The Other Shoe Dropping: Curriculum Funding Cut at LMSD...Again
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For those who are highly involved and watchful of the actions of the School District, the ongoing worry - starting way back in the late 1990s when 'modernization' began - would be that the costs of new buildings combined with teacher salaries and the looming pension funding crisis would result ultimately in poorer and less well funded actual education, especially in the era of Act 1 constraints. Their fears may be coming true. LMSD is now saddled with 30 years of staggering debt for the high schools, rising labor and health care costs, a quickly approaching jump in pension funding and, of course, on a minor note, lots and lots of legal bills. So, once again, they're cutting curriculum, about the only place they can. Except for maybe those spinning bikes? Or is that 'curriculum'? It is in it's own classroom. Most kids learned how to ride a bike when they were 6 though. Education services being cut in LMSD. From Rich Ilgenfritz's article:
There's more...
Math? Science? Aren't these those very subjects that have been deemed critical to success in 21st century industry and innovation? Keep in mind the curriculum itself is sorely outdated in many areas, so new, updated textbooks are really not frivolous. Add to that rumors that a new math program in elementary schools has been tried and rejected in other states due to poor performance. But where are they spending way beyond their budget again? Oh yeah. Lawyers. How high will they go? Legal fees spiral in LMSD
Plus goodness-knows-what on the Robbins case (at a bargain $250 an hour though!) and the ongoing costs for the Blunt case and so on. Of course I hear they're settling Due Process cases at a record pace, which does save them a few pennies here and there. So, lessee...$600,000 and rising on the busing case + a bunch more because we completely forgot about privacy laws (but now we're on CNN!) + even more because we track too many black kids to special ed...ah, just take it from the Math program. Nobody likes Math anyway. Makes you wonder just what this Administration and Board's priorities really are? |
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This is stunningly depressing. We just spent quarter billion for bricks and mortar which will not teach any student any more and then cut Curriculum which is the core of purpose of school system.
What is this teaching our students? This is something which affects the entire community and the School Board seems oblivious.
Ah, but this is not the fault of LMSD.
It's the greedy parents of children who are suing.
Especially the Students Doe case where the litigants are not seeking financial damages, but rather school choice.
LMSD has already been caught in numerous lies denying what it did, the tab will be over $1 million to taxpayers by the time the trial is complete and LMSD has promised to appeal all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, costing who knows how much more to taxpayers for the Students Doe case.
The fact that McGinley was busted in an email knowing what LMSD was doing was illegal, but that it was OK as long as they did not get sued, is disgraceful. The fact the school board continues to support McGinley is even more disgraceful. Why do they support McGinley? Because they got busted in those emails too.
This is absolute gross mismanagement. LMSD should have settled with the nine families the moment the lawsuit was filed and given them school choice. LMSD would thus not have been caught in all these lies and cost taxpayers $1 million plus in a losing cause.
Ah, but it's the fault of Students Doe who are just asking that their constitutional rights be followed by a school board that has sworn an oath to "support, obey and defend" said Constitution.
Because of this, you do have wonder about LMSD credibility in the Robbins family lawsuit, but I have posted I will give LMSD the benefit of the doubt until I get to read their investigative report on that issue. Still, the Robbins family has the same core issue - a violation of their constitutional rights by LMSD.
I also wonder how many hundreds of thousands of dollars the Croyle litigation LMSD recently lost cost taxpayers?
Somehow I think we will see this cost cutting in regards to the education of children deflected onto something else other that LMSD taking responsibility.
While I don't like the class action by the Robbins family (they have every right ot sue individually if LMSD spied in their home), fact is LMSD dropped the ball by making wrongheaded decisions to allow the Robbins family lawsuit to have a cause of action. LMSD dropped the ball by making wrongheaded decisions to allow Students Doe to have a valid cause of action. The job of their solicitor Ken Roos is to make sure LMSD actions do not put LMSD in a position to be sued. What's with that?
And I'm sure LMSD will deny the enormous cost of the Taj Mahal high schools have anything to do with cutting core education programs.
Somehow I think this is only the start of what will be more cutting of key educational programs due to gross mismanagement and massive spending (you ask me, the two high schools would still have been great while spending $50 million less) on frivilous things that do not directly benefit the ability to teach and the ability to learn.
Laptops anyone? Yeah, I know they came from a grant of some sorts, but there is no evidence they enhance learning and look at the mess they have caused LMSD - not only through its own alleged wrongdoing, but because these laptops are not just teaching devices. Outside of not being able to access certain sites like porn or hate sites, students have free reign to use all the social media, music, online TV, you name it.
I have heard parents complain the lives of their kids revolve around these laptops where the kids can always say they are doing school work, but rather goofing off chatting with friends. Many parents would prefer more control over this situation.
Yes, I believe laptops are a smart move as computer literacy is essential, but why did LMSD make the boneheaded decision to give fully loaded laptops with all sorts of distracting abilities instead of giving out laptops that go to the bare bones of teaching, learning and school curriculum?
And even with the ever increasing school taxes, just wait for the hit we will have to take on teacher pensions to further subsidize those with our tax dollars when I think teachers should join the rest of the country and have a 401k thay must contribute to with their own earnings and that is matched, except in truly harsh economic times like now where many private sector workers are not seeing their 401k's matched.
Sorry, but I just find it hard to blindly support LMSD given all this.
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~ As we must account for every idle word, so must we account for every idle silence.
Here is some irony for you. On Thursday at the finance meeting they discussed the bids on the new irrigation system at Harriton. This system was cut out the plans because it was too costly, but now that there is "extra" money, they are adding it back in. The cost of this system is.....drum roll please.....$250k.
Why are we willing to invest in grass, but not in kids?
(and don't forget the Arnold Field legal wranglings in the list of legal battles - we paid for that too.)
You're kidding, right?
My thoughts alone. "I hope it will be said we taught them to stand tall & proud, even in the face of history & the future was made new & whole for us all, one child at a time." - Brian Andreas
sadly, no. I am afraid I have no sense of humor about the schools anymore.
I haven't scanned the handouts, so I am behind, but you can always read about these meetings at OpenLMN.net
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L'homme est né libre, et partout il est dans les fers/Man is born free, yet he is everywhere in chains.–Jean Jacques Rosseau. The Social Contract, 1762
now that there is "extra" money, they are adding it back in. The cost of this system is.....drum roll please.....$250k.
WHAT??
This is obviously some strange usage of the word "extra" which I was not previously aware of.
They just reduced the Curriculum Services Budget by $250K, so that gives them an "extra" $250k to grow grass.
So while they get credit for not further raising taxes to get this $250k, they robbed Peter to pay Paul and chose grounds keeping over educational services.
But you already knew that from what was posted. LMSD just did not want citizens of Lower Merion to know that.
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~ As we must account for every idle word, so must we account for every idle silence.
To be fair, the $250k comes from two different budgets. One is the capital project budget, the other is the general operating fund. I'm not sure they money can flow in both directions.
Oh, I'm sure it will work out in the overall budget, which is what most citizens glance at if they look at all.
This $250k was budgeted for in the overall budget and $250k was spent.
My point above in regards to taxes is that it means they are not coming in over their overall budget in regards to further upping the tax increase the school district already budgeted for and plans, so while it involves two different line items, the bottom line is not affected, though the Curriculum Services Budget gets cut substantially while they get to grow grass that we will have to pay to cut (pun intended).
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~ As we must account for every idle word, so must we account for every idle silence.
To be fair, it is all money taken from The Forgotten Taxpayer, the tax producer, who has now spent 1/4 BILLION dollars and not one student will learn any more and Lower Merion has a declining enrollment in next few years.
Teachers are paid more, more administrators are paid more, do students learn any more.
And the Integrated and Unequal treatment of African Americans is truly a disgrace which no one talks about. The learning gap is real.
Did I also hear right that due, to budget constraints, Radnor will be reducing classes and letting go 40 teachers next year?? That seems like an awful high number. But hey, at least they got their football field covered in new turf! (that isn't even paid for as yet)
That's a big hit to literacy programs, too. Will we be graduating even more illiterates from high school?
And the Board of School Directors just sits there hearing this, waving its arms in the air helplessly like an overturned turtle.