WPCNR The DAILY BAILEY. News & Comment By John F. Bailey. May 20, 2008: As I rap this out on the old Corona, mythical gin gimlet in my hand, a Lucky hanging out of my mouth, tie roguishly loosened, French cuffs rolled up, it is 45 minutes before the secret election has begun: School District elections. Today is Tuesday, May 20, the School Board Election in which you have the right to approve taxes on yourself is taking place.
Polling Places in White Plains for today’s School Budget Vote. Polls are open from 12 noon to 9 PM.
What a concept! Instead of the politicians stealing from you with secret tax increases, junket money, rewarding cronies with $100,000 a year make-work positions where all a hack does for his money is sit by the telephone and answer it, the good hacks always do that, you the voter get to vote your own tax increases.
What a country! And for years, you do – for the kids.
Today in White Plains the bizarre choice is whether to vote the budget down or approve it.
If you own a median home in White Plains, valued at $700,000 — and vote for the budget you will be voting yourself a $621 tax increase. If you vote it down you be voting a $590 tax increase. Wow what a saving that Contingency Budget gives us. Of course, the school district could resubmit it for a second vote
If you vote it down, you will save yourself $14 on your taxes if you own a $500,000 home and $31 if you own a $700,000 home. Man, that Contingency budget strikes a hardship on the district doesn’t it?
The hand-wringing over the contingency budget, $183,722,424 which is $700,000 less (how ridiculous is that?) than the $184.4 Million budget up for decision today is the traditional spectre the school district trots out every year to assure passage of the budgets. In White Plains, the horrors are larger class sizes (perhaps by 1 or 2 students more at the elementary level!), reduction in school supplies and equipment (without specifics), and gasp, payment of fees by community organizations for the use of school facilities. Well, they should be doing that anyway. In fact they are thinking of renting the new Loucks Field (with lights) for $50 an hour at night to pay for the lights.
But, I ask you, do you think they want you to vote in this election?
I do not think so. Number one the polls open at 12 noon, creating a limited window of opportunity for the commuting, employed person to vote.
They cut the polling places down to six, and they do not give a lot of publicity on where they are. In 2006, when it was suggested when the $66 Million bond issue (which now is contributing $1.7 million of the budget increase) was up before the White Plains voters, the school board promoted the outright lie that the bond issue could not be held on the same day as the general election, just to hold down the turnout. That was a lie. It can be, you cannot use he same voting machines though.
Another thing about this election, there are only three candidates running for two School Board seats. They are an incumbent, and two newcomers. However, none of the three have a grasp of the real issues facing the school district. It is not diversity and the achievement gap.
This district is so diverse and strong and racial relations the model for anywhere that diversity is not an issue. The achievement gap is important, but instead of devoting $400,000 plus in raises to 39 administrators, how about more money poured in to hire Spanish-speaking teachers — there’s four right there alone. There’s an Achievement Gap right there.
If you believe the State Education Department press release that White Plains Elementary Schools are narrowing the Achievement gap – then a positive appreciation of the budget is achieved. The impression mind you, is given the budget is doing its job. However this info was supplied by the Education Department without statistics, though the statistics obviously exist now to make that press release. Did they narrow the gap 1% 10% or 25%, 50%?
Ever wonder why the School Report cards come out one year after the year they are reporting on? In this day and age of instant news and stats. The State Education Department has declined to give the WPCNR team an explanation of why these statistics are always a year behind in getting to you and me.
The state is not releasing the reports on 2006-2007 until after all budget votes are taken – do you think the State Education Department is trying to prevent school district performance from having an effect on what you think of the school budget effectiveness? What do you think?
The candidates have no clue, and none have any clear commitment to perhaps controlling the budget just a little.
The budget is out of control. It will push up to $200 Million next year barring a miracle, and will likely be up to $300 Million in five years, and your taxes will double from what they are today. That is just simple math.
And another thing — the fact that no other media outlet has exposed the BASIC and ENHANCED STAR cuts enacted by the den of deceivers in Albany — is an absolute disgrace. The fact that the School District has not revealed these cuts, given plenty of chance to do so in the last three weeks shows they are again being dishonest with the public. Three quarters of the new school aid White Plains is getting, is being paid for by you the taxpayer – not by Albany — you’re paying for it. There is at best a mere $400,000 in actual new cash. How shabby is that?
The endorsement of the Annual Budget Committee which has been listening to the same stories for eight years means nothing folks. For members of that committee to be heard in public saying the district did a fantastic job on the budget, is laughable. If they had done a fantastic job, this would have been a flat budget year, setting the stage to handle the monster increase in 2009-2010. You don’t think it won’t be?
The next school board has to get a dose of reality here. Why not tell your outgoing Superintendent to keep the budget within 4% , period, tax increase 4%. That would be a worthy goal. Even the City Budget had the savvy to do that this year.
This board literally does no homework on analyzing their budget. They did not even vet the outrageously high increases given most of the 39 salaried administrators in this year’s budget without the blinking of an eye – way beyond corporate averages. How can you say you support our great teachers when you’re giving management 8’s and 13s and ask the backbone of the district your inclass teachers to take 3.5% to 5%? That shows a lot of respect, doesn’ it?
They did not question the technology hires of two new administrators at probably another $300,000 who are being brought in to do the job that the persons responsible for technology execution have not done the last eight years. They should let some of our brilliant students do this as a project and they would get it done – the longitudinal studies, the real story on performance of classes down through the last five years.
WPCNR has done this with a calculator using simple baseball statistics and found that the fall off in scores in ELA and Math after leaving elementary school is like falling off a cliff – and our technology staff can’t show this? To be sure the present math coordinator seems to have arrested the math trend, but the statistical piece of incompetence by tech defies all reason.
The blame is being placed on the software, the inputting, whatever. Perhaps, just perhaps, supposing the district really does not want to know? Anybody think of that?
The only school board member to express the slightest bit of skepticism about this technological performance folly, who unfortunately is departing, is Bill Pollak. Pollak is the voice of reason here. I always regretted he did not stick to his guns on many of the issues he raised. But everybody is so nice in White Plains. It is not politically correct to be politically uncooperative.
Essentially though the persons up for election today are not going to make any difference in the budget problem. There is not a dollar the school district does not spend that they do not think is well-spent.
More importantly, the new members have not expressed what kind of person they want as the next Superintendent of Schools.
Timothy Connors the architect of the district the last six years has adroitly managed to give the impression of fiscal restraint the last two years, while spending heavily his first four budgets, pushing through a $66 Million capital project which will cost us for many years, because district maintenance, spending $3 Million a year on average could not keep the schools up to par.
That’s where the real issues are headed: Business and spending as usual or bring in a real manager with a commitment to keep the teaching level high and streamline the bureaucracy, the consultant-hiring, the layers of programs, etc.
Does the district want a cost-cutter and strong manager who will start slicing off the high-salaried fat of non-teaching personnel? The curriculum coordinators who are given the excuse every year that they have to adjust the curriculum to new state standards, bring in consultants galore to help them with the curriculum adjustment, for example.
I’d much prefer the curriculum teach students how to read, write, count, communicate effectively no matter what each year than play curriculum second-guessing every summer as an excuse for the curriculum adjustment that did not do the job this year.
The custodial staff of about 100 comes to mind as another place to cut. The maintenance budget has to be better supervised. The issue of transportation has to be addressed.
The issue of forced busing might be explored. Since the entire district is a rainbow district with Whites, Hispanics and African-Americans split 1/3/1/3/1/3 give or take a few percentage points you might not need busing any more.
The replacement of retirees has to be looked at as possible attrition targets to cut staff.
The very nebulous, unspecific strategtic plan, costing the district $70,000 is not strategic at all. Where is the plan to control finances – except to find more handouts from the community. That’s the main issue. You do not have to be a genius to know that you cannot keep doubling the inflation rate every year.
The handful of persons voting today will most likely approve the budget again “for the kids.” Besides if you vote it down, it only means $700,000 in cuts – and $14 to $30 in tax savings.
You can save $400,000 by cutting administrators’ wages to zero. There’s $300,000 right there. But perhaps that’s harsh.
Judging by the WPCNR poll a lot of persons did not think the budget should be approved. Over 80% said no to the new budget. But they have to come out to vote.
The School District relies on the goodness of peoples’ hearts in voting in the budget to continue to provide great opportunities for our children. They work it to death.
But they should not pay lip service to good management practices because they can.
The taxpayers of White Plains are all forgiving of incompetent financial management – and may I say deceptive financial reporting by the city, the county, and their school district – all but ignored by the “press.”
The propaganda churned out by the legislature, the school district, that simply ignores the realities of school district budget bloat are easier to swallow for citizens than the truth of the financial Titanic that sails arrogantly onward.
Down to our last dime.
A lot of people tell me they are going to vote the budget down this year.
That’ll be the day.
Because no one really cares where White Plains is going, and no one really wants to know.
