Jun 12, 2002 2 min read

Laurel Highlands residents appear to be as complacent about the district’s money as they are students’ grades. Not one member of the public bothered last week to speak out when the Laurel Highlands School District went to court and asked for permission to borrow nearly $3 million to pay off old debts. Somehow the district’s administrators were able to get off with the standard excuse that they just didn’t know they were spending money that they didn’t have. They blamed it on the recently retired business manager, claiming he gave them incorrect information. It’s easy to fault someone who is no longer in Laurel Highland’s employ. By doing so the board and administrators need not hold up a mirror and recognize their irresponsible practices that led to this deficit.

The district has a history of cutting programs and positions on paper to make it appear a budget balances and then hiring people just the same. The district has a history of ignoring funds that dive into red ink, such as allowing the malignancy of the cafeteria fund to spread into the general fund.

Somehow or the other, the board and administrators did such a poor job of budgeting that they either didn’t know or didn’t acknowledge that they were starting the 2000-01 school term nearly $800,000 in debt. They clamed in court they thought it was more like $80,000. Are Laurel Highlands’ math skills that defective?

Now the district is mortgaging this uncontrolled spending and will need more money from property owners each of the next 10 years to retire the debt. This isn’t debt that was incurred to repair a building, construct a new school, purchase textbooks or anything tangible. It’s simply overspending and poor fiscal management. And this doesn’t bother anyone?