NORWICH – Even as the Norwich City School District Board of Education continues to focus on three key areas – students, academics and finance – its members urged those in attendance to get involved politically, as the deadline for a state budget approaches.
And while last night’s discussion item agenda kicked off on an entertaining note with a special performance by the middle school’s junior musical students, it ended on a sober one, as Deputy Superintendent Robert Wightman detailed the economic disparities facing poorer school districts across the state.
Approximately half of the 65-student cast of “Alice in Wonderland, Jr.” were on hand to perform a pair of songs from the recent production. For the first time, said Middle School music educator and director Jamie Carrier, third, fourth and fifth graders joined middle school students for the play, which she called “a great team-building event.”
According to NMS student Kaitlyn Jackson, the production was an “excellent experience” for all involved, and one that gave each and every student a chance to build their self-confidence. The middle school’s junior production has grown over the past three years, she added, with 30 students participating in 2009’s “Annie Jr.,” 47 students in 2010’s “Mulan Jr.” and 65 students this year.
The school’s 2012 production will be announced in May.
Following the students’ performance of “Very Good Advice” and “Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah,” NCSD Director of Special Programs Katherine McKeever gave a short presentation on the district’s special education and – more specifically – its autism programs at Stanford Gibson and Perry Browne. According to special education teacher Wanda Wallace, the program has been vital to the success of the district’s autistic students. Its primary goal, she said, is to arm these special needs students with the tools they need to succeed in life.
According to a pair of parents with children enrolled in the program, autistic students have an opportunity to expand their education in math, reading and – most importantly – their social skills.
Financially, however, the district is facing enormous challenges, said Deputy Superintendent Wightman, who presented the board and those in attendance with what he called “a tale of two districts.”
The Norwich City School District, when compared with a wealthier district such as Syosset, in Nassau County – which saw a nearly identical cut in state aid – is a perfect example of a system that is not working for school districts with greater needs, said Wightman. Both districts saw cuts of around $2.5 million in state aid for the 2011-2012 school year, yet those cuts affect each in vastly different ways. It’s that disparity, he added, that needs to be addressed in Albany.
“This is not an upstate, downstate issue ... it’s about funding disparities between districts. We’re not asking for more money, we’re asking for a more equitable distribution ... a fair distribution.”
Wightman then gave a brief tour of each district’s financial situation. Cuts of about $2.5 million – if addressed solely through the tax levy – would mean an increase of 24 percent for Norwich. For Syosset? An increase of 1.33 percent. One reason for this disparity, said Wightman, is each district’s gross income, approximately $222 million in Norwich versus $2.9 billion in Syosset. Gross income per student in Norwich is approximately $84,000, he added. For Syosset, that number is closer to $350,000. This trend continues when looking at moneys accumulated through the tax levy, as well, with Norwich bringing in approximately $10 million, while a district such as Syosset brings in more than $170 million. Yet both districts, said Wightman, saw a nearly identical cut in state aid. In Norwich, he added, approximately one out of every two children are living in poverty, nearly 50 percent. In Syosset, that statistic is drastically reduced, where one-tenth of one percent of children are living in poverty.
“We have poverty, a low tax base and not a lot of money ... yet we’re losing the same amount of aid,” said Wightman. “The handwriting is on the wall. By acting in the spring, you’re acting too late for our children.”
Members of the Board of Education agreed with Wightman’s assessment and stressed the importance of residents district-wide contacting state legislators with their thoughts.
Added Wightman, “The system is broken and it is not working.”
More information on New York state’s school districts – and the disparities that continue to threaten those with greater needs – can be found at stateaid.nysed.gov.