Exception to the Requirement That Buffalo-Hanover-Montrose Schools Maintain Equity (August 8, 2023)

Summary

Letter dated August 8, 2023 from the U.S. Department of Education Office of Elementary and Secondary Education to Ryan Tangen, Director of Finance and Operations of Buffalo-Hanover-Montrose Schools, responding to a request for an exception to the requirement to maintain equity in one high-poverty school, Parkside Elementary, in fiscal year 2022. It says the Department received the request on March 14, 2023 and that, according to the materials, the district lost 369 students over the 2020 and 2021 school years and 72 more in 2022 while Parkside Elementary had a slight enrollment gain. The Department concurs that enrollment volatility is an exceptional or uncontrollable circumstance and states the district may exclude Parkside Elementary from the FY 2022 maintenance of equity requirements.

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Issuer: Congressional materials
Document type: Department Of Education Pdf Www Ed Gov 3Bffb99643
Case: Department Of Education Pdf Www Ed Gov 3Bffb99643

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“Exception to the Requirement That Buffalo-Hanover-Montrose Schools Maintain Equity (August 8, 2023).” Original at www.ed.gov. Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/department-of-education-pdf-www-ed-gov-3bffb99643/, SHA-256 6d35ddaa30f3e2b9d7cd5fe4eeea6eddd9a741e94d6e5c6492f1e47ea6b84086.

Full text

                            UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
                                 OFFICE OF ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION



                                                 August 8, 2023

Ryan Tangen
Director of Finance and Operations
Buffalo-Hanover-Montrose Schools
214 1st Ave., NE
Buffalo, MN 55313

Dear Mr. Tangen:

Thank you for submitting to the U.S. Department of Education (the Department) your request for an exception to
the requirement that Buffalo-Hanover-Montrose Schools maintain equity in one of its high-poverty schools in
fiscal year (FY) 2022.

Section 2004(c)(2) of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 specifies that a local educational agency (LEA) need
not maintain equity if the LEA “demonstrates an exceptional or uncontrollable circumstance, such as
unpredictable changes in student enrollment or a precipitous decline in the financial resources of [the LEA], as
determined by the Secretary.” An “exceptional or uncontrollable circumstance” might include, for example,
increased one-time expenditures in the baseline year (school year 2020-2021) due to the pandemic; a very small
school where the maintenance of equity calculations do not result in meaningful information about resource
availability; or a significant change in the expenses of a school that no longer serves a student whose educational
and support needs required services that have a particularly high cost. Each request for an exception requires a
case-by-case review by the Department.

On March 14, 2023, the Department received your request for an exception to the maintenance of equity
requirement in FY 2022 for one of your high-poverty schools: Parkside Elementary. According to the materials
you provided, while Buffalo-Hanover-Montrose Schools realized an enrollment loss of 369 students during the
2020 and 2021 school years combined and an additional loss of 72 students in 2022, Parkside Elementary had a
slight enrollment gain during that period. The district-wide loss of enrollment coupled with the increase in
Parkside Elementary made it difficult for the LEA to accurately budget for and maintain its per-pupil
expenditures.

After reviewing your request, we concur that the volatility of enrollment in Buffalo-Hanover-Montrose Schools
constitutes an exceptional or uncontrollable circumstance that prevents Parkside Elementary from meeting the
fiscal equity requirement in FY 2022. As a result, Buffalo-Hanover-Montrose Schools may exclude Parkside
Elementary from the local maintenance of equity requirements for FY 2022.

Thank you again for reaching out to the Department and for your ongoing commitment to maintaining equity. If
you have any questions, please contact the Minnesota State mailbox at: Minnesota.OESE@ed.gov.

                                                 Sincerely,

                                                 Laura Jimenez

                                                 Laura Jimenez
                                                 Director, Office of State and Grantee Relations

CC: The Honorable Willie Jett, Commissioner of Education, Minnesota Department of Education

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Our copy: department-of-education-pdf-www-ed-gov-3bffb99643.pdf
Original: www.ed.gov