Faced with the possibility of a big reduction in state funding for the 2012-13 school year, Superintendent Lawrence Wyllie of Lincoln-Way High School District 210 outlined such options as fee increases and lowered graduation requirements to deal with an expected budget gap.

During an annual Board of Education goals workshop Saturday, Wyllie still emphasized the options were only possibilities and that he would not recommend all of them to the board. “Not all of these are great options right now,” he said. “We need some options to look at. It doesn’t mean they’re all going to happen.”

As state lawmakers prepare for the spring legislative session in Springfield, initial indications are that the district can expect as much as a $2 million reduction in state funds to the district next year, Wyllie said. The final numbers won’t be known for some time, but in preparation for a decline, Wyllie said the district needs to begin considering possible cuts and revenues. Due to a declining economy and reduced state aid, the district has already cut spending by about $8 million in the last three years.

Speaking to a crowd of more than 500 at the Lincoln-Way West auditorium, Wyllie said he hoped rumors about potential cuts and changes to the district would be set straight after the meeting.

“I believe when you leave, you may have a little different perspective than when you came,” he said.

One proposal presented would help bolster districts revenues by collecting more in student fees. As an example, the district said increasing registration fees by $50 would generate an estimated $370,000, while charging a $100 participation fee for students involved in athletics and extracurricular activities may generate as much as $531,000.

Because the district’s registration fee is already about $37 above average for the area, Wyllie wasn’t encouraging an increase. He also offered no support for participation fees because of how it may deter students from getting involved outside of the classroom.

“I don’t think that’s our philosophy, but it’s something we had to look at from the revenue standpoint,” he said.

Another proposal that appeared to be unpopular with Wyllie and some school board members was the concept of reducing graduation requirements from 22 credit hours to 20, beginning with the 2012 freshman class. Wyllie said the proposal would not shorten the length of the school day but instead would have students fill one of their six daily class periods with a study hall.

“It’s another one that we’re probably not interested in doing, but what would it cost us?” he said.

Through staff reductions, the option would result in about $1 million in savings the first year and more than $5 million after it was phased-in for all grades.

During public comments, residents expressed concerns about how fewer credits would affect their children’s chances for getting into college.

Wyllie and board members told residents it was  a radical and unappealing scenario. “That is an option we really don’t want to pursue,” said Board President Arvid Johnson.

Another cost-cutting proposal presented by Wyllie is one that would allow athletes and marching band members to opt out of physical education courses during their activity’s season. Wyllie said the district is still waiting to hear if the state will approve a waiver request that would allow the exemption, but if it is OK’d and approved by the board, Wyllie said there is a potential savings of $285,000 a year in reduced physical education staff.

“Is that something we want to do? I don’t know,” he said. “But we know if we do, that would be the savings.”

During the public comments, a physical education teacher said she does not support the proposal. Board Member James Gast said if the district decides to offer the waiver, it won’t require students to opt out of physical education but will offer it as an option. “If you want your student to be in PE twelve months of the year, put them in,” he said.

The Board of Education will continue to discuss next year’s budget throughout the coming months and likely won’t outline any firm direction until April or May when they consider staff needs for the following year.

“We’re a long way away from making any decisions,” Wyllie said. “Maybe there’s a combination of stuff that might work. Let this stuff unfold a little.”

However, the board did take a step toward other changes for the coming school year, separate from its financial planning, that should appear on its next meeting agenda.

At Wyllie’s suggestion, board members gave a consensus to move forward with adjusting the cost for zero hour courses, which are held before the start of the school day, as well as the cost of summer courses. Lowering zero hour fees from $500 to $350, and increasing summer course fees from $330 to $350, would bring the two into alignment and encourage more students to return to zero hour courses, said Johnson.

The district began charging for zero hour courses as part of a cost-cutting measure two years ago, Wyllie said, and as a result fewer students are taking them.

The second item to appear on next month’s agenda will be a possible change in elective requirements for students. Currently, students take a total of four electives, of which one must be a fine art and another must be a career and technology course. Wyllie asked the board to consider maintaining the four-elective requirement, but doing away with the fine art and career technology requirements. This would allow students to take four electives offered through fine arts, career and technology or world language.

“We have not cut the number of electives,” said Johnson. “What’s under discussion today is giving parents more choice in the electives their children will take.”

A few district teachers spoke out against the proposal, saying by not requiring fine arts and career and technology classes, students likely will miss out on exposure to new ideas and concepts. Dan Moore, president of the district’s teachers association, said the association is opposed to the switch and want graduation requirements to stay the same.

“Some of the kids, they don’t know about career and tech class, they don’t know what an art class might be able to help them do for them,” he said. “We just want them to have the opportunity to be exposed to these things.”

Johnson said the proposed changes to zero hour and summer course fees, as well as changing the elective requirements, are targeted at giving more options to students and their families and are a separate issue from the district’s financial planning.

“There is very little impact that this is going to have financially,” he said. “We still have the bigger issue on the table.”