LCPS and Arcadia Schools Agree to Sports Coop

The Loup City  and Arcadia school districts have agreed to enter into a cooperative sponsorship of volleyball, cross country and girls' golf, starting with the 2012 season.  At special Board meetings held on May 29th in each district, the Loup City and Arcadia School Boards  passed resolutions approving the cooperative sponsorship and have made formal application to the Nebraska School Activities Association (NSAA) for permission to form the activities coop.


A coop board,composed of members from the Arcadia and Loup City  School Boards will be formed to oversee the combined programs and implement the  provisions of the agreement between the schools.  It is an rewarding and encouraging  to see how the students, parents coaches, patrons and Board Members of the Arcadia and Loup City districts have come together to provide increased opportunities for students to participate and compete.


Patrons are encouraged to contact superintendent Mike McCabe (Arcadia) or Tom Hinrichs (Loup City) with any questions, comments, or suggestions.

LCPS Board to Consider Cooperative Sponsorships with Arcadia

At a special Board meeting, scheduled for Tuesday May 29, 2012,  the Loup City Board of Education will consider adopting a resolution approving a cooperative sponsorship agreement in volleyball, cross country  ( boys and girls) and girl's golf with the Arcadia Public Schools. The meeting will take place at 8pm in Room 316 of the Junior-Senior High School.

 In order to be approved by the Nebraska School Activities Association (NSAA) for the 2012-13 school year  formal resolutions, adopted by the Loup City and Arcadia Boards of Education respectively,  must be received by the NSAA before June 1, 2012. The agenda for the Loup City Board of Education special meeting is available on the district website. http://blog.loupcity.k12.ne.us/

If approved, the cooperative sponsorships would begin during the fall 2012 activity seasons in the respective sports.

LCPS State Aid Certified for 2012-13

The Nebraska Department of Education has certified 2012-13 state aid for the Loup City Public Schools at $33,852, which is an increase of $1,102 from our 2011-12 aid. The high water mark for state aid received by the district was $1,389,902 in 1998-99.  The $33,852 aid figure for this year (2011-12) is the lowest amount that the district has received since the current state aid system has been in place. A look the last 10 years of state aid shows a steady decrease in the amount of funding that we receive:

Year	State Aid	Year	State Aid
2003-04	$975,008	2008-09	$831,039
2004-05	$831,571	2009-10	$779,214
2005-06	$958,087	2010-11	$577,254
2006-07	$918,955	2011-12	$32,750
2007-08	$933,114	2012-13	$33,852

Why has state aid to the Loup City District been cut so drastically?

Last year, which was the first year of the state’s current two-year budget cycle, legislators were faced with a huge state-wide budget shortfall. To help address the deficit, most agencies and organizations receiving state support saw cutbacks in state funding. The school funding formula was adjusted to place greater reliance on local resources (property taxes) and less emphasis on state funding.  This school funding shift resulted state-aid reductions in over 90% of Nebraska school districts.

How does the educational funding formula apply to LCPS?

The basic formula for determining state aid to education is: Needs minus Resources= State Aid

Factors on the needs side of the equation, which impact LCPS include:

● Basic Funding (general fund expenses)

● Poverty Allowance

● Limited English Proficiency

● Elementary Class Size Allowance

● Summer School Allowance

● Transportation Allowance

● Distance Education Allowance

● Local Choice Adjustment (option students)

Our Formula needs for 2012-13 are calculated at $3.495.789.74

Formula Resources include:

● Local Effort Rate: (Local valuation / 100 x 1.0395 local effort rate)

● Income Tax Funds

● Actual Receipts

● Retirement Aid

Our Total Formula Resources for 2012-13 are calculated at $3,589,049.91

Under this formula, since our resources are greater than our needs- we receive no equalization aid. The state aide that we will receive in 2012-13 will come in the form of Allocated Income Tax Funds ($16,506.27) and Retirement Aid ($17,346.57) for a total of $33,852.84.

Does our relatively low general fund levy ($0.96) mean that we get less state aid than districts that levy at a higher rate?

No. Districts that levy less than $.95 are penalized with a minimum levy adjustment in the state aid formula.  While our low levy is the envy of many districts, that levy figure does not effect our state aid. It is not possible to spend our way to prosperity and increase state aid by increasing local spending.

The fact that our district has an assessed valuation in excess of $300m to support 310 students, under the present state aid formula, indicates to the state that the district does not need state support.

            The state aid formula will be revisited by the Nebraska Unicameral in next year’s session.  However, with local valuations increasing by an average of 6.85% over the last 10 years, our prospects for receiving dramatically increased state aid any time soon would appear to be remote at best.

           

Even with the decrease in state funding, the Loup City Public schools will continue to provide outstanding educational opportunities for our students, while continuing to be mindful of tax-payer burdens.

Complete State Aide Documents can be found at the NDE Website

http://www.education.ne.gov/FOS/SchoolFinance/StateAid/Index.html

Fuel up to Play 60 Assembly

Photos from the recent Fuel up to Play 60 award assembly, featuring former Husker and current Minnesota Viking, Zack Bowman   are now available on the LCPS Facebook Page. http://www.facebook.com/pages/Loup-City-Public-Schools/144655882253701?ref=tn_tnmn

Fuel Up for 60 Assembly Scheduled for April 2nd

Zack Bowman, former Nebraska Cornhusker star, and current member of the Minnesota Vikings, will be in Loup City on Monday April 2nd as our guest at an all-school assembly. The program, and Zack's appearance, are rewards for our participation in the NFL's Fuel-up for 60 program. LCPS's participation in this program was sponsored and coordinated by school nurse, Pam Harrington.  Students in grades K-12 will be in attendance with parents and community members  invited and encouraged to attend. The assembly begins at 1:15 pm.

NeSA Assessments Begin at LCPS

The Nebraska State Assessments (NeSA) will be given at the Loup City Public Schools from March 26-May 4.  Results of the NeSA tests are used to determine the district's Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) for the purposes of meeting No Child Left Behind guidelines. Tested Grades and Subjects are:

•  Grade 3 (Reading, Math )
• Grade 4  (Reading, Math )
• Grade 5  (Reading, Math & Science)
• Grade 6  (Reading & Math)
• Grade 7 (Reading & Math)
• Grade 8 (Reading, Math, & Science)
• Grade 11(Reading, Math & Science)

The complete testing schedule is available on the district website: http://blog.loupcity.k12.ne.us/

Strategic Planning Report

Updated information from the LCPS strategic planning meeting, held February 27, 2012 in now available on the Loup City Public Schools web site. http://blog.loupcity.k12.ne.us/

Thanks to everyone who participated.