School board holds onto $1M for cancelled RALLY program, in case private alternative doesn’t work out
- Mark Sabbatini
- 13 hours ago
- 2 min read
Updated: 4 hours ago
Returning money designated for childcare to the city put on hold by district leaders while Auke Lake Preschool’s new operations are further evaluated
By Mark Sabbatini
Juneau Independent
Local school board members say they want to make sure a private RALLY childcare program is operating smoothly before returning $1.05 million to the city designated for a district-run afterschool program that was halted this summer.
The Juneau School District ended its RALLY program in early August, citing an inability to keep it properly staffed. That resulted in about $1.5 million in unspent funds provided by the City and Borough of Juneau for the program, of which $1.05 million was earmarked specifically for afterschool child care.
A proposal to return the funds to CBJ was up for final consideration before the Juneau Board of Education on Tuesday night, after getting preliminary support from district administrators and school board members. But Elizabeth Siddon, the board’s vice president, asked the proposal be put on hold until there’s a better sense of how the privately run Auke Lake RALLY, established after the district’s program ended, is faring.
"I guess I’m sort of waiting for an established track record from the Auke Lake Preschool in being successful in delivering good childcare in case we have to step in and offer something to our students," she said.
The school board voted 6-1 to postpone the proposal indefinitely. Steve Whitney cast the dissenting vote, stating that while giving any funds back is painful given the district’s tight finances, taking the legally proper action now will help maintain good faith relations with the city.
"These are dedicated restricted funds from the city for a service that we’re not providing," he said.
The funds were provided for the fiscal year that started July 1, giving district officials until the end of next June to return the money during the same budget cycle.
The district’s RALLY program was offered at four elementary schools, while Auke Lake Preschool is offering it at three (Auke Bay Elementary School, Harborview Elementary School and Sítʼ Eetí Shaanáx̱ – Glacier Valley Elementary School; the excluded school is Sayéik: Gastineau Community School on Douglas Island).
School board members asked at a previous meeting if the city’s childcare funds could be used for purposes such as maintenance or transporting students from other schools to the existing RALLY sites. Nicole Herbert, the district’s chief financial officer, told school board members Tuesday that the district is not incurring extra costs transporting students due to the hours of service specified in the busing agreement, and the preschool would need to get district approval and pay for structural changes related to maintenance.
School board members have discussed a range of uses for the other $462,645 of the $1.5 million in total remaining funds, including supporting a playground in the works at Dzantik'i Heeni campus and maintenance projects.
• Contact Mark Sabbatini at editor@juneauindependent.com or (907) 957-2306.
