How many teachers will we have?
In the past, some of you have asked me about how many teaching positions would be eliminated as a result of the current year budget. At tonight's Council / BOE meeting, we learned there are 15 fewer classroom teachers this year than last year.
Stepping back in time, the NHRs Luther Turmelle ran articles on the then-discussed reductions in classroom teachers on March 19, 2009 and May 8, 2009.
Tim White
11 comments:
With a 2mil projected increase in my taxes which is almost a 7% INCREASE OR $35-40 per month. My house taxes in the next couple of years it will increase to $1000 more per year. The question I would ask is "How many taxpayers will we have?
I believe I heard Florio say it was 15 less "positions." Not all of them are teachers - some were support staff. Another key point is that there were NO layoffs. Department heads at CHS now teach 4 classes not the 3 classes like before. About time.
For 2011 the town & education budgets will have a 5.5 million dollar shortfall. If nothing changes with those numbers, we'll have a 7.9% tax increase or just over 2 mils.
Over the next 3 years we'll be 12.1 million short - meaning expenditures are higher than revenues by that amount.
Amazing isn't it that some people will still say we need to move forward with the turf! As Behrer said, "nothing is free", so expect that to impact the budget also.
sz
Fire the bottom 5% every year, and replace them with young, enthusiastic, less expensive certified graduates. No change in teacher count, but less cost and improved quality. A win-win.
"Fire the bottom 5% every year, and replace them with young, enthusiastic, less expensive certified graduates. No change in teacher count, but less cost and improved quality. A win-win."
Oh really? Who is going to figure out who the "bottom 5%" is? And what is the cost of the ensuing legal fees and damage awards? Also, what of the possibility of having to rehire the person after an appeal to the State Labor Board or Superior Court? Apparently you know very little about unions representing public jobs and the termination process.
"Apparently you know very little about unions representing public jobs and the termination process."
So how about educating those who believe our unionized teachers are just so wonderful that we have recently given them a 13+% pay raise over 3 years beyond all their routine normal step increases while the economy has tanked?
Are you saying that poorly performing teachers just remain as poor quality teachers receiving massive pay increases while the rest of us out here in the real business world are working under a system where poor performance usually results in your job being taken away?
The next thing we'll all be hearing is that even though the student head count is going down the greedy teachers union labor contract doesn't allow for the town to just summarily eliminate a group of high paid senior teachers due to lack of work too.
We can only hope that at some point state residents wake up to what passes for education when in reality it's a system that no one in their right mind could afford even in the best of economic times.
Here are some facts:
Teachers achieve tenure after 40 months of being on the job, teaching.
Within the first 40 months, the administration can remove teachers as they see fit based on performance. Basically, the administration has 40 months to assess whether or not the teacher in question will pass muster.
After 40 months, the teacher is tenured. Once tenure is achieved it is extremely difficult to remove a tenured teacher due to contract/state mandates.
The process for removing tenured teachers is long and complicated. It costs the town a lot of money to remove a teacher. It takes a long paper trail that demonstrates the teacher's inability to perform. Even then, union representation/attorneys are thrown into the mix and it gets costly really fast.
Fact: A tenured teacher is an entrenched teacher in any CT school system.
However, we need to watch New Haven very closely in the next 12 months. Their recent agreement with the unions allows the city to replace poorly performing teachers/principals as well as entire schools.
Tenure, like Seniority (or is it the same?) should be abolished altogether.
Did we have assistant principles and superintendents in the 40's and 50's? If so; how many? Start with eliminating those jobs or even better start by dumping Florio.
Dr. Florio is a very able Superintendant, with great finance and people/management skills. In fact, the other side of the street could take lessons from him. If you knew all the mandates coming down from the State Board and federal No Child Left Behind requirements, you would really want to make the changes at those levels of government!
Dr Florio is able and good at finance but he has to think of the taxpayers once in a while. We have mandates to pay our taxes and provide for our families and most of the time we have no control of our jobs,taxes and other costs. This is real and hard to do in this economy. We all have to work as a team. Without taxpayers in Cheshire there would be no money for everything. Please show us some love. Thanks..
"ll:18 says - Dr. Florio has great people/management skills."
I guess you don't know him like I do.
Is lying and covering up for staff a goal a superintendent should have? Or are they supposed to be doing what's in the best interest of the kids and following board policies?
"If you knew all the mandates coming down from the State Board and federal No Child Left Behind requirements, you would really want to make the changes at those levels of government!"
Enlighten us, what exactly are all of the mandates coming down from State and Federal and specifically HOW do they impact Cheshire, namely the BOE budget?
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