MUNCIE, Ind. -- The Muncie School Board voted Thursday to close three elementary schools as part of their deficit-reduction plan.
Parents, faculty and staff voiced their concerns at Thursday night’s meeting before the board voted on the proposal.
Storer Elementary, Mitchell Elementary and Sutton Elementary are the three schools that will be closing.
North Side Middle School was originally included in those cuts, but the board chose to keep that school open.
The closures will leave Muncie Community Schools with six elementary schools.
Last month, the district voted to ask the state for a $5 million loan
Earlier this month the state ruled that the Muncie Community School district would not be allowed to make additional cuts to teacher salaries to make up for their financial deficit.
School board members said to make up the projected increased costs of the teachers’ insurance plan they would need to cut nearly $2 million from their budget and proposed closing four elementary schools and a middle school.
The district said they had also reached out to the City of Muncie and the Muncie Redevelopment Commission for financial support, but have not received any thus far.
A letter was sent home to parents, faculty and staff in April 2016 notifying them of the deficit.
In mid-March, Baule proposed submitting a petition to the state’s Distressed Unit Appeals Board for a $5 million loan. He said the loan would be a short-term solution to help cover the cost of operations, including teacher salaries.
Without the cuts, Muncie School Superintendent Steve Baule has said the schools are projected to have a $37.7 million deficit by the end of 2019.
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