Byron superintendent resigns, final audit report on Truth-in-Taxation meeting Dec. 16

After months of financial uncertainty and recent calls for his resignation, Byron School Superintendent Mike Neubeck announced Friday that he will resign at the end of the current school year. Neubeck has faced calls for his resignation in recent weeks as the result of a financial shortfall in the district.
The school board will be meeting Monday, Dec. 16, for the annual Truth-in-Taxation meeting which will include the final audit report of the district’s finances.
The district has faced financial uncertainty after a miscalculation in last year’s budget resulted in $1.6 million in budget cuts to the current budget. School administrators said at a school board meeting last week that they anticipate the district will need to cut an additional $1.6 million from next year’s budget to get the district’s fund balances to an acceptable level.
A $1.9 million operating levy referendum of $800 per pupil failed in November, and it is likely that another referendum will be on the November 2025 ballot. The board also approved borrowing up to $3.5 million dollars to meet cash flow obligations including a debt-service payment in January.
Neubeck’s resignation was announced in an email last Friday afternoon.
“This decision is made with a shared commitment to ensuring the stability of the district while maintaining a continued focus on our mission to serve students, staff, and the community,” the email said. “Dr. Neubeck’s decision provides the Byron School District with the necessary time and opportunity to hire a new superintendent.”
The email continued, “The School Board expresses its sincere gratitude to Dr. Mike Neubeck for his leadership and significant contributions to Byron Public Schools since his appointment in July 2021. We look forward to continued collaboration as we transition into the next chapter for Byron Public Schools.”
Neubeck was unavailable for comment.
A petition started several weeks ago on change.org called for transparency in the district’s finances and Neubeck’s resignation. As of Monday morning, that petition had 263 supporters.
With the final audit completed, a revised budget for FY25 that reflects the accurate financial data will be presented next Monday’s meeting.
The initial $2 million shortfall was primarily concentrated in District-wide salaries and benefits, Neubeck said at the November meeting. Preliminary audit findings showed an incorrect base salary was utilized during negotiations which led to an overestimation of the district’s capacity to fund additional expenses. Salary increases, the report found, were incorrectly recorded in the revised budget and the shortfall was not detected until March.
Neubeck said that there were other contributing factors including an increase in health insurance costs, loss of COVID relief funding, staff retention efforts, inflationary increases in purchased services and state funding challenges.
When the $2 million shortfall was identified the district cut $1.5 million from the 2024-25 budget.
Even with those reductions the district does not meet the minimum fund balance level of 8%. Following FY24, he said, the balance has dropped to less than 1%.
In working on a budget for FY26, Neubeck said, the district also must take into consideration a decrease in enrollment, effect of the Paid Family Leave Act that will go into effect January 2026, contractual increases, health insurance costs, unemployment for hourly employees during the summer months, and inflationary increases for services.
In addition to the audit, the district had Ehlers Financial Advisors conduct a detailed cash flow analysis of the district as a $4.9 million debt service payment is due at the end of January 2025.
Ehlers recommended that because of the current cash constraints the district borrow up to $3.5 million with the loan being secured against future aid. The money would bridge the gap and meet the district’s financial obligations. Neubeck said that the district would not be borrowing that entire amount but would be able to access it if needed.
Administration will present recommendations for budget recommendations to the board in early February