When money runs out, line up the usual suspects: Arts, music, PE and counselors
Remember those warnings that next year will even be tougher for schools than this year? It appears they were accurate.
The drastic reductions in staffing and programs under consideration in metro area school systems reflect the ongoing fallout from a bad economy. Clayton was considering one of the region’s most extreme responses: Cutting its school year by 37 days and adding two hours to each day. Instead, the county will lay off more than 75 elementary school art, music, physical education teachers and counselors despite opposition from parents — the lost positions represent half of the arts, fine arts and PE staffs.
“I don’t see a way of saving a five-day school week and arts and music at the same time,” said Clayton Superintendent Edmond Heatley.
About 600 Clayton parents showed up at a meeting this week, most to protest the elimination of the positions that they say are essential to provide children with a well-rounded education. The superintendent says aggressive action has to be taken to deal with a $49.2 million budget shortfall expected over the next two years.
As newly elected Georgia school chief John Barge has said at almost all his public appearances, educators have to do more with less. His take on the financial constraints — that tough times don’t have to dim opportunity — may not assuage the disappointed parents whose children will lose orchestra or art.
We can expect similar parent frustration as other systems begin their budget cutting.
- Atlanta Public Schools is in the midst of early budget preparations and expects a shortfall next year, though no firm figure in available yet. Last year, APS finalized a $589 million budget that cut annual spending by $67 million. Austerity measures included bigger class sizes, involuntary furlough days and a system-wide pay freeze.
- Fulton County school officials are expecting a “tough, challenging” budget process for fiscal 2012, said chief financial officer Robert Morales. Between reductions in proposed state budget and a 5 percent reduction in property tax revenues, Morales’ office projects a budget reduction of $43.4 million. Last August, the system approved its first tax increase in over five years to balance the 2010-11 budget.
- Gwinnett County is anticipating a revenue shortfall of about $75 million, though a recommended budget won’t be finalized until late March. Anticipated cost-saving measures include cuts in school staffing allotments, continued hiring freeze at the district level and more division/operational cuts at the central office of at least 5 percent. No layoffs of full-time workers is anticipated.
- Cobb County, the state’s second largest district, was originally expecting a $20 million to $35 million gap, but new estimates put the figure closer to $40 million to $50 million, district spokesman Jay Dillon said. The district is planning for a shorter 175-day school year, five employee furlough days and no salary increases. They don’t anticipate teaching positions will be cut. The district plans to present the board a draft budget in late April or early May.
- Unlike other districts, DeKalb officials said they do not expect a shortfall due to deep cuts made in previous years. They also plan to cancel furlough days for some workers and cut back the number of furlough days for other workers.
–From Maureen Downey, for the AJC Get Schooled blog
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106 comments Add your comment
Dekalbite@ arts funding
March 11th, 2011
6:02 pm
“i appreciate your thoughts regarding the importance of core subjects; isn’t it interesting what we consider to be core now vs. the periods in human history when thought and innovation flourished?
I had a liberal arts education with a double major in history and political science and a minor in English. It has indeed served me well. But then I graduated in the 70s. The world is a different place or as Thomas Friedman said so much more eloquently and persuasively than I – The World is Flat. In China 80% of their college graduates have majors in engineering, math and science. The same is true of many Asian countries. And in Europe, those very countries that created the “classical” education that we imported to the U.S. have moved to engineering, math and science as the favored majors as well. The U.S. will stay abreast of the math and science – in essence – technology – wave or we will become a second rate nation. We are no longer driving this train. We’re just trying to stay on it.
MB
March 12th, 2011
10:07 am
During budget discussions last spring, the issue of Fulton cutting almost exclusively at the school level was brought up to the school board, but they still voted to eliminate 1000 positions, of which only TEN were filled central office positions. The message received by those of us working in schools – if you don’t like “doing more with less” there are many waiting at the door to take your job.On the other hand, several new positions – with new monikers – were created at CO after the cuts.
I would challenge the contention that Cobb is 3rd in budget allocated to staff who don’t work with students – Fulton seems to take that “prize.”
Counselor
March 12th, 2011
11:34 am
In response to why Student Support Personnel have a higher average salary than teachers…it’s simple, we are required to have a Masters degree to do our job, whereas a teacher is not. Our salary is exactly the same as a teacher that has a masters degree, however our contracts are longer than teachers (we typically work 2 weeks longer than teachers each year) thus, annually we do make more because we work more days. I guess my point is, please educate yourselves before making generalized statements about pay for teachers and counselors. Obviously I am a counselor and could write many pages on why we are needed in schools, but because I’m sure you would all see that as biased, I’ll refrain. However, I will describe what I did yesterday at work in my high school, and then you can tell me whether or not I’m needed:
I began my day by meeting with over 20 Juniors to plan their schedule for their senior year…thus ensuring they have taken all the courses they need not only to get into the college (to become the lawyer, doctor, teacher, artist, etc.) of their choice, but also to graduate from high school; after than I, along with one of my assistant principals, met individually with 26 seniors on my caseload who are currently failing at least one class they need for graduation…we put together plans for making up work they have missed, study sessions, etc. to help them be successful; next I met with a student who is going through an extremely tough time with a medical illness that might require him/her to miss school and not graduate on time; I then returned phone calls to parents on subjects varying from college admission to struggles with bullies; after that I met with a parent group to plan intervention/prevention strategies for drunk/destracted driving as we have Prom and Graduation to worry about. In between all of that I met wtih students that saught me out to discuss personal or academic problems. It’s all in a days work, and I LOVE my job, wouldn’t trade it for the world and would never complain about my pay, more duties being added or even the parents who can’t seem to parent their own children. However, what I will ask all of you is, who in the school should do my job if Counselors were cut? The teachers who should be TEACHING? The teachers don’t want the responsibility of a counselor, nor should they be asked to take on anything other than what their most important job is. Maybe the administration should do our job…oh wait, you want to cut them too. Oh yes, it’s the School Social worker that should do it; although she has 10 schools that she is assigned to and already works a 60 hour week. I understand budgets are tight, really I do, but it’s too easy to say “cut the counselors” because we don’t “teach” students. I impact the lives of 500 children at my school in a positive way…what did you do today?
Dekalbite@ arts funding
March 13th, 2011
2:56 pm
I’m not anti-counselor. I just think no one is as important as the grade level and content area teachers because they are TOTALLY responsible for student achievement. They are the ONLY employees who are being considered for pay based on student test scores. If they are our “producers”, then they must be the top priority.
Grade level and content area teacher positions were cut and class sizes were increased so the these teachers – the ONLY employees responsible for student achievement – are being asked to do more for the same or less pay. Counselor positions need to be eliminated as well and those employees can be asked to take on additional responsibilities. It’s as if only the regular education teachers – the very ones that teach science, math, social studies, and language arts – are the personnel we can do without – when in actuality, they are the only ones that we cannot do without. We treat them like they are the lowest level of certified employees, and we can keep packing more kids into a finite amount of space.
The first priority is that the grade level and content area teachers have reasonable class sizes and abundant access to cutting edge science and technology equipment – not so it is easier for them to teacher – but because this is where students spend almost ALL of their instructional day. We have wrecked the very environment where students spend most of their day. Everyone seems to forget how miserable it is for students to be packed into huge classes.
I started teaching in the early 70s and have taught every grade and subject, been a a “special teachers” and a support person. But I have always understood that the grade level and content area teacher is the mainstay of any educational system. I know – I spent many years as a grade level teacher. That is absolutely the most important position in our school systems. Everything needs to revolve around our regular education classes.
TimeOut
March 14th, 2011
12:02 pm
What would happen if the 11,13, or 16 metro school systems combined to form one mega-system? Could we ‘manage’ this larger system with fewer central office personnel? We could hire more worker bees and fewer queen bees………just a thought.
TaxPayer
March 14th, 2011
9:07 pm
Most of the counselors in Dekalb do not work with students. In fact, they hide from the children and pray that they will not be ask to assist. I say, cut the counselor positions. The poor teachers are the counselors in the majority of the schools anyway.