tuesday's vote means students and all district personnel will have Sept. 13, Nov. 22, Nov. 23, Feb. 14 and March 18 of the next academic year off — making for a full week off around Thanksgiving.

For the second year in a row, the Utah State Board of Education has authorized school districts to reduce the number of instruction days from 180 to 175 if districts should so choose. Last year, due in part to federal stimulus funds, the Canyons School District opted not to take furlough days. This year, with those one-time stimulus funds nearly depleted, Doty said it is necessary.

"This district is not flush with money," he said. "There is not a good way out of this for anybody this year, but we think this is a good strategy."

The furlough days were carefully selected in order to be the "least disruptive to student learning," said district spokeswoman Jennifer Toomer-Cook.

The furloughs will extend from teachers to superintendents to facilities' personnel for a savings of about $700,000 in operational costs per day.

Other cost-cutting measures the board is considering include reducing the number of literacy specialists — licensed staff who help elementary students with reading. The district currently has 29 literacy facilitators, one for each elementary school. That number would be reduced to 15 for a savings of $1.5 million. The positions would be eliminated, but the employees would be absorbed into the district in other capacities, Toomer-Cook said.

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