Screen image John Carey addresses the Minot Public School Board regarding maintenance concerns during the public comment portion of the public budget meeting on Thursday, Sept. 11.

The Minot Public School Board covered a lot of ground at its meeting on Thursday, Sept. 11 at the Minot Area Workforce Academy, including approving financial and compliance reports to file with the state and hearing the third reading of the 2025-2026 budget and 2025 tax levy.

Business manager Laura Dokken broke down the budget, which totaled $130.67 million in revenue and expenses of $131.07 million, for a deficit of $401,265.

Dokken identified updates to numbers related to contracts and federal funding and said the only missing component is the final 2026 United Healthcare rates, which are still being negotiated with a broker. The targeted deadline is Oct. 1 so that open enrollment can commence in time.

School Board member Sabrina Herrmann asked if adjustments had been made to reflect paraprofessional positions, which have been difficult to fill previously. Dokken said areas where over-budgetting has occurred in the past three years have been reviewed, and the data in the report was adjusted to more accurately reflect payroll report information.

Herrmann also raised the issue of possible federal cuts to Title funding and asked what the plan would be if there are adjustments and the money doesn’t come in. Dokken said the district experienced that in the spring but, fortunately, got the money back. She said the district is in a better position if the cuts are to future federal spending, as the district has more time to maneuver.

“That’s why you have a fund balance. If we don’t have the revenue, and we’ve already put out the contracts, then per state law we have to expend those funds,” Dokken said.

Dokken said the 2025 tax levy hadn’t changed since the last meeting, with a taxable valuation of more than $266.65 million. Dokken said the final tax levy will be set at the Oct. 7 board meeting. She said she contacted the county regarding any valuation updates because having a final valuation is important for setting the general fund levy appropriately, which sets the tone for the budget and establishes the amount of gap funding the district will receive.

State law includes a provision for schools stating if the 3% cap on tax increases forces some districts to drop below the state-mandated local education contribution level, the Department of Public Instruction will provide gap funding to cover the difference.

Based on the current numbers, the district would receive $90,663.

“We could maybe see a small change next month after we get some final numbers from the county. We just want to make sure we’re setting it appropriately,” Dokken said, noting it is important to accurately determine the gap funding eligibility sent to the county and DPI.

Louser said he was hearing residential real estate valuations were up 7% year to date in Minot, which would dramatically increase gap funding.

“There’s $35 million available, so I’m not concerned we won’t qualify or that it will be gone when we apply. My concern is that if we set the levy and that number changes dramatically, what happens?” Louser said. “If that valuation somehow goes up by four more percent and that’s accurate, and we’ve set our levy, is there any ability after our next meeting to go back and amend our budget?”

Dokken said there wouldn’t be time to change the budget before the deadline on Oct. 7. She said the district could potentially lose funding if it doesn’t have a final approved valuation.

“We don’t want to leave money down in Bismarck if we could use it as a school district here,” Dokken said.

During the public comment period, John Carey raised a concern about the operation and maintenance costs in the budget. Carey acknowledged that closing McKinley and Bell at the end of the last school year might have created some savings on maintenance costs, but there are older schools in the district with infrastructure issues.

“I have some inside information on Roosevelt. From what I’m hearing, they’re basically Frankensteining their boiler together because it’s not supportable anymore because it’s so old,” Carey said. “Here we are getting ready to go into winter, and I just wanted to voice that concern to you guys. I think we need to take a hard look at replacing it with supportable equipment.”

Louser said he was hearing about similar issues and asked where specific maintenance expenses are listed in the budget. Dokken said different aspects fell into different line items, and there was money in the budget set aside to engage a consultant to assist the district with plans to address the $125 million of deferred maintenance identified earlier in the year.

Enrollment Report

Superintendent Scott Faul’s enrollment report showed the district had a total cumulative enrollment of 7,402 students as of Sept. 3. According to the report, elementary and middle school enrollment fell 29 and 20 students, respectively, since the first day of school on Aug. 20, now totaling 3,621 elementary students and 1,680 middle school students. Senior high student enrollment remained 2,101.

While this is 225 students fewer than Sept 3, 2024, Faul clarified it was only a decline of 28 students compared to the end of the 2024-2025 school year in May.

Faul reminded the board of the findings by a demographer last year, which predicted the district would be down by 89 students by the 2029-2030 year. Faul said the Sept. 10 enrollment would be confirmed soon by the Department of Public Instruction, which is used by the state along with the end of year enrollment to determine funding, based on whichever is higher.

Herrmann asked Faul about the status of the transition of the Souris River Campus from the Burdick Job Corps to the new McKinley High School Alternative Learning Center. Faul said staff appreciate the school and classroom setting provided at McKinley, which also has been embraced by the students.

The board approved the fall calendar for the district, locking in the dates for parent-teacher conferences and holiday breaks. Louser noted the Christmas holiday break will begin on Dec. 24. Classes will resume on Jan. 3, 2026.