BOE Budget Meeting

The Hour opens with this:

Fewer than 40 people attended the first public presentation of the 2009-10 school budget Tuesday evening, despite the Board of Education moving the meeting to Norwalk Concert Hall to accommodate the expected crowd.

Um, just because you you move the meeting to a larger room, but still tell no one about it ….

Really, I follow BOE stuff. I missed the meeting. I’ve sent so many emails to various people employed by the Norwalk Public Schools on a cornucopia of issues to get nary a response. As far as I can determine the entire Norwalk Public School system operates on a need to know basis.  And that is the reason for poor attendance of their meetings. Techers, btw, respond promptly and helpfully. It’s the administrative set that I’m dismayed with. But onto the subtance:

While each speaker made a point of acknowledging the difficult financial times and frequently thanked the members of the school board for their efforts on behalf of the community, each speaker presented a case for maintaining, if not expanding, their budget requests.

Though the largest and most well-organized group included the parents, teachers and administrators from Nathan Hale Middle School, Dr. Lynn Moore, spoke on behalf of West Rocks Middle School.

Moore, West Rocks principal, underscored the needs of her school. She also spotlighted a portion of Nathan Hale’s proposal that suggests redistricting, a point Moore has challenged at previous school board meetings.

Among the strongest speakers of the evening was Bruce Mellion, president of Norwalk’s teachers union. Paging through the draft budget, Mellion stopped frequently and read proposed changes.

“Where is the data?” he asked repeatedly, challenging many of the cuts that
he said were suggested without sufficient information to justify the choices.

After an hour of comments, the last speaker approached the microphone.

“What kind of education do we want for our kids?” he asked.

He stressed the need to cooperate and identify “innovative” solutions to preserve the quality of the schools and support progress.

The next meeting is scheduled for 7:45 tonight at Norwalk City Hall.

Will more people show up?

source: The Hour, Norwalk Board of Ed opens budget hearing series, By JOAN GAYLORD 01/06/2009

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  • DistressedParent

    I was one of the few folks in the audience and stayed until the meeting was cut short due to the inclement weather. I was curious to see that this first meeting began with Public Comments (which lasted 1 hour) and then launched into Dr. Corda’s presentation. Who knew what to comment on? That’s what I was amazed about.

    I had called our principal earlier in the day to see if there were any particular concerns – everyone knows it’s a really tough year, there were a few things to keep an ear out for, but nothing earth shattering, given the environment.

    Imagine my surprise, then, as I’m listening to the presentation and learn that our school will be losing 1/2 an assistant principal. How is it that the principal didn’t say anything about that? It wasn’t a concern? So I called today and imagine my surprise when I was the one delivering the news!! The principal wasn’t aware of the cut!

    Wow. I don’t know what to think. Neither does the principal. In addition to a “need to know” environment, there also seems to be a “need to know, but not going to tell you anyway” vibe going on. So much for tackling the communication issue in the district.

  • NO EXCUSES

    Whatever your doing this evening, do something meaningfull. Show you care about our children and their future. Pick up the phone, call your neighbors, call your relatives, car pool but do not sit home and make excuses. STAND UP, SHOW UP, BE HEARD. You are an AMERICAN. Do your duty. Pack the house tonight and demonstrate YOU CARE, WE CARE. Advocate for your children. GIVE A KID A CHANCE. GET INVOLVED. Your childrens future are in your hands. What has priorty over that.
    No Excuses! Teachers, Parents, Students, Admistrators and employees speak now. Silence is compliant acceptance. Stand Tall, Stand for the children.

  • Lifelong Teacher

    Dear Distressed: How could your principal not know this essential information? The proposed budget has been posted since before the holidays, and it’s no secret that the APs were a huge target.

  • anon

    Distressed,
    I will echo Lifelong Teacher’s comment, as I sit here with mouth agape. This principal you speak of is the very reason why we need to cut two administrators back to one. At your school, apparently one of them sleeps as the other one drives. I wouldn’t be so quick to embrace the idea of VP’s when instructional aides hang in the balance.

  • anon432

    Life Long is right. It was even posted here on this site. #2 is there a meeting tonight?

  • Lifelong Teacher

    It even included which 4 schools were being cut down to 1/2 an AP. How could (s)he not know this?

  • anon

    They don’t know because, they don’t live in town and they don’t care.All the APs should be cut.

  • Webby

    But has anyone but me looked at the enrollment for WR this year and next year, while we are paying for 2 APs at that school? Between 2000 and 2004 the school’s population ranged from 720 to 772 yet during this time, the school functioned with one AP. In 2005-2006 the school’s population peaked at just over 800. I could see with such high numbers that extra administrative help may have been necessary, pending available funds. But since that time the school’s enrollment has continued to drop. It is currently 708, the lowest it’s been in years and next year’s projection is down to 674. Understand, when the school population was higher in 2000-2004 the school had just one AP. The projections for next year were presented at the BOE meeting last night, showing WR with less than 100 students more than NHMS yet they get 2 APs and a dance teacher (yes, that’s right, a dance teacher) yet at NHMS they are trying to say the job can be done if we have an 8 person team where all of us teach 2 grade levels and some teach two grade levels and 2 subjects, either math/science, social studies/language arts, or math/language arts because there is not enough money to fund a full 5 person team. Yes there is enough money if you cut the dance teacher and the 2nd AP from the WR staff. There’s your salaries for the 5 extra teachers without spending more money. Their numbers are going down while our numbers at Nathan hale are going up and yet they get the extra (and unnecessary) staffing! There is absolutely no way to justify this inequity. It’s totally unfair. Is anyne else paying attention to these numbers? BOE …are you listening?

  • Anonymous

    Number 8 your attacking Lynn… be careful she always gets what she wants… maybe she should run all the schools…

  • Norwalker

    Webby, Your right on with your analysis. They should cut one of the AP’s at WRMS. What about Ponus? You gave a great speech last night.

  • Anonymous

    Who was there to hear it? in a school over nearly 700, i would guess less than 40 families were represented. Thats awlful leadership by the PTSO. The should do more. There president is lacking. The PTSO is no help to a needy group of parents, students and staff members.

  • Webby

    I am not attacking anyone. I just think all schools should be staffed in a fair and equitable way. The numbers at West Rocks do not show the need for a 2nd AP and 15 related arts teachers. I have Dr. Corda’s presentation in front of me as I type this. Their projected enrollment for next year is 672 students, the lowest it has been in many , many years. Remember, I taught there for 32 years so I absolutely know, first hand, what their numbers have been in the past. In 2003-2004, West Rocks population was 772 students and Tony Romano was the only AP at the school. This is exactly 100 kids more than the projection for next year, yet now with it’s lowest enrollment in at least 9 years they are scheduled to get 2 APs again next year. WR also did not have an addition related arts teacher, a dance teacher, that year. I know. I was there. Now, according to Dr. Corda’s figures in last night’s report, the projected enrollment at WR is down to 672 students next year. If the ELL kids that are in the Nathan Hale district, currently attending WR, are returned to our school, West Rocks’ numbers will be even less while Nathan Hale will continue to grow from the projected 574, closing that gap to even less than 98 kids. Yet Nathan Hale will have 43.75 teachers compared to WR’s 48.2. NH’s class size will be pushing 28 across the board (some even higher) while WR’s class size will be in the low 20s. West Rocks student’s will continue to reap the benefits of a cohesive 5 person team in all grade levels while Nathan Hale will be forced to schedule their 160 kids on their 8 person 7th-8th grade team covering classes like a high school, with none of the benefits of teaming, no matter what label you put on it. Ponus Ridge will have the highest emrollment according to the projections, with 705 kids and yet they will have 43.3 teachers on their staff (just about the same as NH), 4.5 less than WR. Does that sound fair to you? I can’t understand why the Ponus parents aren’t complaining, unless like so many, they just do not realize what is going on with the staffing. All of this is included in The Superintendent’s Operating Budget Request 2009-2010, part of which was presented at last night’s meeting. But unless, like me, you actually have a copy to analyze, it would be hard to catch all this information. It is a pubic document so anyone has a right to see it and I encourage you to check it out.
    I am totally coming from a position of fairness, for the staff, for tax payer’s but especially for the kids.

    #9 – You referred to me as “#8″. My name is Joanie Webster, but most call me Webby. I am not sure if your message is a warning or a threat but either way, I have never been one to back down from what is right, and I am not about to start now.

  • anonymous

    Let’s hope the BOE is listening – the assistant superintendent wasn’t. He was too busy talking with a couple of other people who think they run the schools. They were probably busy planning their attack for tonight. It was all well and good when Lynn Moore was organized last year but she doesn’t like to see someone else having support show up at a meeting, especially when it makes someone she hates look good. Being the “good Christian” she claims to be, someone should remind her that harboring that kind of hatred is really not what Jesus would do.

  • Anon…

    This will be looked upon next year as a fat budget compared to what will be coming down the pike for 2010-2011–Any bets that by that time Corda, Moore, Sumpter, and possibly McCain will all be bye-bye? New contracts and benefit packages for teachers–it won’t be pretty. Enjoy the last fling–it could be years before the system has the funding it will need to stay afloat. Sorry to sound so pessimistic, but like they say,”it is what it is” with this near Depression economic environment–Next year’s state deficit–projected 8 BILLION–anybody want to guess Norwalk’s end of that?

  • anonymous

    Why do you think they will all be gone? Obviously Corda will – he has no choice but I don’t understand the rest of them.

  • Anon…

    Think of it like “old” rats fleeing a sinking ship…….

  • anonymous

    McCain hasn’t been here that long and his specific ship isn’t one of those sinking. And I think the others have too much control to flee. Unless the tide turns.

  • anon432

    They were the rats who chewed the holes in the ship.

  • Anon…

    Like Bob Dylan said so many years ago….”the times they are a’ changing”–You are absolutely right anon#432–and as far as McCain is concerned–he is much too talented to stick around for this fiasco to unfold. There are much better systems to ply his trade–and you can bet it will be at the superintendent level. The others should have left years ago, but they get PAID SO WELL–why leave? There are others not mentioned here…but “those in the know” know of whom we speak. Hey, Bruce Mellion—time to get off this ship? Or do we still have some windmills to conquer?

  • Anonymous

    Norwalk is unlike so many other communities. It is a place where there is still such a mixture within its population, unlike the populations of the true inner-city communities in our state. Yet, the Norwalk BOE is so incredibly dumbass and cowardly that it does great harm to the community. Questions:

    1) Why are the BOE and the superintendent afraid of any of the principals?
    2) Why is there an inequitable distribution of staff? Examples include the number of administrators at WRMS, the dance teacher at that school, the assistant principals at the smaller elementary schools, the staffing at NHS and BMHS, and probably more.
    3) Why did the BOE not give a PROVEN administrator the job of assistant superintendent?

    The hour is late and so I’ll stop with those few questions. However, there are more.