School Worrried About Refunding Aid

Lawrence school officials worry that their district will be forced to pay back nearly $672,000 in aid from the state by the end of June under a new school funding law.

Superintendent Rick Doll said Monday that the district might impose a hiring freeze for non-teaching jobs. He also said the district may have fewer teachers and larger classes in some schools in the fall.

The new law replaced the state’s former per-student aid formula with grants for districts. It cut $51 million from the amount of aid school districts had expected to receive for the current school year.

The Lawrence district already has received more in aid than the new law provides.

However, legislators are considering not requiring districts to repay the state.

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Associated Press Information from: Lawrence Journal-World