The revised budget ruled the night. Business official Dr. Georgia Gonzalez walked the room through it. The new plan trims $173,000 and lowers the proposed tax-levy increase to 2.5%. If the June 16 re-vote also fails, the district goes to a contingency budget of 0% tax increase and roughly $843,000 in additional cuts. Those cuts would fall on things the district planned to add, not things it already has. Officials warned the squeeze only gets tighter in future years. Polls are open June 16 from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.

A packed room split down the middle. The hearing was the longest part of the meeting. On the no side: a parent who demanded a clear, measurable plan before any more money; and a resident who said he is still voting no until the district takes a harder look at how it's run. On the yes side: Jacqueline Nelson, president of the Rome NAACP branch, who announced the branch's endorsement of the budget; the president of the Rome Teachers Association and former board president Paul Fitzpatrick, who warned that contingency would start "a race to the bottom"; and several lifelong residents with no children in the schools who urged a yes vote to keep the community attractive to families as employers like Chobani move to the area.

Almost everyone raised the issue of classroom behavior. Teachers, parents, and even students described disruptions that pull attention away from kids who want to learn. Two students spoke. A Denti Elementary fifth grader said the same classmates disrupt his class every day and that it isn't fair to students who are there to learn. The board's student representative argued that cutting positions won't fix discipline, it just leaves teachers with less support and bigger classes. The superintendent pointed to the district's multi-tiered support work as its plan to get ahead of the problem rather than just react to it.

One honest moment. During the discussion, a board member said out loud that she had changed her mind about keeping fifth and sixth graders in separate buildings. She now thinks bringing them together sooner might actually help with behavior. "I see that I may have been wrong," she said, noting it was "on the record."

A strong spring for athletics got its due. Every varsity team qualified for sectional play. Softball reached the Section III championship game, a long list of athletes advanced to the state track meet, and a golfer headed to the state championship. Two seniors earned the "Black R" as athletes of the year. The board also recognized clerk Sandy Russell with a distinguished-service nomination.

The rest of the board's business was short and routine. Beyond the budget talk, the board approved its consent agenda, accepted the April treasurer's report, added one student to a vision-services contract, signed off on two summer-school union agreements, and formed a combined varsity gymnastics team with Hamilton Central.