January 5, 2025 - NPAS Family District Newsletter

 

Dear NPAS Families, 

On behalf of the NPAS’ community, Happy New Year! I hope your family had a meaningful and memorable Holiday Season! 

I have several items I would like to share with you now that the calendar has turned to 2025. First, some good news regarding our district budget. After reducing over $6 million dollars, or 14% of our operating budget, the past two Springs, we have some temporary relief. At the December School Board meeting, the decision was made to not make structural budget reductions again at the end of this academic year. Several factors have contributed to not needing to significantly reduce this year, including strong financial management, higher-than-expected student enrollment, and lowering our overall costs due to structural reductions implemented as part of the Planning for Success process last Spring. 

Instead, we will continue to look for ways to contain our overall costs to be good stewards of taxpayer dollars. This will include reviewing our current staffing model in relation to future student enrollment, identifying less expensive ways to provide services, etc. Long-term next steps will include studying additional structural changes that may be necessary going forward without an increase in revenue, whether through funding and/or increases to our overall student enrollment. After collectively sharing the difficulties of budget reductions at the end of the past two years, this is good news, albeit for the short term, as we continue to work towards a long-term solution to our budget challenges. 

Finally, I want to remind you that the Facilities Task Force will begin meeting later this month. As a reminder, this committee will review information about our facilities, help prioritize needs and ultimately provide a recommendation for the School Board regarding the future state of our school district facilities. More information can be found below, and whether you participate in the committee or not, we encourage you to stay informed throughout the coming months. 

Again, best wishes for a prosperous New Year. I look forward to continuing our collaborations on behalf of the New Prague Area Schools throughout the remainder of the school year and beyond. 

Sincerely, 

Andrew Vollmuth  

The New Prague Schools are in the process of updating our long term facilities plan to identify and prioritize the future needs of our district facilities. As part of this process, a Facilities Planning Task Force is being formed to gather input from various stakeholder groups.

 

Task Force participants will review information about facilities, tour buildings, help prioritize needs and provide a recommendation for the School Board to consider going forward. Meetings will be held on the following Thursday evenings from 6:00-7:30 PM at the District Office. 

 

 

The goal is to have representation from a broad section of stakeholder groups - staff, families, and community members - to ensure any recommendations are both forward-thinking and reflective of the values of our greater communities. 

 

If you are interested in participating, please indicate your interest via this Google survey: NPAS Facilities Planning Task Force questionnaire. To ensure efficient and effective meetings, the group size will be limited to approximately 20 participants. Those who express an interest will be notified of their status before the Task Force’s first meeting on Thursday, January 30. 

 

More information can also be found on the New Prague Area Schools’ website: Facilities Planning 2025.