Dear Board, Superintendent, and Treasurer,
I have read the recent documents posted on the district website. It appears money is the board's issue.
First of all, $2.44 million over three years strikes me as a bargain to ensure our students receive an excellent education. The modest salary adjustments proposed by the REA will reward our teachers for their loyalty during lean years when they did not get a pay raise and encourage them to remain loyal into the future. The purchase of the services of 16 additional teachers, as Mrs. Miller projects, to cap class sizes seems reasonable to me. I recall at the community meeting on open enrollment Mr. Dackin estimated around 180 students would fill classrooms to capacity -
I have read the recent documents posted on the district website. It appears money is the board's issue.
First of all, $2.44 million over three years strikes me as a bargain to ensure our students receive an excellent education. The modest salary adjustments proposed by the REA will reward our teachers for their loyalty during lean years when they did not get a pay raise and encourage them to remain loyal into the future. The purchase of the services of 16 additional teachers, as Mrs. Miller projects, to cap class sizes seems reasonable to me. I recall at the community meeting on open enrollment Mr. Dackin estimated around 180 students would fill classrooms to capacity -
25/30 students, depending on grade level. I was the one who asked him for that figure. He then promised to hire additional teachers if open enrollment went higher. I have been told the current open enrollment numbers stand at about 650. This is 470 over capacity, which amounts to the need for about 15 - 19 additional teachers -- that sounds reasonable to me.
Secondly, to our financial advantage, it appears that the treasurer's projections for revenue are considerably less than what the SFPR from ODE has projected -- $1.13 million for FY15 alone. So there will be money in the coffers to fund salary adjustments and class size caps without undo financial hardship.
We are all fiscally responsible people. We weigh our personal buying decisions not on what is the cheapest option, but on what provides the best value and on what is necessary, especially when our budget allows. We wouldn't pay $1000 for a roof repair that would only last for a year when we could pay $1200 for a repair that would last 10 years. That would be fiscally irresponsible. The money being spent on this strike is the $1000 roof repair that lasts for a year. The money that could be spent to end this strike now is the $1200 roof repair that lasts 10 years.
We spend money now because it is an investment in the future. In this case, it is our precious children's future, more valuable than our own. At this moment, our children's futures are at risk, all while we continue to throw good money after bad while this strike persists. Please spend that $2.44 million and end this strike now so that our children's futures are not further harmed.
Sincerely, Julie Hartman
Secondly, to our financial advantage, it appears that the treasurer's projections for revenue are considerably less than what the SFPR from ODE has projected -- $1.13 million for FY15 alone. So there will be money in the coffers to fund salary adjustments and class size caps without undo financial hardship.
We are all fiscally responsible people. We weigh our personal buying decisions not on what is the cheapest option, but on what provides the best value and on what is necessary, especially when our budget allows. We wouldn't pay $1000 for a roof repair that would only last for a year when we could pay $1200 for a repair that would last 10 years. That would be fiscally irresponsible. The money being spent on this strike is the $1000 roof repair that lasts for a year. The money that could be spent to end this strike now is the $1200 roof repair that lasts 10 years.
We spend money now because it is an investment in the future. In this case, it is our precious children's future, more valuable than our own. At this moment, our children's futures are at risk, all while we continue to throw good money after bad while this strike persists. Please spend that $2.44 million and end this strike now so that our children's futures are not further harmed.
Sincerely, Julie Hartman