Lincoln Way Community High School District 210 board members unanimously approved an amended fiscal year 2025 budget Thursday night that increases the district’s operating surplus to $2.1 million while maintaining a healthy fund balance of just over 34%.

The budget amendment, which District Treasurer Michael Duback presented during a public hearing at Lincoln-Way Central High School, incorporates financing for the district’s bus fleet and records bond proceeds for life safety improvements across the district’s facilities.

“We received additional tax payments from the county prior to June 30th, so for accounting purposes I recommended just capturing that,” Duback told board members. “There’s no reason not to – it’ll help us for fiscal year 2026 budgeting.”

The amended budget shows an operating surplus of $2,014,712, up from the previously projected $1.7 million surplus discussed last month. Duback emphasized that maintaining this surplus level is both appropriate and necessary under the board’s fund balance policy, which requires sufficient cash balances as a percentage of annual spending.

Financial Health Indicators

The district’s strong financial position was further evidenced in the treasurer’s report for May 2025. Through 11 months of the fiscal year, revenues totaled $6.8 million while expenses reached $8.7 million, with total cash holdings of $17.4 million as of May 31.

The district successfully closed on life safety bonds in early June with favorable rates of just under 3.5% for debt certificates and 4.09% for bonds. These funds, which the district won’t need until summer 2026, are being invested strategically to maximize returns.

“We’re reactivating the life safety fund to keep really clean recordkeeping about how those investments and spending occur,” Duback explained to board members.

Insurance Costs Rising

Board member Catherine Johnson questioned a $1.2 million Blue Cross Blue Shield payment, noting it was higher than the approximately $900,000 payments seen in recent months.

“We’ve been oscillating between $900,000 and $1.2 million, and that is higher than in past years,” Duback acknowledged. “We’re trending a little bit high this year budgetarily but under in salary, so as we amended the budget we were okay in the aggregate.”

The district is working with its broker on potential cost reductions in prescription coverage while using $1.1 million as a baseline for fiscal year 2026 budgeting. The amount includes dental insurance, which affects the total.

Looking Ahead

The board also approved fiscal year 2026 invoices totaling $2.6 million for transparency purposes, as there won’t be a July board meeting. The largest expenses include liability insurance ($670,000), district operations ($843,000), and existing bus lease payments ($1.2 million).

Board President Aaron P. Janik noted the district remains on track for early fall completion of life safety projects, with architects and engineers providing regular design updates to facilities staff.

The board’s next meeting is scheduled for Monday, August 18, 2025, with the meeting date moved up to accommodate required public notice periods for the fiscal year 2026 budget process.