I sent out a budget email yesterday, and I haven't posted about the budget in a while, so I'm placing this post as an open budget post.
A word to the people who will undoubtedly be discouraged by the uncivil comments sure to come... haters gonna hate. Don't feel the need to argue with them, and don't let them discourage you from having your say.
Please explain your comment "haters gonna hate." I can only assume you mean that anyone who does not support this budget is a hater?
ReplyDeleteNice comments from a School Board Chairman.
Oh, and I do "hate" the amount of taxes I pay and I do "hate" that the proposed tax rate will make me pay $900 more this year, and I do "hate" the 5 year pay freeze my company has given us.
Guess that makes me a "hater".
I think what the Chairman is saying is that you may agree or disagree with the proposed budget-- or parts of it-- in a civilized manner, with facts and/or opinion, but without vitriol.
ReplyDeleteThe problem I have is the school board doesn't seem to represent us, the Loudoun Taxpayer. Taxes should not go up this year period. It's easy to look at the school Budget and see what to cut. There are positions that are not teaching positions that do very little(Dean's), each Middle School has 3 along with their own Secretary for 14 Middle Schools(84 positions). Buses should by at least 90% full and that's not the case, most are 50% or less. High School bus routes should take into consideration the kids that drive or walk to school. What are smart boards in the art, music and health rooms? Seems like overkill. Why does LCPS send out marketing pamphlets during the school year to all Loudoun Residents? I'd like to think the School Board would step up and make some decisions instead of being such a yes man to Dr Hatrick's Budget. Only 2 School Board ask the tough questions and don't rubber stamp everything. That's why I complain to my Board of Supervisor, who at least looks out for us. You'd think someone with a computer background could do a better job of analyzing the budget and come up with logical ways to make everyone happy. I know I'm able to make those decisions at work and with my budget at home. Unsure why LCPS can't do the same thing?
ReplyDeleteI am right that the possible $32 million cut represents a 4 cent tax decrease from the advertised $1.32$
ReplyDeleteI know this is a thread on the budget, but if you're a bit skeptical of technology's role in learning(as I was),pls.carve out some time to watch PBS's "Digital Media:New Learners of the 21st Century." Very interesting.
ReplyDeletehttp://video.pbs.org/video/1797357384/
It would be really nice if we could do more with less (or even the same). LCPS faces the daunting task of educating 3,000 more students next year than they had this year. That represents a almost a 5% increase against this year's 63,000 students. Another way to look at it is 2 full high school's worth of new students.
ReplyDeleteYou can't look at this as just paper, because the students are actual people. They have to sit somewhere, eat at some point, and get appropriate instruction. It's not the same as a bank handling 5% more money than in the past. It would be more equivalent to a factory turning out 5% more cars (when they were already running 3 shifts). Keep in mind, also, that inflation doesn't take a break, even if salaries didn't increase. Energy costs more (to run the buses and heat the schools), food costs more, text books cost more. These are costs beyond the system's control.
Anyone who disputes the need to raise taxes needs to first give an example of any commercial organization which has successfully handled the kind of increases which LCPS has dealt with without increasing expenses.
If you want to bitch at someone, your anger should be directed at the Board of Supervisors from 10 and 14 years ago which voted for unrestrained housing growth without considering the costs they would burden us with. I don't remember any member of the BOS telling us back then that while it wouldn't cost anything to widen route 50, it would instead cost us either continuing tax increases (for years to come) or declining public school. Just ask them now what they were thinking!
Yeah, the BOS of the past is to blame, but putting smart boards into every classroom doesn't make a lot of sense. Having buses riding around in Loudoun under 50% capacity doesn't make sense. Keeping pet projects around that only benefit a few doesn't make sense. Pouring money into a few old school buildings doesn't make any sense. Having positions with very little benefit, yet get full salary and benefits, doesn't make any sense. Building small schools so close together doesn't make sense. I could go on and on. Outsourcing certain jobs would easily save 500K per year. As for the 3000 new kids divided by 80 schools, works out to about 38 kids per school. And let's not forget some schools are under capcity(Tusc and Wood HS). Most School Board members come off lacking common sense when it comes to school budget.
ReplyDeleteThis is easy: the LCPS budget should be reduced at least 10% or more! Reduce taxes, cut spending, and implement furlough days. Memo to LCPS employees: welcome to the real world.
ReplyDeleteGripping about Promethian boards (smart boards) again? Parents want them. My community is holding a fundraiser to purchase 5 more boards for the local elementary school. They will most likely be more than successful considering this community's location in Ashburn. I can hear the comments-"fine, let the communities pay for them." Unfortunately schools in other communities in LC can't raise that kind of money. I'd like to see well-off schools "adopt" some of this schools and help them out. Technology is here to stay and the children without these types of resources will lag behind. The gap will widen.
ReplyDeleteWhen you claim to compair the budget numbers why do you fail to state what the total school budget is and compare it to the total county budget?
ReplyDeleteThe truth is the school budget approaches 1 Billion Dollars. In that light 34 Million Dollars doesn't sound as horrible.
Put it this way, your Chicken Little, the sky is falling cuts would fund in full three County Departments.
It is time the schools look at the whole picture and realize that 1% of their budget would fund, in full a Library System and countless other Departments that people use every day.
Never mind the daily expense of telling 10,000 employees not to come into work because it is snowing in a Western portion of the County that represents 10% of the student body.
Wow, I didn't realize that the library system had over 6,000 employees and over 63,000 visitors a day......
ReplyDeletecut the FLES program. The students do not like it, do not learn spanish and in 6th grade they miss 30 minutes of English every other day. I would rather see more time spent on learning to write. If you are going to give a language, make it latin so they would be able to apply it to other subjects and help their SAT scores.
ReplyDeleteJust putting in perspective what other county services you receive that amount to 1% of the schools budget.
ReplyDeleteIf you can tell me that the schools are run with no fiscal fat then fine. Put another way, if the schools can't cough up 1% and gut it out why don't you pick the three county departments you would get rid of?
Might want to start with getting rid of the plows, since if there is a frost the schools will close anyway.
Many County Departments did have some layoffs to make their budgets while the schools are asking for raises.
Remember, if you furlough the teachers and employees, you're stopping student education as well. When teachers don't work, students don't go to school. Not even considering the fact that means more daycare costs for many parents, that's days away from learning and preparing for high stakes tests.
ReplyDeleteIs there fat to be trimmed? Sure. Do furlough days belong? No.
That is the typical Chicken Little crying. 1% cut is not going to STOP education.
ReplyDeleteWe had more snow days than furlough days. How about nobody gets paid if schools close to weather. Take a vacation day like every working parent has to.
To Anonymous Above - Please get your facts straight. There were 10 EXTRA school days (read, teacher work days) built into the LCPS calendar this year. If there were no snow days, the teachers would be working 10 additional days for the same salary. As of this writing, I believe there have been six snow days. So, the teachers as of now will work an added four days beyond VA state requirements. This is why Loudoun never has to make up days like Fairfax, Alexandria, Arlington, etc. do during bad winters.
ReplyDeleteThere shouldn't be snow days then. Add the days on to the end of the year. As far as in concerned "learning" shouldn't stop because of snow.
ReplyDeleteDo you have a problem with that?
"If there were no snow days, the teachers would be working 10 additional days for the same salary. As of this writing, I believe there have been six snow days. So, the teachers as of now will work an added four days beyond VA state requirements"
ReplyDeleteIs this supposed to impress me? Find another job that starts at $40,000 with a BA with three months off. I make what most teachers make and I have to work 300 days a year bs what 200 days?
So become a teacher if you think it's an easy job.
ReplyDeleteI didn't know "difficulty" played a role in determining fair market value.
ReplyDeleteThat said, it isn't my chosen field. There are lots of careers I have chosen not to do. But if the teachers here think they have it so bad find a better system. This County values education. They value it to the tune of 90% of the County expenditures. Go cry elsewhere.
It's not 90%~it's 69%, teachers aren't crying~they have been attacked and questioned about their worth repeatedly this year and have been responding to the same questions over and over-"you only have to work 7 hours a day"-"No, it's more like 10-12 and another 6-8 on weekends" "You get paid in the summer" "No we don't, we get paid for our contract time which is 194 days (and doesn't include the built in snow days which we don't get back if they aren't used)" and on and on. If this county values education as much as you think it does, then the school budget will be as close to fully funded as possible just so employees can get a COLA ( and hopefully retain and attract the best employees), buildings we need to handle the continued increase in enrollment (around 3,000 students a year)and for everything else to stay the same. That's pretty much what is being asked for.
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry you aren't getting a raise. Really I am. Neither am I or anyone else I know in this economy.
ReplyDeletePay more to KEEP teachers? Where are they going? Tell me the district that values education more than Loudoun.
Tell me the County that can afford to pay 6000 teachers $100,000 per year.
People do value what you do but don't think for a second that anyone who works 12 months out of the year feels sorry for your ten hour days for nine months. If you dud your job for twelve months fine, $20,000 extra each. But you don't.
But at the end of the day the schools act arrogant demanding and fail to see that they are a part of a larger civil servant organization. And as long as other departments have to lay people off you shouldn't get a raise.
But don't worry, you will get your budget, just like you do every year.
""You get paid in the summer" "No we don't, we get paid for our contract time which is 194 days (and doesn't include the built in snow days which we don't get back if they aren't used)" and on and on. "
ReplyDeleteJohnny works a job outside of the school system. Johnny has a child in elementary school. Everytime it snows or threatens to snow school closes. Johnny's job doesn't close so he has to take a vacation day to stay home with his child. Johnny earns 10 vacation days a year. The school closed for snow six days this year. If a vacation in Florida takes seven days does Johnny have enough vacation time to go?
Bonus: How many Leave Without Pay Days will Johnny to need to both keep his job and still go on the trip that was already paid for?
My heart goes out to your gotta work em whetherthe school took them or not.
I don't have a problem with keeping up with technology, however putting them in every class room is overkill. As everyone knows, there is training involved, maintenance and new software upgrades. I wonder what happens in a classroom when of these smart boards is broken? Does the teacher stop teaching? Why aren't more non-teaching jobs outsourced? A few cuts here and there and there's more than enough money to give the teachers a 3% raise. They should be complaining to the school board and Dr Hatrick.
ReplyDeleteI have to say reading the posts on here isn't winning any points for the teachers side(at least in my mind). I was all for hoping they get their 3% raise, but hoping there were other cuts to the budget. Now, seeing some of the posts, I'm not so sure they deserve a raise, especially their analysis/reasoning. Every county and state budgets are hurting. Many people in the private sector have gone 3+ years without raises. Most do have to take vacation or sick during those really bad snow/ice days. Most do not have a pension or get free health care. Most don't get any cost of living adjustment or any type of step raises. And at the current rate, my personal property tax would go up for the 21st straight year, even though the housing market has tanked the last 2-3 years. And who knows when the gas prices will stop going up, which will in turn make the food prices go up too.
ReplyDeleteteachers aren't crying~they have been attacked and questioned about their worth repeatedly this year and have been responding to the same questions over and over-"you only have to work 7 hours a day"-"No, it's more like 10-12 and another 6-8 on weekends" we get paid for our contract time which is 194 days
ReplyDeleteIf you're not crying/complaining/whining then what are you doing? Not sure what subject if any you teach or which grades, but I doubt all teachers are working the extra hours you claim. And your pay/benefits of say $60-70K+ are for only 194 days, while my $80K is for 340 days(10 holidays, 15 paid days of for vacation/sick leave). I include weekends since I have travel and have to do as much as possible off regular business hours(weekends). And I pay roughly $550/month for health care and put 6% of my salary into 401K(my retirement), and don't get paid for lunch.
LCPS employees should have their salaries reduced 10%, and they should be required to pay more for their health coverage. Talk of rasing taxes to fund LCPS raises is INSANE. LCPS employees...welcome to the real world.
ReplyDelete