Lafayette Charter School, which also received a recent Finance Award and is near New Ulm, held its budget meeting April 14.

Sandra Stugelmeyer, business manager for the charter that serves preschool through eighth grade, said the district reduced about $40,000 and no one lost their jobs. Stugelmeyer said a simple energy efficiency plan — turning lights off and shutting off appliances — as well as reducing some staff workloads and supply budgets should balance the books.

Minnesota New Country in Henderson does without custodians. The students take care of the building and grounds. Like RBA, New Country promotes a “project-based” curriculum where students work on yearlong, multi-discipline research projects. That means there are no electives and no need to staff extra teachers.

With a budget of about $1.4 million, New Country lead adviser Dee Thomas said staff will be meeting to balance the budget in the coming weeks. She said salaries have been frozen in the past and that seems a likely option once again. She also said some purchases could be delayed.

But Thomas also said the school will not deviate from the program that was called one of the top eight in the nation by the U.S. Department of Education in 2006.

“We have 19 employees,” she said, adding the school has hosted recent visitors from Singapore and New Jersey. “But all 19 will sit around the table, look at the budget and say, ‘This is what we have.’”