A Teacher’s View:

Cuts from the top can help balance school budgets

Thursday, Nov. 6, 2008 | midnight

Rene Hill

As the state budget crunch continues, schools are seriously impacted by cuts. Teachers all over the Clark County School District have been called into meetings at their schools and asked to recommend what should be cut at the school level.

The problem is that there is nothing left to cut. Any further school-based cuts would seriously affect student education, and Nevada can't afford the long-term results. There are, however, cuts that can be made within the Clark County School District that won't affect the quality of student achievement.

The one area that has not been seriously scrutinized is upper district personnel. We are now divided into six regions run by a regional superintendent and two assistants. Add to this the administrative and secretarial support, as well as the buildings in which all this is housed.

While the School District claims the savings in eliminating this would be small compared with other areas, they are a cost that could be saved, and we have to begin somewhere. The savings will begin to add up.

Another area of concern is in the duplication of services among school site, region and district level personnel. An example of this duplication is in English Language Learner services. There are specialists on each campus, as well as several positions in each region, as well as the central district office.

Again, upon close scrutiny, there are several positions that could be consolidated or eliminated.

If parents speak out and insist the Clark County School District look at ways to cut the fat on the district level and stop taking away what little resources the schools have saved, officials will have to listen.

We are in a position of having to work harder and smarter with what we have left. The teachers have been working hard at that this year, with no new textbooks and little copy paper and office supplies. Teaching positions are being frozen and left unfilled.

We are doing all that we can but are trying desperately to keep up the quality of education for our students. We are all in the position of making difficult choices, and parents have the power to guide those choices.

René Hill is a special education and former English teacher in the Clark County School District. She can be reached c/o The News, 2360 Corporate Circle, Third Floor, Henderson, NV 89074 or editor@hbcpub.com.

Discussion: 4 comments so far…

By CCSDTeacher

11/6/08 at 7:54 a.m.

Suggest removal

CCSD will NEVER cut from the top. Uncle Walt and his cronies would NEVER accept that proviso. So the cuts will continue to be made at the local school level where teachers, students, and their parents will continue to moan and groan, but their whimpering will NEVER reach the ears of the administration because they do NOT wish to hear them. In fact most administrators have been taught by the upper echelon to ignore such cries. And if you think the current -- and the newly elected --- school board members will also listen to those same cries, you are sadly mistaken. You voters had a chance to make those cries heard, but you decided to vote for a dental worker, a soccer mom who can't spell, an entrenched CCSD upper echelon administrator, and the wife of a weatherman, You get what you voted for, and at this point it won't be much.
By azsk8fan

11/6/08 at 8:21 a.m.

Suggest removal

What a novel idea (snark) to cut from the top for a change - cut the fat cats who do the least and get paid the most. I've always contended that the higher up you go the less you do and the more you make for not doing it.

It was the same in the grocery business - when business was slow the stores knee-jerk reaction was always first to 'cut payroll'.....ya, that'll help bring in more customers - less help in the deli = longer waiting to get served....and longer waiting in line to check out - oh sure, that'll help drive in the customers.....when business is slow the LAST place you want to cut is at the store level where the customers are the MOST affected.....trim from the top down - the customers will never know the difference....and if we don't keep them waiting any longer than necessary maybe they'll keep coming back.....
By bruno

11/6/08 at 4:07 p.m.

Suggest removal

I say if portable classrooms are good enough for the children, then they are certainly good enough for the administration! Sell the palace on Sahara and move the personell to portable units on the playgrounds of schools!!
By CCSDTeacher

11/7/08 at 8:07 a.m.

Suggest removal

The bottom line is that some things need to be cut.

1. Administrative costs. In every elementary school school there should be ONE administrator. There's no need for more than that. In a middle school 2 administrators. No need for one principal and 2 or 3 assistants. The same thing for high schools. No deans. Let the principal and the assistant take care of discipline problems. Now Rulffes and his administrator association won't buy into this, but the school board needs to implement this cost-saving plan. CCSD and UNLV can set up programs for interns to come in and assist administrators. This will be a free program for CCSD and UNLV can charge the interns for this opportunity to work in CCSD schools.

2. ALL high school sports should be "pay as you play." Sorry, folks this has to be done. No freebies! The Boys and Girls Clubs/YMCA/YWCA can handle this implementation.

3. Any church or any other civic group that wants to rent space on the weekend for such activities -- the fee has just been tripled.

4. Summer school courses will now be accessed at $200.00 for each semester course. Again, no freebies!

5. Adult education classes will be accessed at the same rate as summer courses -- $200.00 a semester course. Tell students that they need to apply themselves when the courses are "free." It's going to be expensive when students drop-out. Tell them now.

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