There is a notice on the Morton website posting a special board meeting for Monday April 4 at East at 5pm in the Auditorium. There is no agenda posted, rather just a statement saying "action will be taken". This may hint at more lay-offs for teachers and staff as regulations require tenured teachers be notified by April 9th and non-tenured to be notified by the end of April.
Surrounding districts including Oak Park District 97 and Riverside-Brookfield High School are facing similar cuts, but those districts have referendums on the April 5th ballot, which if passed could save those districts from the painful cuts proposed. No such referendum is presented to the voters of District 201 at this time. Recall 3 failed referendums a few years ago may have led to the current situation at Morton.
In this article in the Chicago Tribune, Oak Park district 97 lay-offs of 91 faculty and staff as well as demotions and pay reductions are described. From the article:
"All three (District 97) district unions, as well as the administration, agreed to pay concessions to both send a message to the voters and to lessen the impact of cuts if the referendum fails."
Morton District 201 is currently negotiating the teacher's union and other contracts and with as much as 80% of the budget dedicated to human resources, those contract negotiations will shed some light on the future financial picture of our high school district, which historically has a yearly deficit in the millions.
1 comment:
All of the counselors at Morton East and West were let go at this meeting.
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