Ways and Means Committee Hearing April 22

The current education controversy in Salem is whether to provide additional funding for K-12 from the Educational Stability Fund.  The Ways and Means Committee will be hearing from the public, many with competing interests, as to what direction they should take.  I have been asked to speak by "Stand For Children."  Given the number who will want to speak, I may or may not get an opportunity.  But here is a rough cut of what I hope to convey:

Ways and Means—April 22, 2011

·         We understand the legislature has incredibly limited resources because of the recession, and there simply isn’t a lot more money for schools.

·         We also understand that human services are facing deep cuts – even deeper than schools.

·         But, here, specifically, is what $5.7 billion allocation means for our school district…

The Superintendent’s proposed budget reduces staffing by 81 FTE.  One in 13 employees, either by eliminating positions or reducing hours of work. 

We will be losing both classroom teachers and support personnel.

There will be increases in class size.

And as remarkable as these reductions are, they are based on the assumption that employees will accept significant decreases in compensation.  The District is in negotiations as to how to reduce, and by how much, but the cuts will be more severe if employees fail to accept a minimum of 10% reduction in their overall compensation packages.

After ten years of cuts, this being the body blow of body blows, the classroom is not just being cut to the bone, we are into the marrow.

Death Spiral.  When class sizes go up and offerings go down, parents look for alternatives, either home schooling, or private schools.  Result, lower student enrollment, thus less revenue, thus more cuts.

Short Term:

        We ask you to utilize more dollars from the Education Stability Fund for K-12 to reduce some of the cuts I just outlined.

Long term—as the economy improves, build stability into the funding process, and, most importantly, increase the number of teaching days and/or hours of instruction required in Oregon schools.

Every study suggests that there is a direct correlation between number of school days and level of competence in core curriculum.  When you pass laws raising standards without giving competent teachers the time to teach to the higher standard you ask a very great deal. 

Phase in an increasing number of days, over a three to five year span, providing additional revenue for those days.  Let’s get the message to parents, teachers and especially students, that the educational process is not a pastime, but a full time job, and that at minimum, a majority of each year will be spent receiving classroom instruction.

I came to Oregon from the Heart of Silicon Valley, having taught in Palo Alto for 29 years.  When High Tech companies are making expansion decisions one of the most important issues they examine is the quality of education in the area, both for the potential labor pool and for the families of the company employees who will transfer into the new area.  If we want Oregon to be able to compete on the international stage, we have to provide a quality education.  One of the most significant steps we can take to demonstrate a commitment to quality education is to raise the number of days teachers can teach their children to the higher standards all players expect.

So, what do you think will be their response?