Dickinson Public Schools: Cost per student climbs by 1.6 percent

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The cost per student to be educated at Dickinson Public Schools increased by 1.6 percent, Superintendent Doug Sullivan said at a Dickinson Public School Board meeting Monday evening at the board room at the Central Office.

In the 2010-11 school year, the average cost per student was $8,445, Sullivan said. In the 2011-12 year it increased $139 to $8,584.

He added that DPS was on par with the rest of the state as far as cost per student was concerned.

The annual financial report, which was approved by the board, indicated that DPS had carryover funds of more than $10 million.

“All of our funds are healthy and in a positive cash balance,” Sullivan said.

In the year previous DPS had more than $8 million in carryover funds, according to the report.

The school brought in more than $28 million through local, state and federal revenue sources and spent just under $26 million, according to the report.

With DPS being in a financially healthy place a decision was made years ago to drastically cut fundraising efforts, especially for basic educational needs, Board President Kris Fehr said.

“We were getting quite a few complaints about the excessive fundraising that students were doing,” she said. “And I’m wondering does anyone have a sense if we are doing less fundraising.”

The number of fundraisers at the high school level had decreased, Principal Ron Dockter said.

Board member Leslie Ross was concerned about the small percentage of profits netted by some fundraisers.

“If you’re giving 80 percent away and you’re only keeping 20 percent is that a good fundraiser?” Ross asked. “That’s just paying a lot of overhead to someone else who’s making money off of your kids.”

It was determined that there was no set policy for the amount kept by a fundraising entity, but that the best fundraising activities were those that allowed the most money to be kept in the community.

Fehr asked Sullivan if there could be more transparency in the reporting process of fundraisers by groups to the board and other entities.

Fehr requested more information regarding fundraising goals, adding that people would be more likely to give if they know exactly to what they’re giving.

“I think the transparency issue is very important to parents and students,” Ross said.

In other news

r The board elected officers at its July meeting. Kris Fehr will remain president and Jason Hanson is vice president of the board.

r Funds to support a Title I Look-Alike program at Jefferson Elementary were approved, which does not have a high enough percentage of reduced and free lunch students to qualify for federal funding. Funds to supply salary for a teacher and program supplies were set at $65,873.

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