Boston Public Schools Budget Cut

The Boston Public School system will be undergoing a major budget cut for the 2009-2010 school year.

According to the BPS Web site, "rising costs and limited financial resources" are forcing the school system to seriously cut its spending. Boston Latin School, the oldest public high school in the country and most prestigious of the city's three exam schools, and Boston Latin Academy, the #2 exam school, are looking at between $1.4 million to $2 million in budget cuts. The two programs that are in the biggest danger at both schools are fine arts and foreign language, as well as physical education and health classes. "Core classes," - English, Math, History and Science - will remain pretty much intact.

Another concern, for Boston Latin in particular, is that while approximately 14 teaching positions will be cut, teachers, especially those with seniority, that are laid off from other schools will be able to take positions at Latin, leaving newer teachers with no tenure especially at risk. Cuts to the budget could also mean an increase in class size.

There will be six budget hearings and meetings at different sites around the city to discuss what course of action will be taken. The first preliminary budget presentation will be held Wednesday, February 4 from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. at 26 Court Street, in Downtown Boston, and the budget vote will be held Wednesday, March 25 at the same time in the same location. The schedule, as well as the presentation to the Boston School Committee can both be found on the BPS Web site.

While so far nothing is set in stone, BPS students are clearly anxious about what the budget cuts could mean for them. Students involved in drama clubs and in-school bands and orchestras are particularly worried about the decimation of these programs. Several groups dedicated to the issue have emerged on the popular networking site, Facebook, and each group has issued a sort of call of action to students to speak up against the cuts to the fine arts. At the moment, everything is considered to be worst case scenario, in the hopes that more money can and will be found before the final vote.

Anyone - parents, students, teachers and administrators - who is concerned about the budget cuts is urged to write to city council and attend the budget hearings. The schedule and the presentation are made public for a reason - so that there is no excuse for anyone who may be affected to sit idly by while these programs are cut left and right. The resources are there and it is up to us to ensure that they are used to their fullest extent.