[Southsider2k12]

http://www.thenewsdispatch.com/articles/20...9b036588762.txt

MCAS travel spending down more than 60 percent

By Alicia Ebaugh
Staff Writer
Published: Tuesday, November 30, 2010 5:13 PM CST
MICHIGAN CITY — Travel expenditures for Michigan City Area Schools administrators and teachers have gone down more than 60 percent in the two years since former Superintendent Michael Harding left, school board members have pointed out.

This year through October, $42,546.19 was spent on travel, according to a recap from MCAS business manager Theo Boone Jr. In 2008, the last full year Harding was here, that total was $119,029.51.

“Some of it was because we had to make budget cuts during the financial crisis, and the board also has made cuts in spending,” said Beryle Burgwald. “But I think a big part of it was Harding and the administrators who left with him.”

However, the amount of money annually budgeted for travel has only gone down about 12 percent, from $151,185.14 in 2008 to $134,332.88 this year. The travel budget for 2011 is set to be slightly higher at $134,674. Money left unspent reverts back to the general fund, said board president Jim Kintzele, and can be transferred for use in other areas if needed.

“We might look into reducing that amount further since next year might be as bad or even worse,” he said. “We’ll continue to cut wherever we can. We don’t have a rainy day fund anymore.”

School board members asked for the recap, which they discussed at a meeting earlier this month. At the same meeting, administrators took another big step toward reining in spending with a new policy that all travel and personnel actions requiring board approval need to be submitted before they take effect. It has until now been common for travel or hiring to have already taken place before it was brought to the school board for approval, said Associate Superintendent Xavier Botana.

“As we come to the board with important decisions, it’s essential that we show our good faith and our ability to transact day to day business — like hiring recommendations and travel requests — efficiently,” Botana wrote in an October memo to staffers. “This shows a lack of respect for the board’s protocol and authority.”

[Ang]

It's amazing how much money can be saved when the guy in charge isn't using the school's money to look for another job.