A Snowball’s Chance
February 16, 2007 on 10:45 pm | In Education, Local, Main, Regional |I have a proposal, but hear me out first.
When Jesus declared that the meek shall inherit the Earth, it’s doubtful he was talking about today’s school children, including those in Region One. As our educational institutions grapple with the grim reality of fiscal constraints, it’s become increasingly clear that the Sermon on the Mount wasn’t delivered at budget time.
I have been covering school budgets on-and-off (mostly on) since 1998. And the whole process that begins in the late fall and ends in May resembles a broken record accompanied by axe-wielding school board members and punctuated by the occasional shriek of protest.
Here’s what happens just about every year. The administrators present their “dream budget” with increases across-the-board — often amounting to 7% or more. They present it to a board of education, all the while knowing the spending package doesn’t have a snowball’s chance.
The board says, “You need to find places to cut because we have an obligation to the taxpayers to present a responsible budget that can pass muster with the voters.”
Administrators go back to the drawing board. They know they can’t touch the benefits or salaries of faculty or staff because they are contractually obligated to provide what they said they would to those employees.
And other big-ticket items, such as special education and similar underfunded state mandates cannot be substantially cut without prompting costly litigation.
What is left to go under the budgetary knife? The programs and class sizes whose cutbacks disproportionately hurt any school’s most precious commodity — its students.
True enough, teachers and administrators, too, are sometimes affected by cuts in staffing and deferred maintenance, but those who remain (which is the vast majority) are secure in the knowledge that they’ll continue to get regular pay increases and great health-care.
Why are programmatic elements vulnerable to cuts? It’s simple. The employees have the power to inoculate themselves against the cuts (unless, of course, their positions are eliminated outright, which will likely happen at HVRHS and Salisbury Central, for example).
But those strong wages and benefits are untouchable — etched in stone by hardball contracts. And there’s nothing wrong with that on its face.
Yet when I see teachers come into a budget workshop and complain that the cuts will hurt the students, something is missing. Just once I would love to see a teacher say, “I know things are tough this year and if it means saving a program, I would be willing to forgo a raise or pay a larger share of my health-care costs next year — if my union will go along with it.”
But I don’t think you will see that happening — both because not many employees in any profession are willing to make that sacrifice, and because such a statement would likely prompt another union member to file a grievance against the altruistic teacher who had the cohones to make such an offer.
[Aside: I know teachers make many sacrifices, including purchasing supplies for their classrooms out of their own pockets. My wife does, for example.]
And another thing. I know Mike Flint has been making hay about administration spending as Region One goes through its budget process. And he has a point. Administrators who sit in on board meetings are loath to recommend much cutting of their own budgets and the board members who hired them rarely want to alienate the administrators by suggesting they themselves tighten their belts.
During a budget meeting two years ago, for example, I recall the Region One Board spent half an hour debating the funding of a training class for emergency medical technicians and a line item for instrument repair in the music department, whose budget had already sustained a $5,000 cut earlier in the process. However, an increase in the superintendent’s travel budget from $6,000 to $7,000 prompted no public discussion.
What is wrong with this picture?
Back to my proposal: If they want to gain equal footing, students and parents should band together to form a union of their own that would negotiate bottom-line spending for programs. They should demand to sign a binding contract with the board of ed.
I know that makes me sound like a big spender. I am not, having voted against school budgets before when I thought they were out of line. But wouldn’t it be great if there was a level playing field?
Sorry to lay all this on you. End of rant …
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I was creative director for an an advertising agency in Hartford. The agency wasn’t doing real well. We’d lost some accounts, but had a chance to land a big bank headquartered in New Haven. I was due for a raise, but went in and talked to the guy whose name was on the door.
” Don’t give me a raise, ” I said to my boss. Give me nothing. But added that I wanted to knock the freakin’ socks off the marketing director of the bank we were pitching. The guy who was charged with making the call. If we got this one, it would save our asses.
The creative guys I managed and I worked long days and into the night. Came up with a campaign the bank in New Haven fell in love with. Long story short: We got the account. Our sorry asses were saved.
And I was given a twenty grand a year raise.
And one more thing. The Eton Wall Game. Jake says you might know something about that….
What’s the story?
Comment by terry mccarthy — February 16, 2007 #
Terry, I love numbers. Try this one:
The proposed budget for the PRINCIPAL’S OFFICE AT HOUSY IS $1000 PER STUDENT.
The cuts in this budget can be made in administration. The powers in the local teacher’s union are in lock step with their national politicos. There will be NO CHANCE, not even a snowball’s chance, of any sort of change. The major difference is that the money supply for this is never ending. This is not the real world. Unless you want to home school or private school your children, you are forced to use the current public education mess. This is not an ad agency that has to produce or die. Mr. McCarthy’s bold proposal would get him a chance to use the mental health portion of his gold teachers’ insurance benefits. In the real world, where results matter, Mr. McCarthy is what is needed, even in education.
Marshall and others make an excellent case for k-6 in each town, a regional middle school, plus housy. Never happening.
Interesting question about housy. The vice principal’s job is posted for hire. another teacher/administrator from one of the public schools is transferring to housy to cover maternity leave.
Question: IF this person is qualified to assume the vice principal’s job “temporarily,” why are we spending $$$$$$ for a search?
Comment by Paul Bartomioli — February 17, 2007 #
The true road to getting a handle on education spending starts in Washington D.c., and in Hartford…
No federal unfunded mandates
No State unfunded mandates
Now, I know federal and state mandates, if they were funded, come from our taxes, but, they are still always going to collect our taxes, so lets put em to use here on the mandates that come from on high.
The road next leads to binding arbitration…
Lets dump binding arbitration, dump tenure, and pay a teacher/administrator what they are worth..if they are excellent teachers, lets pay them well, if not, show them the door….pay on performance like the rest of the world (except politicians of course!).
Finally, pass legislation so that when a budget is approved, money can not be transferred from one account to another accout without voter approval…ie, money in a line item stays in that line item, and does not get spent elswhere with out the publics approval…then we will see exactly where the money goes!
Just a few thoughts!
Marshall
Comment by Marshall Miles — February 17, 2007 #
Terrence, I don’t recall anything about the Eton Wall Game, other than what I just read online. I think your story is precisely to the point. Unfortunately, the modern educational zeitgeist discourages competition, especially in the academic arena.
Paul, I knew the maternity leave had been filled but I wasn’t aware the job was “posted.” Do you mean a permanent or temporary posting?
Marshall, Great ideas but not a snowball’s chance.
Comment by Terry — February 17, 2007 #
Re the Eton Wall Game… I was confused on that. I told Terrence that I thought that if it was like Fives, you were the guy to talk to. Clearly it is not. It appears to be more like the game “Social Soccer” that David Stack used to organize have us play.
Re unionizing the parents and students, isn’t that what school board elections are about?
Comment by Jake — February 17, 2007 #
Jake, The boarding school you and I went to is clearly an Eaton wannabe, so your confusion with handball (“Fives”) is understandable.
Re: unionizing the ‘rents and students, my proposal is really tongue-in-cheek, but clearly school board elections don’t elevate parents and students to an equal footing with faculty and staff. There may be no viable solution, other than to organize better.
Comment by Terry — February 17, 2007 #
Let’s start with the government in DC. The cabinet post was created by James Earl Carter, the peanut farmer, as a payoff to the NEA and the UFT. No one has been able to explain to me how it is more efficient to send our money to DC, run it through the sausage grinder, and send it back some place else. NCLB=more political BS.
Marshall, I personally think teachers are well paid for their jobs. BTW, I also believe that paying 10% of your healthcare premiums is a joke. I pay 40%, and my health plan is not contractually mandated platinum level. BTW, the teachers’ union has a few words for you about touching their golden calf.
Parents can organize: they need to do their job and VOTE. VOTE NO on the budget until cuts are made where they do not affect students and teachers.
The last time Mike Flint was on the air, the budget was voted down several times. It’s time, again.
Terry: the posting on the Region 1 web site appears to be a permanent posting. My guess is Mary Ann is not coming back after the baby is born.
Jake, no school board elections are people that go along to get along. we all hold hands and sing kumbaya, while voting unanimously on everything that we must vote on. Show up at a board meeting, either in your town or Region 1. Bring an airsick bag, maybe 2 if the budget is under discussion.
Comment by Paul Bartomioli — February 17, 2007 #
Terry, just visited the Region 1 site. The job posting is gone.
Comment by Paul Bartomioli — February 17, 2007 #