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Dayton Daily News education reporter Scott Elliott writes about schools, kids, teaching and learning.
Home > Blogs > Get on the Bus > Archives > 2006 > October > 24 > Entry
School cuts stay in place, with wiggle room
The Dayton school board met this morning and unanimously voted to submit a five-year forecast to the state that includes deep cuts and 58 teacher layoffs in January.
But there’s still a chance the layoffs and other classroom cuts could be avoided.
Board members emphasized that Tuesday’s vote was required to submit the financial forecast to the state. The numbers in the forecast will not change, but Superintendent Percy Mack is still working on shaping the details of the budget cuts.
President Gail Littlejohn said the board asked Mack to consider moving some of the non-classroom cuts for next school year forward to January. If enough new cuts are found that way, the layoffs and classroom cuts could be pulled out of the plan. Mack said he should have final answers about whether there would be layoffs and other classroom changes within two weeks.
Other highlights of the meeting:
—There was a debate about procedures and protocol. Board member Joe Lacey began by arguing that the board, by design, is not able to vote on the cuts. This goes back a couple years to a change in the district’s budget process. The board used to approve budgets down to the specific line items for each department. Now it approves big picture numbers and allows Mack and his team to manage the line item details. Lacey prefers the prior method.
Lacey also complained about the board’s process for crafting the plan for budget cuts, which he said unfairly gave some board members special privileges. Three board members — Littlejohn, Vice President Yvonne Isaacs and finance committe chair Lee Massoud — met with Mack last Monday to review the budget cuts presentation that the full board heard Saturday.
Littlejohn and board member Mario Gallin said the meeting was proper under board rules and Littlejohn said the presentation did not change substantially from Monday to Saturday. Lacey argued the presentation did change and that it was unfair for selected board members to have extra influence guiding the budget cut process.
—Mack, Littlejohn and other board memebers placed the blame for their budget woes squarely on the Ohio legislature and complained that charter school funding unfairly hurt Dayton schools. “They’re trying to fund two public school systems out of one pot and they’re not doing a very good job of it,” Littlejohn said of lawmakers.
—Teachers’ union leaders meet with Mack this morning to discuss the budget cuts and their ongoing labor dispute. The union has given the board until Nov. 1 to make it a better offer than the no-raise deal it has presented so far or it says it will consider striking.
—The board will meet again Wednesday at 7:30 a.m. to hear a presentation on its options for a May levy. The board has told Treasurer Stan Lucas it wants more information about what types of levies it could seek and how long the levy should last.
Permalink | Comments (7) | Categories: Dayton Public Schools
Comments
By Sandy
October 25, 2006 10:34 AM | Link to this
My children all attend DPS this year. My daughter attended a charter school last year and I feel it was a total waste of a year. They were concerned about funding and I felt her presence there was primarily for that purpose. The more students they have the more money they get. The Dean of the school did drive a nice Cadillac, though. You don’t see many of those in the teachers’ parking lots - in any school district!By GTH7
October 25, 2006 3:37 AM | Link to this
DPS needs to stop complaining about state funding. It is what it is. If you think the legislature’s position is wrong, vote Democratic. Just be prepared to pay higher taxes… and I’m not saying that to demonize the Democrats. It’s just a fact. If you want to improve DPS schools, more money needs to be spent. Some conservatives are fond of saying that money doesn’t matter when it comes to education… that suburban districts do it better and for less. NEWS FLASH: DPS isn’t the suburbs. The problems these students face are big. They seem insurmountable. What’s the answer? PEOPLE. We need more adults in the schools. A lot more. And that costs money. Where will it come from? Ah, that is the question.By Bryan
October 25, 2006 1:40 AM | Link to this
Re: My earlier comment on the levy — the DDN reports it would add about $300 yearly to a $100,000 home’s property bill, an increase I could support (just barely). Earlier, television reports indicated an increase of more than twice that much. Which is correct? As for cutting teachers - Why, with just 16,000 students, does the district need 1,500 teachers?By Caroline
October 24, 2006 6:25 PM | Link to this
Bryan, Cut hundreds of teachers from DPS? Who will then educate our kids? Or, is that not important to you? Do you not realize that a better educated community equals a better community with less poverty, crime, etc.? You may not feel like funding education because you don’t have kids in public schools, but it still affects you! If education was more important to the people of Dayton, then the schools would be better—not the other way around. I’m not saying that you should blindly vote for a levy! Not at all. However, I’m saying, if the people of Dayton made education a priority, it would become a priority of the city and of the children—which would improve living conditions in Dayton. I don’t mean that we need to pay more taxes. I mean that we need to encourage our children, our neighbor’s children. We need to volunteer at our neighborhood school. Take the time to read to a child. Vote for people who really care about education—not just want to gloss it over with quick fixes (like vouchers and charter schools).By teacher / librarian k-12
October 24, 2006 1:34 PM | Link to this
Education has always been at bottom, masked in politics at the national, state, and local, in all 50 states, I believe. I have permanent certification in three and know their patterns reflect a common thread. Technology has become another tool for blocking, filtering data. Many hats are worn by one person because some group is protecting its turf! Notice who can be placed in the offices at the National Education Association! Ethics? Many educated, well-trained, certified, experienced teachers are not allowed to work because of supposed cost. (My true worth in a classroom is far beyond a salary, has always been, but I too have car repairs and utilities to pay.) Regardless, I refuse to allow the SYSTEM define me. I know who I am and what I can do. With 3 strong degrees (last somewhat recent) in English, German, library science (k-cc), being unemployed is HARSH, but that’s reality at 61! Without proper finances for legal services, and weak teacher organizations, there is little, if any, protection. Women, especially, often must be so responsible for their families and profession. Sometimes we are shoved, not lost, between the cracks. Thanks.By Bryan
October 24, 2006 12:21 PM | Link to this
I understand that DPS is in a difficult situation and that the state funding system is unfair. But DPS is fooling itself if they think the community will support the tax levy as proposed (on Channel 7). It’s just too much! With the enrollment decline they should cut hundreds of teachers, not just 58 — but that would not be politically feasible would it? That’s a big part of the problem.By Mary
October 24, 2006 11:33 AM | Link to this
If I understand your write-up, I agree with Gail Littlejohn’s guidance from the board that classroom cuts should come last (well, duh). I also empathize with Lacey’s concerns about how the budget cuts are left to the judgment of the administrators and how some board members meet outside the sunshine law on budget issues. I think there comes a point where boards need to question administrator priorities in education budgets and protect the long term public interest. While in danger of micromanaging, they should not simply rubberstamp the administrators’ decisions and plan to blame it on administrators when things go awry. I cannot wait until, if, or when, school funding is “fixed” by the state, what is deemed essential to education, what is paid for and what is not, what is considered a fair salary, fair benefits, etc. It might be a wakeup call for a lot of the complainers who complain about what the state is not doing for funding. I think eventually schools will be forced to maintain an academic only focus for budget reasons. Too many people involved in education issues are in denial now about limits to the tax dollars and budgets.