Fairfax County Public School Budget Cuts Hurt Kids

My wife and I were incensed when we received a notice from the Fairfax County Public School system telling us that decreased tax revenues caused by a slowdown in the housing market would mean significant budget cuts at schools our children attend. The notice, of course, expressed hope that the county would provide the school system with additional funding, but in the meantime, measures had to be taken to keep Fairfax County schools from running out of money.

The Fairfax County Economic Development Authority web site touts the county's public school system as "...nationally recognized for its academic excellence." Yet that excellence is being compromised, at least in the eyes of some parents, including myself and my wife. Some of the proposed cuts included reduced busing services for students in the gifted and talented program, larger classroom sizes with more students per teacher, and the complete elimination of summer school programs.

The proposed budget is for nearly $3 billion that, according to the Fairfax County Public Schools web site, contains more than $45 million in cuts and eliminates more than 500 worker positions. While the budget is higher than the one submitted last year, the county has failed to implement any new school programs for the second year in a row. That makes us wonder exactly what our tax dollars are funding. We, as parents, are greatly concerned about a possible reduction in quality in Fairfax County public schools because we have three children in the public school system. Our oldest, who is in his second year of high school, could suffer from budget cuts at a time when he is preparing for education opportunities after his secondary schooling.

My wife and I discussed this topic at length after receiving the notice from the school system, and decided to attend the upcoming public hearing that will be held February 6 to discuss the proposed budget. As concerned parents, we feel it is important to express our frustration at rising costs accompanies by reduced services that directly affect our children. With one child in elementary school, one in middle school, and one in high school, we are directly affected as a family by cuts in the funding available to the school system.

We think, and plan to express at the public hearing, that cuts should be made where waste and inefficiency exist before any proposals are made to cut services, whether busing or academic, to our children. We are confident that the school board could find unnecessary or inefficient offices and practices that would free up additional funds, especially if a thorough examination is conducted of all 236 schools and learning centers in the Fairfax County Public School system.

During the last academic year, 2007-2008, Fairfax County public schools spent more than $13,000 per enrolled student. While we do not know for sure what salaries are paid to school administrators and teachers, we find it hard to believe that our children are the beneficiaries of $40,000 per year in academic services. Our greatest concern is that our children will receive an education of reduced quality because county officials cut academic services that could benefit them in the long-term.

Sources: FCEDA, FCPS Budget, FCPS Statistics