Strategic Plan 2013-2018 - Oak Park and River Forest High School

Goal 5: Facilities and Finances
As responsible stewards of OPRFHS assets, everyone in the OPRFHS community will make student-centered decisions relating to
facilities and finances and allocate resources to ensure excellence and equity.
District 200 is in a very healthy financial condition, yet nevertheless
faces significant fiscal challenges in the coming years. Enrollment is
projected to grow by nearly 700 students over the next decade,
requiring additional resources. Our vintage building needs
improvements that include new science labs, renovated pools, and
technology infrastructure. Pension reform may involve shifting
costs to local districts. While facing these expenditures, the District
also seeks to maintain an educational experience of the highest
quality possible for students. We must target resources wisely to
support the goals of the strategic plan; the vision, mission, and
values of the plan are the lens for focusing decision-making.
Committees and processes already are in place to guide financial
decisions, and will continue to work in support of strategic plan
goals. In 2009-2010, the Board of Education established the
Advisory Leadership Team (ALT), which comprises both school
and community stakeholders. Each year ALT examines the
District’s financial projections, generates a financial-gap analysis,
and makes cost-containment recommendations. The current target
established by ALT is for the District to cut a cumulative total of
$22.4 million in costs through fiscal year 2023. The projection
model used by ALT takes into account the need to increase
classroom teacher staffing as the student population grows, but the
model has not projected the proper time to add support services
such as counselors, social workers, nurses, etc.
In April 2012, the Board established the Long-Term Facility
Planning Committee to create a plan for updating the building and
accommodate the projected increase in student enrollment. Since
then, the committee—also composed of school and community
stakeholders—has worked with the District’s architecture firm to
create timelines, conduct extensive interviews and focus groups
with stakeholders, propose estimates, and create a first round of
architectural drawings for consideration.
In April 2013, the Board established a new Finance Advisory
Committee in response to community concerns regarding the
District’s total fund balance. The committee, which again includes
both school and community members, will scrutinize the District’s
total fund balance, as well as other financial matters, and
determine the appropriate level of that balance.
The work of these committees will help ensure the District’s longterm
stability through careful planning to balance fiscal and
instructional needs, as well as the needs of the community, which
has a significant financial investment in the high school.
28 • Oak Park and River Forest High School District 200 Strategic Plan