By MICHAEL STRAND

Salina Journal

"The die is cast," was how Salina School Board president Carol Brandert ended what was an unusually short budget work session Tuesday night, where she and other board members quickly saw where some $2 million in new state funding is expected to go in the 2008-09 school year.

Director of business Lisa Peters explained that of that $2 million, about $437,000 must be spent for special education, and another $353,000 is being set aside for expected increases in fuel, utilities and insurance.

Another $10,000 each will go to a state-required bullying prevention program, and for an increase in tuition the district pays for high school students who attend Salina Area Technical School.

And, just Monday night, negotiators for Salina's teachers and the district reached an agreement -- not yet approved by either the NEA-Salina membership or the school board -- for a 3.6 percent pay raise for the upcoming school year. That raise will cost the district about $1.4 million.

Administrators also are recommending $60,000 for pay raises for substitute teachers, increasing pay by $10 a day.

Peters did say the district's dues to the Central Kansas Cooperative in Education likely would be cut by about $250,000.

But once all those expenses are added up, that leaves the district with just around $15,000 for any other use, effectively removing many other possibilities from the table, including proposals to add English as a Second Language teachers or bi-lingual aides at several schools,

At the end of the work session, which lasted less than 15 minutes, Superintendent Rob Winter asked board members if they wanted administrators to prepare a budget based on those numbers, and they quickly agreed.

n Reporter Mike Strand can be reached at 822-1418 or by e-mail at mstrand@salina.com.