COVENTRY – The impact of the governor’s proposed state aid cuts, the ever-increasing demands of unfunded mandates and fears of consolidation topped the list of concerns local school leaders shared with elected officials Saturday at a Legislative Breakfast co-sponsored by DCMO BOCES and the Chenango County School Board Association.
The event, held annually at The Silo Restaurant in Coventry, drew administrators and school board members from each of Chenango County’s nine school systems and others throughout the DCMO BOCES district. There to hear their concerns were Senator Tom Libous, Senator James Seward, Assemblyman Cliff Crouch, Assemblyman Gary Finch and a representative from Assemblyman Pete Lopez’ office.
“You are our voices and you are the voices for our kids,” said presenter Judy Breese, a member of Walton’s board of education, as she called on the legislators in attendance to communicate their concerns to Albany.
Governor Paterson’s executive budget proposal, which would cut aid to Walton schools by $640,000, was of primary concern for Breese.
“I have struggled to make sense of numbers like these,” she said, expressing her concerns about how program cuts would affect not only at risk, special education and gifted students, but the entire student population. “These cuts are going to affect all of our students across the spectrum.”
Breese pointed out that schools are already using the cost cutting measures being recommended by the state’s comptroller’s office, such as sharing services and collaborative purchasing. As a result, she said, it will be more than difficult for schools to realize enough savings to make up for the loss of such a substantial amount of aid.
“It is a lose-lose environment if the proposed cuts are made,” Breese reported.
Adding to the challenges faced by New York Schools are the number of unfunded mandates handed down by the state, which school leaders say prevent them from being more efficient.
“There are nearly 100 unfunded state mandates that a school must adhere to,” explained Sidney School Board member Kerri Insinga-Green. “That is hundreds of thousands of dollars and countless hours of reporting, re-reporting and follow up.”
That time, she told legislators, would be better spent focusing on students.
“The Governor came out with his proposed budget and there were a few mandate reliefs laid out,” she reported, including reforming procurement practices, exempting schools from the WICKS Law, authorizing regional student transportation and allowing districts to access accrued liability reserve funds. While these measures would be a start, Green said, “These are small fixes to a much larger problem.”
The state’s recommendations for consolidation of districts with enrollment under 1,000 is of concern for small, rural districts like Franklin, according to Linda DeAndrea, a member of the district’s board of education.
“Closing small public schools are not the solution,” she said, describing the proposal as contrary to the increased emphasis on “smaller learning centers” and charter schools.
As an alternative, DeAndrea proposed exploring distance learning opportunities as a way of “lowering the cost of delivering” education.
Following the board members’ presentations, each of the elected officials had the chance to weigh in. Each used the opportunity to pledge their support in advocating for restoration of school aid in the budget, as well as pushing for mandate reforms.