The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
STAFF CUTS IMMINENT
School board committee, students, teachers speak up to keep classes, teachers
TORRINGTON >> Nine teaching jobs would be eliminated in Superintendent Denise Clemons’ proposed budget for 2017-18, but the $77.4 million plan still shows an increase of 4.2 percent.
Residents, students, teachers and members of the Board of Education’s Budget Committee discussed those cuts, the increase and other changes during Thursday night’s public hearing.
The $77.4 million proposal, which includes a proposed capital budget, would represent a $3.1 million — or 4.2 percent — increase over the 2016-17 approved budget, according to documentation on the district website. During the hearing, committee chairman Ken Traub said that $2.9 million of the $3.1 million was tied to staff salary or benefits.
The budget proposal already includes cuts to staff, including nine teaching positions — five
at Torrington High School and four at Torrington Middle School.
At Torrington Middle School, according to a proposed salary schedule, a math teacher, science teacher, and two social studies teachers would have their jobs eliminated, while an English teacher, math teacher, science teacher, social studies teacher, and family and consumer science teacher position would be cut at Torrington High School.
A retirement in the social studies department would not be filled at the high school, according to the schedule.
Class sizes at the middle school and high school are expected to increase to the maximum allowed under the district contract with teachers — 25 students per class — under the proposed budget, according to Clemons.
During the hearing, Torrington Middle School teacher Veronica Gelormino argued against the proposing staffing cuts.
“I fear, that despite the hard work of our teachers and administrators, despite their commitment, their dedication, and their drive to give 110 percent — everything that this year has required — if we have more cuts, I’m worried we will fail some of our students,” said Gelormino. “And I do not envy the job of creating the school budget in difficult economic times, but please reconsider some of these proposed cuts. Make sure our students are more than a line item in a budget, more than a percentage point, and more than names on a class list. They’re individual children, they’re adolescents, they’re young adults, who come to us to be educated.”
An administrator job in the Student Services department would also be cut, and staff would also move from school-to-school as part of the proposal.
As a result of one such shift of a tech-ed teacher, in addition to the loss of food-related courses at Torrington High School, woodworking classes may be eliminated — Clemons said that either a woodworking or robotics class would be available next year.
Jacob Koenig, a junior at Torrington High School, and Kiara Dwan, a senior, came forward to speak to the virtues of such tech-ed classes, including woodworking, and showed a petition with student signatures.
“Me and Kiara, and our 622 friends that signed our petition currently, ask you to reconsider taking our possible career opportunities,” said Koenig. “We can make a better community starting right here at THS.”
Both the proposed budget and salary schedule for district staff members have been posted on the district website for public consideration on the Business Services page.
The Budget Committee is expected to consider a plan that would bring the proposed budget to a zeropercent increase at its next meeting, Thursday, March 30, according to committee chairman Ken Traub.
Other city departments, including the Torrington Fire Department, have been asked to submit flat budgets for the coming fiscal year.
Other topics raised during the hearing included the requirement to supply a nurse to parochial schools in Torrington and the demands placed on district nurses; the possible closure of a school, which was raised last year and has moved forward to an extent this year with a capacity study and surveys; the potential closure of the Board of Education offices on Migeon Avenue; and how science teachers should prepare for the institution of next-generation science standards.
The district is required to supply nursing services to St. Peter/St. Francis and the Torrington Christian Academy and is partially reimbursed for the effort by the state to the tune of approximately $30,000. A nursing supervisor role, which has assumed this responsibility, was shifted from “nonpublic” to the student services line item. A nursing position at Forbes would be eliminated, to be replaced by a nurse from Torringtford, although Clemons said after the meeting that no nursing positions were cut in the proposal.
Board member Peter Vergaro noted, in response to a question, that the district had begun an 18-month estimated process to possibly close a school by conducting a capacity study and collecting surveys. A school is not closed under the proposed budget, although Clemons has mentioned it as a possible option if a zero-increase financial plan is required.
The Board of Education offices on Migeon Avenue, originally proposed to be closed by Clemons, may remain open, as the number of required hours for educating expelled students, according to board Chairman Fiona Cappabianca, are set to increase as of July 1.
These students have to be taught at a non-school building, as discussed Thursday, which has been done at Migeon in the past. Closing the Migeon offices would save the district about $50,000, Clemons said Thursday.
Next-generation science standards have been adopted for Connecticut schools, as discussed Thursday, and will begun being taught in the sixth-grade this year.
Science teacher Tricia Dawson asked how teachers should prepare for this shift, given the lack of funding for supplies at the middle school in the budget, and said that advocacy for public school funding was likely necessary in the future.
Clemons said that funding for professional development for these staffers had been included in the budget, and that a disparity between funding for supplies between the middle school and high school was driven, in part, by the demands of NEASC accredition, which the district aims to seek in the near future.