The 2010-2011 operating budget request by our superintendent was a 22.53% increase. Over the past four years the council has approved on average a 2% increase. Salaries and benefits comprise almost 75% of the total budget, up from 71% last fiscal year. Enrollment is down by almost 200 students primarily at the high school level.
As taxpayers we are already stretched too far. As parents and concerned citizens our educational system is very important to the success of the city. Success doesn't necessarily mean money spent however. Success comes with the right administration, leadership and fiscal oversight.
Many of the very staff that are probably concerned about this press release are also the same subordinates that have complained about this administration's wasteful spending. Doris Kurtz oversees her BOE budget but who is questioning and overseeing her decisions? For instance the New Britain Educator, this high gloss, color magazine is mailed home, handed out, and inserted into the The Hartford Courant, can we afford this, could we EVER afford this item? I can't identify it in the printed budget but our printing and binding costs this year were just about six hundred thousand dollars! It has been said that staff conferences to places like Palm Springs CA were pretty pricey but Doris found it necessary? And then the administrative lunches, this has been a standing joke for so long and repeated by so many employees and subordinates that taxpayers would choke on the dollar amount expended, not really very funny to those of us trying to meet our monthly mortgage payment that includes big tax dollars!
Maybe it's time to find a new administration that knows how to sharpen the pencil rather than throw scare tactics of layoffs, and elimination of pupil services to get more money out the city.
I totally agree that Dr. Kurtz has been a big spender and I know that she could care less what the public thinks. She would spend money on anything that would make herself look good.
Do not let the BOE off the hook. Most of them looked the other way at her expenditures, personal as well as administrative.
A criteria for responsible BOE members should be developed in order that all candidates have the qualifications for this office that spends most of our tax payers' money.
As long as Dr. Kurtz had six votes in her pocket, she could do what she wanted. Those six votes were always Democratic mmembers.
I predict that the only people who will show up at her retirement party are these Democratic BOE members and all of the very many people that she hired who would not have been hired by any other superintendent.
Two hundred layoffs! Bring it on! Maybe those high school special ed teachers grabbing over 100 big ones and Union President Rhonda Barker could be the first to go!
I'm sure some of these jobs could be saved with wage freezes and concessions, but the greedy union fat cats won't give up a dime to save someone else's job. All these greedy teachers seem to know is "what is in it for me?" Pathetic.
who would miss them?
ReplyDeleteThe 2010-2011 operating budget request by our superintendent was a 22.53% increase. Over the past four years the council has approved on average a 2% increase.
ReplyDeleteSalaries and benefits comprise almost 75% of the total budget, up from 71% last fiscal year.
Enrollment is down by almost 200 students primarily at the high school level.
As taxpayers we are already stretched too far. As parents and concerned citizens our educational system is very important to the success of the city. Success doesn't necessarily
mean money spent however. Success comes with the right administration, leadership and fiscal oversight.
Many of the very staff that are probably concerned about this press release are also the same subordinates that have complained about this administration's wasteful spending. Doris Kurtz oversees her BOE budget but who is questioning and overseeing her decisions? For instance the New Britain Educator, this high gloss, color magazine is mailed home, handed out, and inserted into the The Hartford Courant, can we afford this, could we EVER afford this item? I can't identify it in the printed budget but our printing and binding costs this year were just about six hundred thousand dollars! It has been said that staff conferences to places like Palm Springs CA were pretty pricey but Doris found it necessary? And then the administrative lunches, this has been a standing joke for so long and repeated by so many employees and subordinates that taxpayers would choke on the dollar amount expended, not really very funny to those of us trying to meet our monthly mortgage payment that includes big tax dollars!
Maybe it's time to find a new administration that knows how to sharpen the pencil rather than throw scare tactics of layoffs, and elimination of pupil services to get more money out the city.
I totally agree that Dr. Kurtz has been a big spender and I know that she could care less what the public thinks. She would spend money on anything that would make herself look good.
ReplyDeleteDo not let the BOE off the hook. Most of them looked the other way at her expenditures, personal as well as administrative.
A criteria for responsible BOE members should be developed in order that all candidates have the qualifications for this office that spends most of our tax payers' money.
As long as Dr. Kurtz had six votes in her pocket, she could do what she wanted. Those six votes were always Democratic mmembers.
I predict that the only people who will show up at her retirement party are these Democratic BOE members and all of the very many people that she hired who would not have been hired by any other superintendent.
Two hundred layoffs! Bring it on! Maybe those high school special ed teachers grabbing over 100 big ones and Union President Rhonda Barker could be the first to go!
ReplyDelete200 is a good start, but I for one would like it more if it were 300 or even 400!
ReplyDeleteIt is about time we started cutting the massive bloat in government and there is no bigger example of bloat than the board of education.
I'm sure some of these jobs could be saved with wage freezes and concessions, but the greedy union fat cats won't give up a dime to save someone else's job. All these greedy teachers seem to know is "what is in it for me?" Pathetic.
ReplyDelete