How to ruin your school district in 6 easy steps

[Exterous]

1. Spend a lot of money to hire consultants to report on how to save the school district money
2. Completely ignore every recommendation over the next couple of years
Recommendations included:
Outsourcing maintenance - which has doubled in size in the last 8 years despite maintaining the same number of buildings
Reducing administrative assistance staff which has grown by 33% in the last 5 years to assist the same number of administrators
3. Continue 5 straight years of teacher job cuts
4. Ignore the constant downward tending of grades and the overcrowding of class rooms
5. Make year 5 the biggest teacher job cuts yet
6. Remove every single copier from the district

I cannot even fathom the stupidity of this district. Increase non-teaching staff at the expense of classes?! It's not just electives anymore. Nope. Honors Math? Gone. Larger (38+) english, history and science classes? Check. But the school district still hasn't saved enough money so instead of cutting a single maintenance or administrative position they decide to get rid of every single copier in the district.

My wife came home with a front seat full of as much of a semesters copies as she could plan out because they will not have any copiers for at least the rest of the school year. Starting Monday if she needs to make any copies she will have to go to an office supply store and pay for it out of her own pocket.

All 16 schools in the district have to go to Staples to make copies?! Come on - Really? I keep thinking this has to be some sort of sick joke...

 

[highland145]

Time for her to move to a private school or a new career.

pay for it out of her own pocket

 

[T_Yamamoto]

This sounds like Wake County.

North Carolina spends so little on their students.

 

[kranky]

Well, that's absolutely ridiculous.

I guess these decisions are from the school admins, and not the school board? I would put pressure on the school board to take some action. The items you point out ought to reflect poorly on the current admins.

 

[highland145]

This sounds like Wake County.

North Carolina spends so little on their students.

Before the last financial crisis, I looked up the amount of $$ S.C. got per kid from fed/state/local sources......$11K. How much actually made it to the local school districts...less than $6K. The rest was sucked up in the bureaucracy in Columbia.

 

[Gibsons]

Reducing administrative assistance staff which has grown by 33% in the last 5 years to assist the same number of administrators

Let me guess - Vice principals, assistant principals, deputy something or others...? Along with their retinue of assistants.

 

[Newbian]

Starting Monday if she needs to make any copies she will have to go to an office supply store and pay for it out of her own pocket.

What grade as high school should have no issues with getting the files online?

Just have her email all the files for them to print out and if the parents whine tell them why.

 

[Exterous]

Time for her to move to a private school or a new career.

Ugh - I wish. There is a massive talent drain going on in the Detroit Metro area. This year was bad for a lot of schools. Teachers are fleeing like rats leaving a sinking ship and there are few job openings. She lost out on a position to someone with 25 years of experience and a PhD in the field

Well, that's absolutely ridiculous.

I guess these decisions are from the school admins, and not the school board? I would put pressure on the school board to take some action. The items you point out ought to reflect poorly on the current admins.

They waived the scary 'State Takeover!' boogieman and the schoolboard fell in line. I am sure the past history of nearly everyone on the board and school admins being sacked during a take over had nothing to do with it...

Let me guess - Vice principals, assistant principals, deputy something or others...? Along with their retinue of assistants.

Actually her school runs very lean on admins now. Just three of them and they are all swamped with extra teacher/kid/class shuffles, 'cost cutting measure plans' and 'budget recovery plans'. Did I mention they got a report from consultants on cost cutting and budget recovery? Still 5 secretaries at the school and no cuts to the district office though

 

[Exterous]

What grade as high school should have no issues with getting the files online?

Just have her email all the files for them to print out and if the parents whine tell them why.

"Be sure to go home and print out your test and bring it in to class tomorrow. No peaking!"

Besides - I am willing to bet a large number of her kids to not have access to a printer.

 

[waggy]

Let me guess - Vice principals, assistant principals, deputy something or others...? Along with their retinue of assistants.

wouldnt suprise me. there was a article in chicago paper about stuff like this. There are many new administrative jobs that make no sense. they make 100k+ and do nothing.

 

[SagaLore]

This sounds like Wake County.

North Carolina spends so little on their students.

Hmm...

In 2010-11, Wake budgeted $8,307 per student, but spent $7,561.

 

[SaurusX]

I thought everyone had already left Michigan a long time ago. Don't forget to turn out the lights!

 

[PottedMeat]

All 16 schools in the district have to go to Staples to make copies?! Come on - Really? I keep thinking this has to be some sort of sick joke...

FUCK YEAH!

are they trying to scam their way into the local gov paying for ipads or something?

 

[Exterous]

I thought everyone had already left Michigan a long time ago. Don't forget to turn out the lights!

For the first time ever we are discussing leaving the state for good. We still need to stay around for a while for my dad but after that....we'll see.

are they trying to scam their way into the local gov paying for ipads or something?

Ha - 3/4 of those would be missing/stolen/pawned in a week

 

[mnewsham]

Looks like I got lucky

Montgomery county spent $15,582 per student

Our budget was something around the $2.2-2.5 Billion per year area. (not including $1.3 Billion budgeted for capital improvements for 2013-2018)

 

[highland145]

Looks like I got lucky

Montgomery county spent $15,582 per student

Our budget was something around the $2.2-2.5 Billion per year area.

How's the education?

 

[mnewsham]

How's the education?

Well I have a job interview at a sex shop at 1pm today for most likely minimum wage, so in comparison to everywhere else probably a bit better but largely the same.

 

[unokitty]

All 16 schools in the district have to go to Staples to make copies?! Come on - Really? I keep thinking this has to be some sort of sick joke...

Detroit? The city where Half the Property Owners Don't pay Taxes?

Detroit? The city that Forbes just named the Most Miserable City in the US?

Its your call, but you might consider leaving.

You didn't say what level your wife teaches at. But if the kids are old enough, she might want to consider just posting her handouts to Google Docs or Google Sites. Let the kids go home, or to the library, to print them out...

Best of luck,
Uno

 

[lxskllr]

Sounds shitty. I can guarantee you I wouldn't be making copies at Staples if I were a teacher. I'd adjust my curriculum to a system that doesn't require duplicates. Fuck it. 19th century here we come!

 

[KB]

Is the Admin Staff unionized in a different union than the teachers? What does the teachers union have to say? Are they fighting it out?

I am not a fan of unions, but this should be their bread and butter. This should be their only purpose, to fight back and get some change. Now if they are in the same union then I can see what they wouldn't say anything. They are getting rid of lower paid teachers and replacing them with more expensive admins, so more fees for them.

 

[jaha2000]

Detroit? The city where Half the Property Owners Don't pay Taxes?

Detroit? The city that Forbes just named the Most Miserable City in the US?

Its your call, but you might consider leaving.

You didn't say what level your wife teaches at. But if the kids are old enough, she might want to consider just posting her handouts to Google Docs or Google Sites. Let the kids go home, or to the library, to print them out...

Best of luck,
Uno

As a resident of Michigan. We all wish we could give Detroit to Canada. That part of the state sucks and it drags down the rest of it.

http://www.forbes.com/pictures/eddf45gihi/no-1-grand-rapids-michigan/

 

[Exterous]

Detroit? The city where Half the Property Owners Don't pay Taxes?

Detroit? The city that Forbes just named the Most Miserable City in the US?

Its your call, but you might consider leaving.

You didn't say what level your wife teaches at. But if the kids are old enough, she might want to consider just posting her handouts to Google Docs or Google Sites. Let the kids go home, or to the library, to print them out...

Best of luck,
Uno

Well - its only near Detroit It would be a bit before we would leave though. My father is staying with us when he gets his chemo treatment at the hospital and I won't consider moving away while he is dealing with this but after that? We'll see...

She teaches HS math and spanish. There are some ways around the issue (Putting the test on the overhead and making the kids write their answers/showing their work on a blank piece of paper) but with so many at risk kids there is a lot of concern among the teachers that pushing more of the academic preparation/responsibility burden on them will negatively impact scores given the already low engagement levels. Not saying they won't try just that the people running the school seem to have lost sight of the purpose of a school.

 

[oogabooga]

I half expected this was going to turn into a post about a consultant company running a school district into the ground. Both pleasantly and awfully surprised by the actual result.

As others said, looks like it's time to try to find greener pastures.

 

[Exterous]

Sounds shitty. I can guarantee you I wouldn't be making copies at Staples if I were a teacher. I'd adjust my curriculum to a system that doesn't require duplicates. Fuck it. 19th century here we come!

Kids - according to the sun dial its time to get out your abacus

Is the Admin Staff unionized in a different union than the teachers? What does the teachers union have to say? Are they fighting it out?

I am not a fan of unions, but this should be their bread and butter. This should be their only purpose, to fight back and get some change. Now if they are in the same union then I can see what they wouldn't say anything. They are getting rid of lower paid teachers and replacing them with more expensive admins, so more fees for them.

Admin is non-unionized. The union is fighting and managed to reduce the teacher cuts but they can't force the school to make cuts in other areas. The only other option appears to be rejecting the proposal and forcing a state takeover. Given that the state threatened to just close the entire school district any lay everyone off I dont see that happening. I really don't think the state could justify closing a district with 16 schools but enough people got scared for their jobs so the union didn't have the votes necessary to pull that off

 

[shortylickens]

I think if you move to private schools you should get a huge tax break, that comes directly out of the education budget. Soon as they start fucking up they'll get the message.