Norwalk Public Schools may cut up to 66 positions next year, according to budget documents presented at Thursday’s meeting of the Board of Education's Finance Committee. This list includes 20 teaching positions, five elementary assistant principals, one director level position and one instructional specialist.
The possible job losses came to light as the Finance Committee met to begin what promises to be a lengthy budget reconciliation process. Norwalk Public Schools has to cut $6 million from its current spending plan after the Common Council capped its budget at $153.3 million, a 2.4 percent increase over last year.
On a more positive note, several positions were taken off the chopping block, including housemasters at Norwalk High and Brien McMahon, assistant principals at Ponus Ridge and West Rocks Middle Schools, the school to career program, the swimming and ice hockey teams, and band transportation.
Superintendent Susan Marks stressed that the list of cuts is not final. “This is a starting point. No decisions have been made. We are still taking things in and out. These are some ideas,” she said.
As for the 20 teacher positions, schools Chief Operating Officer Craig Drezek said that includes 14 anticipated retirements. Marks said she’ll be looking at enrollment projections and class sizes but did not rule out cutting teachers of “specials” such as art, music and physical education. Three additional elementary assistant principal positions were on the new list — this is on top of two already slated for reduction on the previous list.
Marks was not specific about which central office director or instructional specialist positions might be eliminated. In addition, one finance, technician and secretarial position has been added to the initial list of cuts from the central office. Districtwide, two secretarial positions, two interns and one food service position might be eliminated. Hours might be reduced for elementary school librarians.
In the first part of the meeting, Drezek presented an audit of the current year’s budget, which contained nearly $4 million in account overages. However, as a result of the hard spending freeze put in place by Marks in February, the district has recouped $2 million so far. Drezek, who arrived in Norwalk in February, recouped another $1.6 million by scouring the budget for savings.
“We have been working with every department and meeting with vendors,” Drezek said, noting that he has renegotiated insurance rates. “We’ve been nitpicking every transaction. We’re like a little mom-and-pop store trying to get by.”
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
Excellent! Your solutions to the cuts are right on target. Congratulations on your hard work and very reasonable decisions.
ReplyDeleteAs a parent, I would be happy to see my elementary librarian go! What a sourpuss! I would be happy (as would a lot of parents) to volunteer our time to make it work!
ReplyDeleteWant to see a collection of late-model foreign SUVs? Look at the reserved parking spots in the ELEMENTARY schools. What a stupid I was to spend time in Organic Chemistry Lab while the education majors were playing softball.
ReplyDeleteTeachers don't have reserved parking spots, only office staff!
ReplyDeleteOur office staff takes up the handicapped spaces and waltz right into work!
ReplyDeletewhat does any of this have to do with this posting?
ReplyDeleteLet's get serious folks. Cutting elementary principals is a HUGE mistake.
They are crucial to the day to day functioning of the buildings.
Agreed that volunteers could run the library, but some schools lack volunteers and strong PTOs so that could be a problem.
The smaller schools don't need Assistant Principals. If a school has 400 students, it is absolutely ridiculous to have two administrators in charge.
ReplyDeleteYou're right on target 5:16. Between the cutting the Assistant Principals to 1/2 time and the loss of the Intervention Aide we may as well close the elementary schools. Doesn't anyone in Central Office or the BOE understand how critical these positions are in supporting the classrooms?
ReplyDeleteThey are not cutting library aides completely, just reducing hours. Teachers can supervise their own classes checking out books, they library aides( they are not librarians, they got rid of them years ago) can still oversee the clerical things and those who see small reading groups can still do that. Not the best scenario but certainly workable. APs are crucial only because the Principals delegate everything to them...too bad if they actually have to be part pf the day-to-day work of they lose their APs. We got along without them before, they will have to do it again.
ReplyDeleteAs was explained by the COO during our Finance Committee meeting, we were presented with a list of what various central office and school-based personnel cost us and what net-savings would result if those positions were eliminated. For example, it is critical for the BOE to understand how administrators whose positions may be eliminated can bump into other administrative or teaching positions (and then what the resulting saving would be after taking into consideration unemployment compensation costs for the ultimately bumped employee). Supt. Marks and COO Drezek emphasized that the list should not be considered as a set of recommendations but rather as an example of how the budget could be reconciled if Thursday night were the last day of the fiscal year.
ReplyDeleteThe purpose of Thursday's meeting was to establish some common norms regarding these costs and expenses.
As you might recall from last year (and even from the first Finance Committee in January before Mr. Drezek arrived), considerable questions were raised about the accuracy of our cost accounting and the standards used to assess our potential carryover. One example of these questions were the concerns I had raised that the “savings” from eliminating the swim team included an imputed rent payment to the school department for the use of the pool (which was reflected nowhere in the budge. Another example of the concerns raised regarding the accuracy of the budget numbers was the considerable debate as to the basis for the reduction of the carryover from $220,000 (as had been estimated in November) to less than one-half of that number in January.
We can now, at least, have confidence that we are working with accurate financial calculations. With the information that was presented Thursday night, we will now have the basis to assess the costs of those programs most critical to our mission and to then, as needed, determine what would be needed from our revenue sources, where else we could fashion some savings (including discussions with labor) and then make the difficult choices that will probably be needed as we reconcile the BOE's budget.
Steve, is there any truth to what we are hearing that the BOE will not discuss ANY other cost savings from the Unions except a salary freeze? If it is true that the union has tried to offer some other ideas, why won't the BOE talk? Why are salary freezes the only option they will consider? If money can be saved in other ways, shouldn't that be considered first? Why should the union consider a salary freeze before everything else has been discussed? I would think that salary freezes should be the last resort, not the default solution. Jack keeps saying that he has had to endure a salary cut so teachers should too...that sounds like sour grapes, misery loves company...so it we freeze their salaries they will be in the same boat and the budget can be easily reconciled, and you can all go home! I realize this is no easy task, but you all signed up for it.
ReplyDeleteThe Pentagon has begun issuing all G.I.'s training applications developed for smart phone hand held devices.
ReplyDeleteStudies show the apps on hand held smart phones are absorbed better, faster and at immediate disposal for refreshing material.
We are just introducing clickers, which is great, but its already obsolete technology.
Instead of bitterly battling over cuts, shouldn't other revenue sources be aggressively pursued not just given lip service.
How technology can help close the achievement gap and the budget gap?
Must be something to its training effectiveness and cost effectiveness if every GI is getting issued android apps
The classroom is changing, rapidly. What does the Pentagon know that local districts haven't picked up on yet?
WHAT WORKS, that's what.
Perhaps for the students well being we should just follow R.I.s lead terminate all teachers and get a contract with regular classroom evals and data correlated with student evaluations. Evaluations with teeth and merit raises not automatic step raises. And every teacher that is reconsidered must pass a social technology test as well as full attendance at all training seminars the BOE and/or state,and or foundations provides.
No one wants to hear about the teacher that spends 2,000 grand a year on supplies, its tax deductible.
or furloughs or steps, or deductibles. You wanna get recognition that your a great teacher, put a cam in your class and share your talent, help others.
We want to hear how your going to teach our children effectively.
Teachers are organised to defend the cabbage field, what about the students, who is looking out for them?
We need bold action here people.
The world is turning faster and are kids are falling farther behind and getting left behind.
Bold, swift, decisive action is definitely required.
On many levels, local state and federal.
Straight Back and Thick Skin.
Anyone?
Besides Jack?
Anyone?
4:11 AM-- I have not been involved with any discussions that may be on-going between Supt. Marks, the BOE Chairman, the BOE's Personnel Committee and the unions.
ReplyDeleteI believe that at the many public hearings that have taken place with the Common Council and the BET that I've attended, and what I've read in the media, the presidents of the administrators union and the teachers union reference that they have made some offers that would allow for some current savings. I also know that I have read in the various media that the Chairman believes a hard zero is critical.
On this issue, I don't have details that are different than any other member of the public.
One point is when all the positions if they are cut then the process of finding them jobs begins, and that can be very intense. The non certified employees did go an entire year without a raise nor did they get their retro pay so its time for the higher paying employees to do their part....
ReplyDeleteAs a non certified employee, 7:32am you are absolutely correct. Let the people making the big bucks take a hit for a change.
ReplyDeleteanother interesting thought when the teaching positions are cut and the specialists go back into the classroom and bump the new lower paying teachers where will the extra money come from. What about the first grade aides losing their positions? the grant is to be used to pay kindergarten aids? Is that legal????
ReplyDelete5:19, I think you are right. It's not legal to put kindergarten aides in a grant if they have already been paid by local funds. Someone better check with the state department of education grants' office.
ReplyDelete534, good call. The kindergarten aides were paid by the city and with the hiring of the last central office admin. thats how that position is being funded so central office can say there is money for that position. meanwhile first grade aides are being cut and kindergarten aides dont know how they will be paid or if their job descriptions will be changed. Its always the little people that get hurt.
ReplyDeleteIf the kindergarten aides have their job descriptions changed, I am assuming that their salaries will then be put into the early literacy or early reading intervention grants. If that is the case, then technically they can only assist in reading in the classroom. That would be a very different job for them.
ReplyDeleteBruce Mellion needs to wake up and smell the coffee! We are in a major recession, corporate industries haven't taken salary increases. Why not open the teacher's contract, freeze salaries for 1 year and help safe your co-workers jobs!!! If Bruce has a heart, he will do this to save jobs NOT cut jobs, then our teachers will be over worked.
ReplyDeleteAs one can see from the latest post by Moina, there appear to be changes afoot in the NASA leadership, perhaps teachers need to vote in new leadership for the NFT. Does Bruce really speak for ALL of them?
ReplyDelete