How Do You Balance a School Budget?

The town budget meeting was tonight; unfortunately (or fortunately depending on who you are and what time you wanted to get home) I missed it. The big deal is the school budget, which is being balanced by firing teachers, office staff, and janitors as well canceling bus services for after school academic programs. While I'm not so sure we need all of the office staff we have and I don't know how many janitors are needed (if my son's rooms are any indication its more than we have) I am sure we need more teachers than we currently employ. Our school is in danger of losing accreditation because the classes are too large. This is due in part to understaffing, which is directly related to a lack of space. Budget issues concerning the proper appropriation of funds have reached epidemic proportions across the country. Using my own town's budget as an example I suggest the following reductions. I believe this will not only alleviate financial strain but also realign our schools with their original purpose.

Travel for Principals and Teachers: $8,930 Where are they going? The school's right here in town. People don't get paid to drive to and from work. Do they have to go to a conference somewhere in our whopping 60 x 40 mile state? Isn't that like going to work?

Travel for Asst. Superintendent: $1,476 see the above explanation.

Curriculum Development: $12,000 WHAT???? Lets take a look at the curriculum of life: balancing a checkbook, the effects of revolving credit, why we don't want to repeat history like the Bush administrations, the science of washing dishes, the art of saving energy, the effect of greenhouse gasses, the proper way to speak and write English, the laws of supply and demand, the effect of the housing boom on local resources, how to make a landfill/reservoir work for your town, how to make a budget and stick to it, how does the petroleum market work... Just off the top of my head, I saved the town 12 grand.

Librarian Salary: $199,103 - 3 librarian salaries It's a clerical position for crying out loud! Is the library so swamped that they need to form snaking lines divided by velvet ropes with three convenient checkouts? At the elementary schools the teachers can easily maintain their own resources as they supervise their classes during library visits. The high school needs ONE librarian, 6 hours a day 180 days a year. Even at the current rate that is a savings of $133, 034. Can we get our Spanish teacher back for that much?

Psychologists Salary: $137,647 We also pay a social worker $74,886 a year and we have a fully staffed guidance office. If guidance can't handle the problem they should tell the parents to seek psychiatric help. Last I checked that didn't fall under reading, writing, or arithmetic. .

Test Scoring : $950 for school psychologistsNo psychologists, no test scoring.

Fire Alarm Testing: $10,000 three year contract I've got some kids who fantasize about pulling one, you wouldn't have to pay them $10,000. We have a fire department; I bet they know how to test fire alarms. Shouldn't it be part of their job as public works?

Water $1,657 The whole town is water!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We are the water supply for the entire state. Everything in the town has a well. What kind of water are we paying for?

Rent For Super Intendant's Office $5,000 Isn't it in town hall with all of the other offices? Do we pay rent at town hall? Wherever it is I recommend it move into a rent-free school. Of course the whole point of this is we don't have enough money, enough room, and are apparently overstaffed so how are we ever going to fit the superintendent in? I hear there's going to be an opening in a Spanish classroom, a desk in the front office and a janitors closet, take your pick. Under my plan so far there will be space in the library and psychologists office. I think some more space is going to open up soon.

Coaches Salaries $107,137 There are plenty of leagues for all kinds of sports in the area . The good of the many non-sports kids outweighs the frivolity of the few sports kids. Take care of the necessities of actual education before you add in the extra curricular items. As one of the most expensive extras sports should be last to be added. For all the soccer moms about to sound off: It's the PUBLIC SCHOOL budget not the public sports budget. You want sports, pay for it! It's EXTRA curricular, meaning not part of the curriculum.

Athletic Buses $24,300 According to the proposed budget kids who stay after for academic help next year who don't drive and whose parents work 9-5 will no longer have the luxury of transportation home by way of a late bus. But hey Little Billy has a ride to his baseball game in the next town! Don't think so. Let the parent's and coaches figure out a carpool schedule.

Athletic Expenses: $58,638 supplies, officials, police, scorers, dues, ice time We won't buy the supplies or pay the teachers needed to give our kids a quality education but Little Billy has ice time and a police escort? What's wrong with this picture? Borys Budget says Little Billy should get good grades so he can go to a college with a good team where a scout will find him and all will be right with the world.

Upkeep of Grounds $7,270 for the upkeep of Manning field, fertilizer, seed, diamond mix, grub control Are you for real? I have grass in my yard, unfertilized, unseeded, full of grubs, and growing like mad, I spend $20 a summer on gas to mow it! My kids and many others play on it all the time to no detriment we can find. It's not a country club it's a public school! We've got an FFA program and lots of equipment put it to good use if you want to keep your field looking nice. Student labor- a budget bargain! Perhaps we could seed the roof of the school to block the leaks.

Advertising $7,450 What are we advertising? Since we are always firing the academic and clerical staff to make room for sports it can't be teachers. Perhaps it's for a masseuse so Little Billy will be all loosened up for the big game.

Total savings: $515,456.

These are the things I question reading the overview published for public consumption. I can only imagine what I would in the actual itemized list. The choices are obvious given the goal, which for those of you who have lost sight of it is EDUCATION

I hope this article will inspire some of you to take a closer look at your town's financials. In a perfect world our schools would want for nothing, unfortunately this is not a perfect world and we need to get back to providing the basics.