Carlton school board cuts staff, band program for next year

Superintendent Donita Stepan asked the Carlton school board to downsize staff by more than four full-time positions, including three teachers, during Tuesday’s school board meeting.

Included in the cuts were one full-time position at South Terrace Elementary and the band program at the middle school/highschool.

Declining enrollments and the accompanying decrease in revenue from the state have driven the retrenchment. In her remarks on the issue, Stepan pointed to the unassigned general fund balance — which should be kept to at least 16 percent of expenditures, according to district policy. At...