Schendt filed the petition, collecting 519 signatures in favor of a recall for J.B. Atkins and 550 signatures in favor of a recall for Carl French.
There will be a regular School Board Meeting on August 21 at 7:30pm at the Broken Bow High School (323 N 7th Ave, Broken Bow, NE 68822).
August 28: Board Work Session at 7:30pm
September 11: Budget Hearing at 7:30pm
September 18: Regular Board Meeting at 7:30pm, official vote on budget levy (after valuations have come out), according to Superintendent Tom Bailey.
Bailey told KCNI/KBBN that the budget has been set at $10.99 million and any proposed cuts from the spring have already been put into place, but that some numbers can fluctuate.
According to county documents, the statement of reason(s) for recall read the following:
"J.B. Atkins/Carl French has advanced a personal agenda causing BBPS to be critically underfunded to the detriment of the students and the community at large. Arbitrary and unnecessary cuts to the school's budget are rapidly depleting the district's cash reserves at a pace that may require elimination of teaching positions and/or programs as early as next year."
Each party had the opportunity for rebuttal. J.B. Atkins submitted the following statement of defense to the county clerk:
"I am proud to represent our taxpayers, families and students. Truth: The 2017/2018 BBPS budget proposal only decreases real expenses 1%, which is $110,000. All teaching positions remained intact and received 4.6% wage/benefit increase. 2016/2017 will end with over $2 million in cash reserves and approximately $1 million in depreciation funds. We need strong financial stewardship at BBPS."
Carl French submitted the following statement of defense to the county clerk:
"I am proud to represent our taxpayers, families and students. Truth: The 2017/2018 BBPS budget proposal only decreases real expenses 1%, which is $110,000. All teaching positions remained intact and received 4.6% wage/benefit increase. The level of cash reserve will depend on the level of SPENDING in fiscal year 2017/2018. We need strong financial stewardship at BBPS."
The Broken Bow Public School Board is in the midst of gearing up for the school year as well as a potential recall election. Drew Schendt, who originally filed the petition for the recall, told KCNI/KBBN that he plans to file the petition with the collected signatures on Friday, August 18. There will then be a 15-day period for all signatures to be verified by the County Clerk before moving forward with a possible special election.
