Free Money!
According to the Enterprise, families in other towns value our Superintendent's curriculum, including ELA and Everyday Math.
So, in addition to running our schools, Dr. Johnson has devised a way to have roughly one half of her current salary paid by other towns over the past two years.
What do you do with an employee like that?
I know…. fire her.
20 comments:
This would be the very same School Choice program that Mrs. Marshal opposed implementing?
For those who so not recall prior years when school choice was up for discussion, it was considered many times. However, that was back several years ago, before our school enrollment began to decline. It was decided, no doubt rightfully so, that Sandwich Schools just did not have room for more students. School choice isn't rocket science, and I now wonder why during the past few years the school comm did not consider it. Sorry I have to post under anonymous, I don't have any of the other options available to me - but my name is Susan.
Anon 1:05 suggests that this decision wasn't Rocket Science - perhaps not; but while enrollments in Sandwich have been in decline for almost 10 years, choice wasn't implemented by anyone else.
Lets remember that our schools absorbed the full day K program with class space to spare. There are lots of empty seats and have been for some time now but nobody else saw it AND took action.
Why is every accomplishment diminished?
Why is every success denied and every failure magnified?
Answer: because the good accomplished far outweighs the bad unless you view the record with a predisposed bias.
Actually, Sherry seconded the motion to implement School Choice for FY '11. I'm not sure who supported it in FY '10 -- although it was a majority.
It was also discussed in FY '08 & FY '09 but the Committee yielded to Dr. Young's concern that potentially adding extra kids to the system while also beginning to restructure the curriculum would put an even larger burden on the teachers.
Funny Bob - extra students might create a teacher burden. Really?
Did Dr. Young say that with a straight face?
Was this the same Dr. Young who said our school budgets had to grow 6.5% a year just to deliver level services?
The Truth Maker had proposed School Choice during and before any one was even considering it. Many of those including Dr Young along with some members of the School Committee felt they did not want to bring some one elses problems here to Sandwich. Since it was finaly adopted all those fears, became a none issue.
I saw it, as we did not want to mix our children with what ever the other out of district children may bring here to Sandwich. Bad Influences?
Once again the forsite of Dr Johnson was able to prevale and now provides a cash flow in a positive manner to our School District. She some how managed to overcome this political process and now we find we have a positive School of Choice being touted here in Sandwich, that may very well go down the tubes , because of a few union led School Committee members that want to fins some way to get rid of someone they must account to.
I don't want to argue the point. However, about 11-12 years ago, we the taxpayers were asked to fund a 4th k-8 school. Ya know, pass an over ride to build it. The argument made was that the number of students, which was high at that time, was going to increase to "x" number. Obviously it failed to pass. It was the same year we voted to upgrade the high school. Yes, the high school needed a lot of work, but the other part of the arguement presented was that the school could not accommodate the increasing number of students.
My point is, that until recent years, no one wanted to consider School Choice. Fear of high numbers/classroom I guess. School Choice btw isn't as free wheeling as it may sounds. The school dept. can identify exactly what grade(s) have an available spot.
I took advantage of school choice for one of my kids. At that time I thought it best he go into a classroom with fewer kids. So off he went to another Town.
Another point of school choice I haven't heard talked about is the fact that once a school district accepts someone in, they have them as long as the parents want them to stay there. That is, if someone elects to go to another district for a grade 4 opening, that child can stay right up till grade 12.
Sometimes remembering the past, and how we all got here is good to remember.
Liz
Anon 4:15 p.m. brings to light a bit of interesting history. Town Meeting voted down building another k-8 just 11 or 12 years ago. In retrospect considering declining enrollement looks like it was a good decision.
I can see why School of Choice has only recently been initiated. Our schools have been over-crowed. Let's not forget we are still using portable classrooms in two of our K-8's.
But now that enrollement is clearly on the decline it makes sense to take this initiative. With the budget cuts the schools have endured and the future budget cuts projected it is a revenue builder.
However if the budget cuts reduce services and excellence in our schools, we won't have parents from other districts wanting to send their kids here. I would imagine given the inadequate opportunities at our High School School in areas of communication, the arts, etc, School of Choice families will opt out of our HS, so we may see a reduction down the road in school of choice. Clearly if the overall standards for services drops in our schools it will effect school of choise.
We are on a slippery slop right now.
If you are a non-Sandwich resident with school age children who has just watched a school committee meeting, what are the odds you will use school choice to send your kids to Sandwich?
Or .. anyone that reads the Cape Cod Times' usual cockeyed crap.
A better indicator is the number of Sandwich kids who LEAVE under School Choice. This number has been increasing dramatically over the past few years as the nonsense continues and more feathers fly.
Clarification for 5:03 post - If you go to the DOE website for Sandwich, you'll see that the number of school choice students going out to other districts declined this past year.
And, a 4th K-8 school building was never an issue at any town meeting. What was the issue was building an addition to the Oak Ridge and Forestdale schools. If that had happened, yes, there would have been extra space available at this point. Space we could rent out to the Collaborative and generate revenue. Space to accommodate more school choice students at $5K per student, including 100% of any SPED expenses. Not a bad payback.
Collaborative now has partnered with Challenger at Barnstables' Osterville Bay that was closed. The "renting to the Collaborative" ship has sailed.
Thanks Mrs. Winhecter. Someone needs to correct our Town Manager then about the out of school accessment. He has been reporting at the Board of Selectman three Override presentations that the accessment is still going up and has done so dramatically in the past seven years.
If the schools are left out of an override this year, it will be I think nearly impossible for the schools to get an override next year. Funding to the schools will be cut in the extreme. I can't imagine our "school of choice" income to continue to climb. The political upheaval in the schools alone, which of course is recognized Cape and state wide would seem to be a problem to parents being comfortable with sending their kids to our schools.
Another point about the irrational and irresponsible decisions by the current School Committee.
I just looked at the doe website (http://finance1.doe.mass.edu/schoice). In FY10, we sent 30.5 FTE out of district at a cost of $177,211 and received 15 FTE for revenue of $84,652. In FY09, we sent 36.6 FTE out of district at a cost of $208,664. In FY08, we sent 28.3 FTE out of district at a cost of $169,790. In FY07, we sent 13 FTE out of district at a cost of $65,150. In FY06, we sent 7.6 FTE out of district at a cost of $40,677. So, it is true that we actually had a decrease in FY10.
Does anyone know how the sending and receiving tuition money flows to and from Sandwich? I found information on the DOE website (http://finance1.doe.mass.edu/schoice/choicead.html ), but it is dated February 2004. It states the following:
“School choice tuition charges are assessed against sending districts, and paid to receiving districts, in December, March, and June. Payments are handled automatically through adjustments to the quarterly local aid distributions. Tuition assessments are deducted from the distribution, and tuition revenues are added to the distribution. For choice students living in towns that belong to one or more regional school districts, the choice tuition is assessed to the district in which the student would otherwise be attending public school.”
My read of this would mean that in FY10, the school choice 'cost' to the town would have been reduced to $92,559 ($177,211 (sent) - $84,652 (received)). If this all shows up on the cherry sheets that would have been a substantial cost reduction. I think I have heard Bud say that the received money goes straight to the school, but I cannot find anything on the DOE site to support that. Anybody know the answer?
Bud also say that we are at assessement of over $800,000 that the town has to pay. Can the SC provide clarity on this issue or can Fin Com?
oppps ! I did speak in error! Sorry. It was an over ride to add on to Oakridge and Forestdale. I think I spliced, in my mind, some comments that were made by a selectmen (actually a woman) when the over ride failed. Wish I could recall her name. Anyhow I do remember her commenting on the lack of availalble land for a new k-8. She was talking about a possible issue in the future. Sorry - my mistake.
liz
The cherry sheets can be found on the DOR website under the tab for Local Officials.
For FY09, we were assessed $169,790 for school choice sending tuition and $750,809 for charter school sending tuition for a total of $920,599. However, we received $357,451 in charter school tuition reimbursement for a net of $563,148.
In FY10, it was $208,664 for school choice and $588,923 for charter schools sending tuition for a total of $797,587. We received $136,770 in charter school tuition reimbursement for a net of $660,817.
For FY11, it was $182,211 for school choice and $631,103 for charter schools for a total of $813,314. We received $173,680 in charter school tuition reimbursement AND $84,652 in school choice receiving tuition for a net of $554,982.
It really depends on where the money goes. If the tuition reimbursement and school choice receiving tuition go directly to the schools, then for Bud's budgeting purposes, the assessment is in the $800,000 range. If these amounts go to the general fund, then it would make sense to use the net amounts which are closer to $600,000.
Bob, do you know how this works? If it goes to the schools, how do they account for this revenue?
Lots of numbers -- we need a chart.
Charter School Sending & Receiving tuitions both go to/from the Town's general fund.
School Choice Sending Tuition is paid by the Town and School Choice Receiving Tuition is received by the Schools.
That's not consistent --- BUT, conversely, SPED Medicare expenses are paid out of the School Budget but refunded to the Town's General Fund. SPED Medicare is a much bigger number.
(The Commonwealth is not big on consistency.)
BUT -- Even though Town Meeting only votes the portion of the budget funded by direct tax dollars, I think the next school budget book should show a summary of all sources of revenue and all expenses -- it's definitely gotten better .... but it ain't there yet.
Okay, if we exclude the medicare issue, then it would be more accurate for Bud to say that the assessment paid out of the general fund is closer to $600,000 than $800,000 right?
Assessed* Reimburse** Net
FY09 920,599 357,451 563,148
FY10 797,587 136,770 660,817
FY11 813,314 173,680 639,634
*Charter Tuition and School Choice Sending
*Charter Tuition Reimbursement only
Like my chart? :)
Yes. If anyone is going to state the total assessment, he/she should also state the corresponding reimbursement.
I think I saw the discussion in question -- Bud was only referring to the rapid rise in the assessment because more kids were choosing to go elsewhere. I don't think he was inaccurate -- when his comments are seen in context.
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