SARTELL (WJON News) -- The Sartell-St. Stephen School District will need to reduce its budget for 2025. Interim Superintendent Tom Lee says they need to reduce costs by about $1.25 million for the 2025 school year.

Get our free mobile app

Lee says no programs will be cut but staff will need to be reduced, and they will do that largely through probationary staff and other staff like central office and paraprofessionals. He says there are several factors leading to the shortfall:

"Probably the primary factor here in Sartell-St. Stephen is that we have a really large bubble class of seniors who are graduating and a much smaller incoming class of kindergarten, so if you got 300 kids going out and you bring 200 kids coming in you're automatically 100 kids down, well, a 100 kids down is roughly, pretty close to $800,000."

Lee says retirements and not rehiring positions that give notice may be able to help with the amount of positions they need to not renew, and that they hope to be able to make decisions in April to allow people time to find a new job before the next school year.

READ MORE FROM AUTHOR PAUL HABSTRITT:

• KVSC Trivia Zaniness Provided By “Goat Posse” For 30 Years
• Paynesville Broadcast Club Continues to Grow In 6th Year
• Sartell Schools Doing Its Part To Boost State’s Computer Ranking
• Era Coming To An End For Cold Spring Opera House
• Destiny Calls Hanowski For Flyers Hall Of Fame

• YOUNG GYMNASTS MAKING HISTORY IN ALBANY