Nobody likes a cheat; or at least that’s the way things were for most of my 65 years. But something has changed. Some kids and some of their teachers see things a little differently!
I wrote a post back on March 3rd titled: Not All Future Jobs Require a College Degree….... I believed then as I do now, that a college degree is not always required to have a successful and happy life.
It appears I’m not the only one who thinks this way!
I’m not sure I agree with the video’s producers on purchasing silver or gold at this time but I sure agree with their findings on the outrageous cost of a college “education”.
By this time, some of you’ve already noticed 11 new posts; each an individual EMSD#63 Final Budget Report for a given year, starting in school-year 2000-2001.
The reason for these entries is this. I will be using facts derived from those documents in an upcoming blog series featuring EMSD#63’s Budget History. I will also be using these same documents on my new blog:Butterly on School Budgets…. scheduled to officially appear later this month.
Trust but verify!
When it comes to reviewing budgets, I follow former President Ronald Reagan’s sage advice: “Trust but verify!” And I hope you do too!
Now, there’s a lot of information packed within those budget documents. Too too much for the casual observer. So, to help make processing this much information less daunting and more understandable, I will be presenting EMSD#63’s Budget History data in differing report formats. Each report is designed to answer one or more questions. The questions we will ask are the same questions any competent School Board would ask, and the reports designed to answer those questions are the same type of reports a competent administration would provide.
Today’s post then, is to serve notice of the new series, provide easy access to the source documents and to ask the first question:
Question #1: So where’s the money?
Between School-Years 2000-2001 and 2010-2011, EMSD#63 is expected to have spent close to $16 million more than it has taken in. We’re not even talking “budgeting” yet. That number reflect the actual dollars received for disbursement and the actual dollars disbursed based upon EMSD#63’s official documents.
The two primary components of the budget are REVENUE (dollars-in) and EXPENSES (dollars-out). The District Officials can only guess the number of dollars-in. District Administrators and Board however, have full control of the amount dollars-out!
Let me remind the reader of EMSD#63 Budget-making goal.
Budget Overview Page (9) – 2010-2011 Budget
The District’s budget goals and objectives are to provide an optimum educational program for all of the children of the school district in line with the district’s educational philosophy, consistent with efforts to achieve a balanced budget and the taxpayers ability to support such a program.
EMSD#63’s budget goals and objectives are obviously not being met by a wide margin which reflects at best, in my opinion, willful non-adherence or incompetence!
In the mean time, if you are curious and wish to start reviewing the FOIA’d Budget Reports used for the upcoming posts, click the year.
On March 28th this year, I wrote an Open letter to EMEA President, Hilary Liese. There, I urged Ms. Liese and her union membership to demand a reciprocal gesture of some magnitude from EMSD#63 management and to be cognizant of their role in co-creating and resolving the District’s financial dilemma.
Comments to that post included:
Anon: April 02, 2011 10:42 AM
“Hilary put in for retirement so she is on the 6% plan until she is gone. She does not care anymore.”
Dr. Clay’s experiment in international relations dressed up as a self-created ESL Bilingual Teacher crises, will end In 40+ days. I’m sorry it didn’t work; not for Dr. Clay or Ms. Glickman or Ms. Centanni, who’s actions received “Kudos” from Dr. Clay for “successfully addressing a staffing challenge through this no cost recruitment option”, but for the brave Spaniard's who came from Southern Spain to our cold clime to aid us in our time of pedagogical need, the kids and finally, the taxpayers, who are once again, the big losers here.
If you’re new to this subject, I urge you to read:
Dr. Clay, in “Visiting Teachers” stated that these new recruits would “commit to 1 – 3 years of teaching in EMSD63”. Why? Why only one-year? As education professionals, Dr. Clay and his staff by now clearly understand what all other teachers seem to know; it takes at least two full seasons to settle-in and become cost effective. Surely these Administrators haven’t been out of the class room that long!
And what are they actively doing to eliminate this new problem?
Me thinks the good doctor has been far too lonely over there!
I was in the midst of writing another blog post when; while reviewing Dr. Clay’s 10 month-old blog-site for a quote, I noticed a curious thing. There are almost no reader comments on this locally important site. So I thought, I’ve got a few readers now, maybe I could help!
All of Dr. Clays blog posts to date.
Personally, I think it very important for local taxpayers to read what their local school district superintendent’s choose to share and how they say it. Further, in our case, Dr. Clay and his Board need to read what EMSD#63 taxpayers think!
Done well, Superintendent/Taxpayer give-and-take could be very enlightening for both parties, don’t you think?
“‘I considered it my mission to do this,’ said Charlene Cobb, executive director of instruction and learning, of creating a new logo for the district.” Pioneer Press Herald-Advocate 04/14/2011.
I think East Maine School District #63 taxpayers would have been better served had Ms. Cobb and Superintendent Clay not seen her mission “doing this”, and had instead focused her (expensive) professional efforts, on helping Gemini Jr. High School students pass No Child Left Behind! As one person put it: “It [the logo] depictsDistrict Students with arms raised in academic surrender."
There was nothing wrong with the old logo!
That logo depicted EMSD#63 students reading under the tree of knowledge. I guess they thought the concept too old fashioned. No pizzazz!
Quite frankly, had the District really needed a new image, I think Ms. Cobb would have saved the taxpayer a few bucks and been more on the mark with this!
Creating the logo is another example of fixing things at school districts that aren't broken because you don’t know how to fix things that are! It’s usually a way of justifying a job.
EMSD#63 is looking to save money.I think I know a good place where we might save at least $125K!
I recently read in Pioneer Press’s Herald-Advocate, of East Maine School District #63’s recent staff reductions. The article recreated below, follows just one month after Dr. Clay’s own blog post of March 14, 2011 on the same subject.
Pioneer Press Herald-Advocate April 14, 2011
District 63
“School board votes to cut 47 teachers from district payroll
Reductions also include a dozen noncertified staff positions
By Natasha Wasinski Contributor
Forty-seven teachers will not be re-employed next year by East Maine School District 63, the Board of Education unanimously voted on April 6.
The board also approved the “honorable dismissal” of 12 noncertified teaching assistants and the resignation of four Spanish resource staff and a special education teaching assistant.
The downsizing of staff follows the board’s decision last month to reduce its 2011–12 school year budget by $1.6 million to avert a financial crisis.
Still, some jobs are in limbo and may not get cut, after all.
At least a dozen positions may remain intact if the district and it’s for bargaining units reach an agreement in negotiating salaries. The board favors saving an additional $1.1 million by freezing or reducing salaries to increasing class sizes and eliminating staff positions.
In order to engage in negotiations the bargaining units must first vote to reopen their contracts. According to Superintendent Scott Clay the district expects to get the results of their votes by today (April 14).
Among other actions at its monthly meeting the District 63 Board of Education:
heard from Clay about changes this year to the districts strategic-planning process, including smaller focus groups of parents, and developing fewer goals to make the strategic plan more user–friendly and achievable. Clay anticipates creating an outline dashboard report to measure and track the districts progress
approved the adoption of a new logo that features three silhouettes with raised arms on the backdrop of a globe. “I considered it my mission to do this,” said Charlene Cobb, executive director of instruction and learning, of creating a new logo for the district
heard an update from David Bein, executive director of business services, on his research to adjust school times and bus routes. Options include pushing back start times so three elementary schools dismiss at 3:45 p.m., or adjusting the times of all schools by no more than 15 minutes. In discussion board members leaned toward the idea of adjusting the times of all schools instead of sending younger students home later
Note: I attempted to find the article on the Pioneer-Press’s website, without success.
The article, I am sure, accurately represents the discussion and decisions made at the meeting. Of course, we taxpaying mortals will not be able to see these facts for ourselves until after May 4, 2011; following the Board’s approval of the April 6th meeting minutes.
However, in the mean time, the information contained in this article offer a plethora of blogging subjects.
I recently learned of current EMEA President, Hilary Liese’s pending retirement.
I got to wondering. Does Ms. Liese really know how good she’s got it? Do any of EMSD#63’s future retiree’s from the classes of 2011 or 2012 know? For that matter, do you know?
Based upon Social Security Online’s Monthly Statistical Snapshot, February 2011 (Table #2), the latest available data; the Average Monthly Benefit for Old-Age Insurance, “Retired Workers” was $1,178.10 per month, or $14,137.20 per year.
The next time you hear EMSD#63 teachers crying “poor” while receiving their contracted 3% plus “stealth-step” pay increases, remember; there are a lot of “Retired Workers” out there footing that bill!
