Bob Smallridge
Revenues could be down about $1 million, and Oak Ridge Schools officials have recommended cutting 18 positions, including roughly eight teaching spots.
Six employees could lose their jobs, Oak Ridge Interim Superintendent Bob Smallridge said during a special meeting Monday. The rest of the cuts could occur through retirements and employees taking new jobs, among other things.
The 18 reductions could save about $1.1 million, Smallridge said. One special education teaching position would be added.
“It’s a very tight budget,” he said. “We’ve made some very tough decisions.â€
The recommendation still have to be approved by the Oak Ridge Board of Education. The board meets at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday in the School Administration Building to conduct a line-by-line review of the $55.5 million budget.
The schools’ revenue sources include property and sales taxes, and city, state, and federal funding. The only real anticipated increased in revenues in the fiscal year that starts July 1 is in property tax collections, Smallridge said.
He cited such revenue decreases as a roughly $450,000 decrease in sales tax collections and a $122,000 drop in state Basic Education Program funding.
Meanwhile, there have been significant spending increases, including a $467,000 step increase in salaries and benefits, and a health insurance rate hike of about $280,000, school officials said.
Dave Smith says
Eighteen positions to be cut, including eight teaching “spots.”
There is no mention of the number of administrative “spots” that are proposed for elimination. Every year we reduce the number of professionals in the instructional ranks while increasing the number of administrators. There seems to be nothing so permanent as an administrative position.
I am very disappointed in our city council for their flagrant failure to support the school system in word and deed. Some council members seem to be bent to the tune of the school system haters. The public school system is our greatest asset, the one for which we are best known and most widely admired. Council and the BOE need to work together like they believe this and are committed to maintaining it.
John Huotari says
The proposed staffing reductions in Superintendent Smallridge’s budget presentation included, in the general fund, 7.72 teaching positions, .6 retiree positions, two teacher assistants, two custodians, .62 support staff, one instructional coordinator, and one technician (14.94 positions, the equivalent of $971,646, including benefits); and, in the federal projects budget, one instructional facilitator and two teacher assistants (three positions, the equivalent of $136,543, including benefits).
Regarding your other point, Board Chair Keys Fillauer said the school system is losing programs and personnel. “That’s not acceptable,” he said. He said officials have looked at the budget for too long in terms of what can be cut, and he suggested they instead “come into the budget from the front end.”
Sam Hopwood says
A good step forward in Council and the BOE working together would be for the BOE to resume their high school mortgage payments that they refused to honor last year. All seven Council members – including Ellen Smth at that time – voted to deduct that mortgage payment from the annual school budget when the BOE refused to do that. Like it or not, the BOE does answer to City Council when push comes to shove concerning local school funding.
Andrew Howe says
Instead of just cutting the ‘spots’, has the school considered letting the teachers take a pay cut (probably)? If the teachers can’t accept a cut to a new salary that meets the budget, there may well be a LOT of people in our community capable of teaching who don’t require a ton of income.
I hope to be in that boat sometime soon. I could be in that boat next school term. I’m an MIT software engineer (MS .NET programmer). If you cut a programming teacher, ring me up.
No, I’m not teaching certified, but we can work out the details later.
Sam Hopwood says
But isn’t this the same BOE that just hired a new Super at a salary $43K higher than the previous Super?? I don’t recall them being concerned about school funds then. Did I miss that?
TJGgarland says
They spend $13,000 per student per year.
Average 25 kids per class- that’s $325,000 per classroom!
Teacher, rent, supplies, etc. could not be $100K per classroom.
The balance is adm and legacy costs, retirements with benefits.
Read Counterfeit Kids by Baird. Even our school system is being dumbed down.
Speaking for myself only.