'Brings Me Joy': Elmhurst Schools See Budget Surplus

ELMHURST, IL – Elmhurst school board members said Tuesday they are seeing the district come in at budget for the first time in years.

For the next school year, Elmhurst District 205 could see a surplus of $350,000, out of a $175 million budget.

"To me, that's success," board member Courtenae Trautmann, who was first elected in 2019, said at a board meeting. "I can't remember seeing that in the time I've been here."

She told Joe Blomquist, the assistant superintendent of finance, that she didn't think people knew about the progress.

"When I look at this presentation and hear you talk about it, it makes me feel very happy. It brings me joy," Trautmann said.

The board's president, Athena Arvanitis, sounded similar notes.

"To see our daily operations budget come right at budget, we haven't seen that in the five years I've been on this board," she said.

Also, the district has increased the amount in its bank accounts at the low cash point of the year, which occurs in May. This year, it bottomed out at $23 million, up from $16 million a year earlier.

At the same time, spending is set to rise 5.5 percent in the next school year's budget, outpacing the 1.7 percent increase in income.

"It's not sustainable to have a revenue increase of 2 percent and a spending increase of 5 percent," board member Brian Bresnahan said.

The district projected an 8 percent hike for health insurance.

"That's a huge relief because I've seen it go up by 20 percent," Bresnahan said. "It's kind of sad that an 8 percent increase is a relief."

Over the last year, Blomquist, who was hired last summer, has examined contracts that have apparently gone untouched for years.

For technology purchases, the district is moving away from leases, saving an estimated $75,000 a year in interest. And multi-year curriculum material purchases are expected to save 10 percent.

The district also said it is seeing savings by conducting an energy auction and going out to bid for garbage service.

Without those efforts, Blomquist said, the district would have seen an even larger increase in spending, as other districts are experiencing.

"Our expenditures are outpacing our revenues, which is why we have to find efficiencies," Blomquist said.

He said the operating budget surplus ended up being $1 million for the last school year.

"That's a healthy surplus," he said.

In fall 2024, the district received the state's lowest financial rating, which was shared by only a handful of Illinois' 850 districts. It zoomed to the highest rating a year ago.