FRANKSMITHSAYSNB EDITORIAL:
Last night's New Britain council meeting with the members of the Board of Education led to nowhere with the educators claiming if they do not get $3 million restored to their budget by the city council, they will be forced to layoff 130 teachers due to the budget shortfall.
The Minority Leader complained that their report lacks the line by line item budget with the educators clinging onto a letter that was issued by the mayor some five years ago, but he has subsequently requested year after year along with the council membership for the line by line report from the board of education in order to comply to the provisions of the city charter.
After claims surfaced that the BOE was "top heavy," Dr. Kurtz, as reported in today's Herald, made a statement that her district has the least amount of administrative staff than any other school district in the entire state. I find her comment to be outrageous considering there are school districts in Connecticut with part time superintendents, and certainly smaller towns like Newington, Plainville and Berlin must have less administrators simply because they are smaller districts, but if Dr. Kurtz was offering to part time her own position as Superintendent as a way to offer cost savings to the district, then that might be an idea worth pursuing.
Was Dr. Kurtz being less than truthful when she made this remark to the city council last night?
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
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9 comments:
I still can't understand why we are paying taxpayer money for advertisements selling our "free" schools to keep students from leaving and going somewhere else?
If we are going to pay for advertising, shouldn't we be paying to advertise the out of town schools, so we can encourage more students to leave and then we can reduce even more teacher positions and not even miss them?
Seems to me everything is operating backwards at our board of ed. Why should the taxpayers pay to for advertising to encourage you to take advantage of free education at our expense?
Also, why won't they tell us how much they paid for this nonsense?
You would think it was their own money they are throwing around.
frank- you asked the question "Was Dr. Kurtz being less than truthful when she made this remark to the city council last night?"
If her lips were moving, chances are she was lying.
Advertising the school district to ourselves is one of the most ridiculas items in Doris's budget. When she started the New Britain Educator I called her directly and got some flip answer that she had signed a contract with the printer before the budget problems arose? What a joke. That publication has been ongoing ever since with no cancellation ever considered. I cannot even remember how many years ago this started. What she does consider is teacher layoffs. The New Britain Educator is also mailed home, distributed to every student AND inserted into the Hartford Courant! What does this cost taxpayers? We never get the answer and the fluffed over
budget she hands out doesn't tell the story either.
Another complaint from parents at HALS Academy the past several years has been the fact that this middle school is served Elementary sized lunch portions? Children have been going hungry at HALS. Does the public understand the mis-management? The answer has been, this is how the budget has to appropriate that school's lunches because they are on the delivery lunch system which is only negotiated for the Elementary level? Maybe Doris should eat an Elementary size lunch portion?
The next item that can be cut is travel and conferences. Unless mandated, teachers and administrative staff do not need to be spending time in Palm Springs California while others are being let go?
Wake up voters!
Frank:
Soon, I will be revealing information that will show unequivocally the the NB Boe has been violating State statutes for years by not submitting budgets to our BOFT peoperly.
Yes, shame on us for not recognizing that fact but, we have 4 + state legislators that have allowed this to go on for years, one of them, a former Mayor who is now our Senator. and another who is now Chairman of the Appropriations Committee. Our BOE is less transparent than the CIA!
The BOE and the Board of Finance need a line by line budget with five year history comparables. This budget should be broken down by location as well. Each school's operating expenses need to be reviewed annually. These line items are seperate from the salaries and benefits and longevity. We would be able to review if something is out of line at one of the buildings ie: water usage, electric bill, heating, repairs. We can be notified of any large expenses or repairs necessary at one of the properties.
How do we really understand this shortfall. Is Doris threatening layoffs in order to maintain each building? Are buildings being let go along with teachers? How do we really know. When a building is falling down around us will the next administrator sound the alarm and all hell will brake loose? For instance, the BOE voted to expand the DiLoreto School to include 6,7,8th grades. Problem was the building couldn't handle the population and is in need of repair and expansion. Was that considered, no. Now we are bonding an expansion to accommodate a prior decision. Let's not forget the renovations that took place at our existing 3 middle schools? Now we need to have the students at DiLoreto stay there because it's a good school? Why aren't our other 3 schools good? The BOE is loose in it's controls. Bad for the taxpaying public. Who is in charge of the local Taxpayer's Union?
I personally would spend the extra time reviewing the BOE budget right down to each building and it's specifics.
And, would like to impress upon the administration to cancel advertising the school system to ourselves.
Soon, I will be revealing information that will show unequivocally the the NB Boe has been violating State statutes for years by not submitting budgets to our BOFT peoperly.
Where is the self proclaimed Tsar of ethics to go after them for violating the law?
excellent results for a city of this size. jcd
There is talk around the BOE to create K-8 schools. Not a bad idea. We now have our dual language DiLoreto school K-8 and from all reports it's a great learning enviroment. Maybe we can
have another K-8 that focuses on English Only learning. It too can be entry by lottery. Then we can study the mastery test results between a by choice dual language school, a by choice english speaking only school, and schools that offer bi-lingual education.
This would also give parent's choices, something they seem to always be looking for. The English speaking only school, K-8 could be on the Lincoln school campus and encompass use of the Slade school on this property, K-8.
I think we would all be surprised at the mastery test scores produced.
I wonder how much those catered meals for the board meetings are costing us all???
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