Election years are generally all about taxes and the budget. Mayor Bill Finch has submitted a $532 million no-tax-increase spending plan to the City Council. Is enough being done to fully fund city schools? Superintendent of Schools Fran Rabinowitz addressed the council on Wednesday.
From Brian Lockhart, CT Post:
And while Rabinowitz and others Wednesday directed their criticism at the state for failing to meet its obligations to properly fund education, the pending MBR deal with Finch is not without its foes.
“This whole thing is just a big charade,” Howard Gardner, a school board member who is among a growing slate of candidates looking to challenge Finch in September’s Democratic primary, said in an interview. “It’s a farce and image building. I’m sad to see the superintendent … basically playing the game with the administration.”
Under a draft memorandum before the Board of Education, the city would give the schools an additional $3.8 million, but $2.3 million of that would be earmarked to reimburse the city for costs associated with crossing guards, snow plowing and other items. So in reality, the administration is only increasing the school budget by $1.5 million.
Full story here.
Before the City Council meeting on Monday April 20 I had a brief conversation with Council member James Holloway. Aside from being the longest-serving Council member (and his employment by the City), another claim to fame is his service to the School Building Committee (SBC) as its Chair.
That same SBC has planned, executed and provided monitoring for multiple schools during the Finch years to the tune of hundreds of millions of State and City funds. SO the SBC decisions and actions have practical and financial implications for residents and taxpayers (and their only representatives, the other 19 Council members).
So I asked Mr. Holloway how he communicates the various actions, decisions and contemplations of the SBC to fellow Council members. Thoughtfully he responded that last year he asked Construction Management Services, the private project manager, to communicate monthly to Council members. I asked if he had received such reports and he indicated that it was not necessary because he was at the meetings. I mentioned that it would have told him that CMS took his request to heart.
Subsequently I asked two Council members whether they get this info and they said no. Such large amounts of Capital budget and bonded money is processed by the SBC and perhaps the only thing they know is when a shovel goes in the ground or when there is a school opening. Does this make sense to anyone? Time will tell.
Schools are impacted by capital budgets and bonding certainly, because if schools are not sized properly for the student population or for changing technology and learning practices, or are too old for safety or security, then the students lose out.
But when operating budgets for education are not increasing through local support in a meaningful manner as well as targeted to public priorities, what goes on in the school building, new or old, is compromised. And when Capital Budgets presented on one page are exploding to $42 Million from $27 Million while controversy on the City operating budget consumes nearly 350 pages for City-side spending of $280 Million, you begin to ask why is there not more support for the activity in the school building? Time will tell.
*** It’s time for Bpt public schools to have their own “independent” from the city, “transparent” State Budget and be “accountable” for it! Along with three state-appointed school board members who sit with the city-elected BOE members. With only certain in-house services maintained by the city of Bpt. ***