Okay, last night, I'll be honest, things were a bit chaotic. The beginning of the board meeting was a wonderful tribute to those who have given to the district's students, going above and beyond and frequently without recognition.
And from there it all went down, down, down hill. As usual, I'll post my disclaimer, these are my thoughts and mine alone. They do not represent the opinion of the CSD board or its administrators, now do they constitute minutes in any fashion.
Last night, I voted no to Rif our teachers. I was among those who were accused of being fiscally irresponsible and cowardly. I do not believe that I am either. I understand that the failure to pass the motion to reduce our teaching staff would have resulted in a budget expenditure that this district may not be able to sustain, and perhaps forcing us back into the nightmare days following Joe Wise.
I would offer this regarding my vote: A Fiscally Irresponsible board is what led us to bankruptcy during the Wise era. They failed to ask the right questions and provide the oversight dictated by the function of the board. We are still repaying the state loan that kept our district afloat.
CSD may have done everything right once the deficit was discovered. They may have managed their funding with diligence. And we cannot escape the effects of the economy on a district that going on 8 eight years without a successful operating referendum.
However, we can
1) Send a message to our folks in Dover that we, along with many other districts, desparately need the legislature to restore funding that our Governor and the Sec. of Education has proposed to be eliminated. We can appeal that funding for reading and math specialist, eliminated in the last budget cycle, be restored to the education budget. We can proactively correspond as a board with our legislators to educating them of reality of the budget cuts in our classrooms. Essentially, we can LEAD the charge to Dover that Education must be a PRIORITY!
2) Share the burden of the budget through a RIF process that includes district level administration. If we are to be 160 employees lighter next year (representing the 40 + eliminated last night in addition to the 120 temporary contracts that we cannot afford to renew) then perhaps we will require fewer Drew level support employees.
3) In a year that included the CLEAR Review (yet unseen by the board) and a promise from our superintendent that there would be no new programs this year so that we can evaluate which program work and which do not, this RIF could have been supported by documenting which programs DO NOT achieve the DESIRED results, instead of targeting Arts, Specials, and Languages.
4) Spread the cuts beyond the classroom, languages, and arts, to Athletics.
5) Eliminate some of our spending on Travel and Consultants. The fact is that we have a checkbook that's heavy with consultants.
6) Approach the state and ask to defer the loan payments until such time as we successfully pass an operating referendum.
What's the worse that can happen? They say No. But, you don't know until you try!
I have repeatedly raised these concerns regarding our budget and the difficult choices that we must make for our schools. And I have been rebuffed and ignored. My suggestions have not been taken into consideration by our administration nor have they been respected by some board members.
Essentially, we could have made good on a promise to constituents to protect the classrooms, to support programs that work, that are best practices, and that support acheivement. My vote was not cowardly or irresponsible. And though I am in no way advocating violating spending laws mandated by the state and federal government, I am soundly suggesting that we need to insist that the state stop sending Boards to the perp walk, and boldly Lead the state in funding reform.
At the end of the day would any of these suggestions save a single job? I don't know. But, we didn't try. And that's why the only vote I could offer was No. No, to Dover, we do not support you in devaluing education. No, to our administration, we do not support centering cuts to teachers. No, we insist you make good on the message your sent to our constituents in September, October, and November.
At the end of the day, the motion carried.
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