2011 Operating Budget and Magnet busing

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Doesn't Weast make over $250K a year in salary plus over $100K in contributions to his pension? Aren't there a lot of county administrators making $200K plus? I'm not opposed to making money, but then again, this is supposed to be public service and these salaries are better than you could make working for the Federal government. The link below is from 2006 and lists school salaries in MoCo:

http://www.gazette.net/specialfeatures/salaries/top500education.html

I don't think Weast is getting furloughed this year, or taking a cut in hours like the paraeducators.

Oh hell no. Did you hear the County Council hearing on the budget, where the Councilmembers said they were voluntarily taking furloughs and salary reductions. One of them wondered aloud if Weast was going to do the same, and he just said "everyone has an opinion."

He should really really really offer a token salary reduction. All the aides are getting their hours cut and we are combining classes. He should do it just to show some esprit de corps.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Transportation to magnets might be an extra cost.

This is exactly the reason why if anything should be cut, the transportation to the magnets should be cut not the magnet programs. If parents are really passionate about sending their kids to these magnet programs they would be able to find a way.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Transportation to magnets might be an extra cost.

This is exactly the reason why if anything should be cut, the transportation to the magnets should be cut not the magnet programs. If parents are really passionate about sending their kids to these magnet programs they would be able to find a way.

Cutting transportation will hurt families who are lower-income or single-parent households that don't have supportive networks of friends/families to help them get their kids to school.

[Anonymous]

Agreed with 10:22. Cutting transport denies access to lower SES families. These programs are necessary educational interventions, not some frill.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP has it right. Weast feels free to spend money on expensive Promethean Boards, artificial turf, "academies" for parents and a bloated bureaucracy. These things need to be cut before services that directly affect kids.

Agreed, but things like promethean boards are already purchased. He needs to reduce ongoing expenses, most of which are personnel.

Incorrect! Promethean Boards were purchased by MCPS staff member Larry Bowers without Board of Education approval. They were purchased on a lease payment plan. They are not paid for and MCPS is about to run out of the stash of money they were using to make the lease payments.
The County Council has cut the technology budget and will not guarantee that they will fund the Promethean Board lease payments.

The Promethean Boards can be returned and the lease cancelled. That's a $4 to $5 million savings per year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Nothing's been decided yet as far as I know. The Board of Education will make those determinations sometime this summer.

These decisions are made behind closed doors by Superintendent Weast. The Board is only a rubber stamp on the Operating Budget.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Agreed with 10:22. Cutting transport denies access to lower SES families. These programs are necessary educational interventions, not some frill.

how are language immersion programs a necessary intervention? Especially when many of the families who apply for them only do so to get their kids into a better school than the one in their neighborhood and not because of the language aspect?

[Anonymous]

MCPS should really interview the child/parent before enrolling them into language immersion to determine the commitment level. Many children drop out after the second or third year. If MCPS were to cut transportation to immersion programs the parents who are truly committed would find a way to get their kids to school, regardless of economic level.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP has it right. Weast feels free to spend money on expensive Promethean Boards, artificial turf, "academies" for parents and a bloated bureaucracy. These things need to be cut before services that directly affect kids.

Agreed, but things like promethean boards are already purchased. He needs to reduce ongoing expenses, most of which are personnel.

Incorrect! Promethean Boards were purchased by MCPS staff member Larry Bowers without Board of Education approval. They were purchased on a lease payment plan. They are not paid for and MCPS is about to run out of the stash of money they were using to make the lease payments.
The County Council has cut the technology budget and will not guarantee that they will fund the Promethean Board lease payments.

The Promethean Boards can be returned and the lease cancelled. That's a $4 to $5 million savings per year.

Is the technology budget part of the capital budget?

I still think a furlough would have been better. That would have saved something over $30 million. And they could have done it without impacting instructional days. Other jurisdictions have.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nothing's been decided yet as far as I know. The Board of Education will make those determinations sometime this summer.

These decisions are made behind closed doors by Superintendent Weast. The Board is only a rubber stamp on the Operating Budget.

His contract is up next year. I hope they have the guts not to renew...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nothing's been decided yet as far as I know. The Board of Education will make those determinations sometime this summer.

These decisions are made behind closed doors by Superintendent Weast. The Board is only a rubber stamp on the Operating Budget.

His contract is up next year. I hope they have the guts not to renew...

I thought he already announced he would retire in 2011.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nothing's been decided yet as far as I know. The Board of Education will make those determinations sometime this summer.

These decisions are made behind closed doors by Superintendent Weast. The Board is only a rubber stamp on the Operating Budget.

His contract is up next year. I hope they have the guts not to renew...

I thought he already announced he would retire in 2011.

He's hinted at it, but nothing official. Knowing him it's all a bargaining tactic to get an even cushier compensation package than what he's got now.

[Anonymous]

There was an editorial recently in the WaPo talking about how vital Weast is to MoCo and how MoCo needs to make sure to keep him. I wish the WaPo would mind their own business.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Agreed with 10:22. Cutting transport denies access to lower SES families. These programs are necessary educational interventions, not some frill.

how are language immersion programs a necessary intervention? Especially when many of the families who apply for them only do so to get their kids into a better school than the one in their neighborhood and not because of the language aspect?

It is not just the transportation to the language immersion programs; it is also transportation to the highly gifted centers. If our children's needs for accelerated and enriched instruction could be met at their home school, I'd be all for cutting the transportation to these programs; however, that is not currently the case in MCPS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote: we have learned that the $34.4 million in cuts may potentially include:
a.. Adding 2 students per classroom (for a total of 3 additional per classroom when taking into account all budget cuts)
b.. Junior Varsity sports
c.. summer school
d.. magnet programs
e.. magnet transportation
f.. paraeducators
g.. counselors
h.. maintenance and building service workers
i.. focus and reading initiative teachers
j.. middle school athletics

Have you all noticed that this is pretty much the same list they release every year at budget time? It should be subtitled "possible cuts which are the most likely to get parents up-in-arms, so they will lobby on Weast's behalf". They NEVER list potential cuts in central office staff; parents might actually agree with that one!