There are a few inviolate rules in life.
- Water will always follow the path of least resistance.
- Machines will die the week AFTER the warranty expires.
- You can't spend what you don't have.
- You can fool some of the people all of the time an all of the people some of the time.
- Covering your eyes will not make something go away -- nor will it make you invisible.
Unfortunately, almost all of them came into play in the demise of the Sandwich Community School.
The decision to suspend Community School operations - except for the self-supporting Early Childhood and Daycare programs -- is hardly a surprise. It's unfortunate and could have been avoided if the situation had been realistically dealt with when the issue arose several years ago.
This discussion has been going on since June of 2006. I'm not going to re-hash the gory details -- this blog is loaded with them and many original source documents are available by clicking here,
The Community School had many excellent programs and was certainly an asset to Sandwich and the whole region. But it was an asset that should have been funded by its users -- or by a separate Town Meeting Budget appropriation. It should never have been subsidized with tax dollars siphoned out of the School Budget. Those tax dollars were intended to fund the K-12 education costs of Sandwich students -- not subsidize the entertainment expenses of folks from across the region.
Even worse than the diversion of those funds was the absolute refusal to recognize that it was being done.
In follow-up to the discussion about the District "lending" money to the Community School to cover bills -- the School Committee has always been liable for all Community School bills. All outstanding liabilities will get paid (apparently well in excess of $100,000 this year) --- and it will be coming out of the K-12 budget.
Do you think that's the historical tradition Kangas wants so badly to preserve?
Broadsider: Sandwich Community School program comes to halt on May 1
27 comments:
The real shame of all of this Community School nonsense is that it did not have to be.
The records Bob has attached to this web article, the meeting minutes, and audit reports, etc, highlight that there had been a real, sincere effort to “save” the Community School and to reorganize its finances.
Unfortunately, so-called Community School supporters and friends blocked every effort that would have or could have brought the Community Schools’ finances back in order and actually preserved the school.
Community School friends like Mrs Crossman, Mrs Kangas, Mrs Linehan, and Mrs Marshal actually ensured the schools demise by fighting all real reform and continually advocating for the status quo.
Unable to understand and appreciate the economic realities and dire financial circumstances the Community School faced, friends like Mrs Crossman, Mrs Kangas, Mrs Linehan, and Mrs Marshal doomed the school by their very efforts to protect it. Too bad.
It’s interesting that Mrs. Kangas is quoted in today’s Cape Cod Times as saying that the schools got rid of a piece of history. Mrs. Kangas’ kind of thinking seems to be our problem here in Sandwich. Everyone confuses old, poorly maintained and failing with historic. In Sandwich, historic is really a code word for let’s keep it no matter what it costs. Think Dewey Ave or the Wing School.
I’ve noticed that most folks who utter the words it’s historic let’s keep it, like Mrs. Kangas, never seem to follow up with their words with a thought about how we can pay for what they want us to keep.
BULL SHIT.THE MONEY MAKING PROGRAMS WERE TAKEN AWAY BY DR.J AND SIMMONS AND COMPANY
The last post calling – Bull bleep is best left unsigned because it’s an uninformed, misstatement of fact at best and a blatant lie at worst.
I double, double, triple dare someone to put their name next to a post that says the Community School made money ever!
Go on the record and defend that claim. Go ahead – make my day!
To our 7AM friend --- if you could read, you would see in the auditor's report that the program lost $180,000 the year BEFORE it was taken away from your/your friend's/your mother's control.
say good night mrs kangas. bullet vote rausch for school committee. enough of this crap.
The Truth Maker would agree with brother Bob in the matter of the community school. Those in charge of the policy that allowed district funds to be used to uplift a self funded operation to keep it alive, can bear the responsibitly, for its demise.
Going back into history on these long time problems,it is clear that the oversite was missing from the picture on how the community school actually made any money at all.
In some cases, district funds were a piggy bank for those that found some way to keep the community school operating. Those who served on controlling these decisions, have only themselves to blame, for having a blind eye to reality.
Had the community school in the beginning, made the town responsible for the maintence and scheduling of the pool, perhaps we may not have had to wait this long to find out that not spending dollars for upkeep and just taking the publics money to use it would have the results it now has caused the whole education system here in the town of Sandwich?
This problem with in the community school has long ties to its first director, that was allowed to grow and manifest itself to a point where the lack of control and oversite was lost in the smoke screen of those defending the undefensable, by taking district educational dollars to give the community school an appearance it was making a profit, when it was not.
Perhaps now, if and when it is restructured, we can all learn from the pitfalls that allowed the demise of what should be a benifit to the whole community, to find its place once again in our town.
This did not need to happen, but it did and holding blame will not make it come back. When it is restructured where this community school is self supporting, like it should be and have a responsible oversite committee, perhaps it can serve our community once again.
The problems of the community school , should never ever be paid for by public educational tax dollars again, under any circumstance. If they are to remain as part of the high school buildings all related costs must be born by the commuinty school in cash money and not in side deals like in the past.
At least Crossman was smart enough to shut-up when the reporter called.
She was on the old council that ran the school and she was a paid employee of the community school --- big surprise she voted against closing it.
i cant believe only 1 person is running against these 2 fools.
Ms. Crossman wrote a lengthy post on Susan Sundemeyer school committee facebook page.
I couldn't even begin to count the number of activities my 20 something has participated in at the Community School since she was a toddler. It is sad that it was allowed to run into bankruptcy at the expense of our childrens' education. It is a loss for the entire local area.
"lengthy" should never be confused with "accurate"
I agree with the poster that said the very people who proclaimed protecting the community school were most responsible for it failing. It has been a game of cover up for years. Ridiculous to think that the School Committee or the Superintendent on duty at the time of the audit are responsible. The CS is an excellent example of cottage industry that springs through government. Look at the salaries of the co-directors prior to Mr Kennedy. The mission is noble but the management has been a nightmare for decades. Thank goodness the SC finally looked at how the overhead for the CS was effecting the bottom line for education funding. You could see this coming a mile away. MK says the town should have bailed it out. Doesn't she get that it would just mean that bail out money wouldn't get to the schools. Why was NC allowed to vote since she is an employee of the CS?
CAPS QUEEN, IF YOU WANT TO.PROVIDE ANY DETAILS OR PROOF, I'D BE GLAD TO ADD YOUR POST. I ASSUME YOU/YOUR MOTHER/YOUR FRIEND HAVE SOME ACTUAL FACTS TO SUPPORT YOUR VAGUE GENERALISATIONS?
There really isn’t any mystery to “fixing” the Community School.
Either you set class prices to equal your expenses (Note: you have to know your expenses) or you use school budget dollars to cover your losses or you use municipal budget dollars to cover your losses.
I am still wondering why the first option is so so difficult to manage.
Bingo!
Give an honest report of all of the costs and let voters or program users decide if they want to pay them. Don't hide costs by mixing them into other school budget lines.
The Truth Maker along with Brothers BOBS have been asking that very question for a very long time now. I began asking that question upon reviewing the annual budgets going back to Mr. McFadden, when he was the Business manager for the school. he was a very open man in the regards of financial records, as such, he had undo pressure applied from outside sources that he had no controll over.
Some fancy bookkeeping, was the practice of the day in regards to the community school and it appears nothing has changed in why the public sector of our educational dollars were being used to prop up a negative cash flow in that enterprize account.
Those of us that spent the time investigating this obvious oversight would attributed to the way business was done by the committee that controlled the community school. Trade offs, rather then cash was the mantra of doing business. Now we see the results of this thinking in operating what was supposed to be a self supporting account
Manipulating or attempting to manipulate the tax payer and the public is what government is best at. In Sandwich with the Community School we have a great example of how that old political practice simply does not work anymore. Accountability is also a football in government and politics in Sandwich. Leadership is rather a moot point in a broken system. The School Committee has finally done the right thing. Mrs. Kangas is an agenda driven so called politician. Ridiculous comment and good point Bob about the "history" she wants to hold on to. Her words are meaningless and self serving in this situation.
Lets stop the Insanity that this town has had to deal with far too long and vote Marie "I got nuttin" Kangas the hell off the school committee!!!
WHY IS IT THOSE WHO TAKE THE OPPOSITE POINT OF VIEW MUST HAVE PROOF AND THOSE THAT AGREE WITH YOU DON'T. YOUR UNBELIEVABLE
I saw a repeat of last weeks meeting -- i can not believe the pointless comments that passed as deliberation -- both on the school lunch and community school issue.
Kangas was an absolute moron on both issues -- clueless and obnoxious.
Catalini was way-off base on the food service discussion -- he was trying to dictate what the new operator would be paying former town employees who chose to apply to the new operator. somebody missed the point of privatization!
11:34, I have documented what I said. Have you read any of the documents referenced here?
As much as I enjoy the illiterate ramblings of an "anonymous" troll, If you want to prove me wrong, provide some evidence -- or at least some specifics. As close as you are to this situation, I assume you must have some sort of
documentation ?
5:59
You are absolutely right. If you review the records you will see that the the years that Dr. Johnson oversaw the Community School:
1. the Community School ended each year with a positive cash flow.
2. Facilities Use went into a revolving account for the School District Facilities' Use as required by law; not to prop up the Community School.
3. The Community School paid the school district for its share of the cost of operating the pool as it should for 2 years; the third year the Community School was told by Crossman and Marshall they did not have to pay their share of facilities for the pool.
4. Mrs Crossman, Mrs Kangas, Mrs Linehan, and Mrs Marshal doomed the community school and the Superintendent, Dr Johnson who helped the Community School survive without using school district funds during the worst financial times since the Great Depression. This doesn't make a bit of sense but the facts are there to support these statements.
Where does one get the Profit/Loss statements for other years. Before 7/8 and after 09
TO 10:21
Than why does Bob's info reflect differantly.
10:21 -- a couple of clarifications.
During most of the Johnson era, Facility use income was re-directed from the Community School back to the School District -- as required by law.
There was an effort to temporarily shore up the Community School by letting them keep Drivers Ed rental income -- But, the Community School was still not profitable.
During the final year, the Community School did stop paying moist of its share of pool expenses.
In a further effort to shore up the Community School, the Canfield administration absorbed more of the Community School costs and let them keep more Facilities Use revenue.
Now that things are unraveling, the Facilities use Revenue is being shifted back to the District where it legally belongs.
The Truth Maker would ask the host of this blog a serious question in regards to the operation of the pool.
Given that the pool is now in a state of serious repairs to become funtional again and the community school is bankrupt, some serious consideration must be given to who shall be in charge of the pool once it is repaired and operational once again.
My Vote goes to the town side of government, under the direction of the recreational department. Keep the community school and the school district from having any management control at all in the operational and maintence aspects of this town resource.
We need to establish that this is a town issue and not a school issue and the town should be the one to find the solutions to keep it running like a clock.
The school would have the use during the school hours only and all other water related use would be under the recreational departments leadership.
This alone would prevent similar programs being offered ,a single booking offering, that is well thought out and that is put in place to show a profit on every outside use that does not include the childdren attending our schools who may use it during the school day.
This can be done and it should be done, if the district school system is to survive into the future.
Town control and responsability of a town wide resource is paramount to holding those accountable where it should be on the board of selectmen and not the Sandwich School District
Hopefully the pool can be saved but it has to be sustainable. Frankly operations cost for the pool need to be weighed in terms of priorities. The town has one and 1/2 people running an active and vital recreation department. They run programs that pay for themselves so as to have offerings. The question is can the pool pay for itself. At this point with the subsidized operations we already have in town, don't think it is possible or prudent to take on another. I think contracting out the operation may make the most sense. The sentimental issues are important but it has to pay for itself within reason.
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