Just volunteered some time a a local school. While arriving, I noticed some workers removing healthy shrubbery with a backhoe, replanting new bushes, and spreading quite a bit of mulch around the area. I'm guessing (and hoping I'm wrong) that those perfectly healthy shrubs that were removed will be taken to the landfill. With the budgetary concerns looming, how does this make fiscal sense to remove healthy shrubs just to replace them with more shrubs? 6 facilities employees, a backhoe, a large truck for hauling shrubs to landfill equals a lot of money that could have been better spent. Could that money not have been used inside the school, perhaps providing a needed tutor or other services?:banghead:
I'm with you on this one for sure! I recently sat through the parent meeting(s) as I have a two children in an elementary school this year, and will have one in middle school and two in elementary next year (and another in the coming years! we love our kids!!). After hot and heavy discussions about this budget stuff, hearing that TAs are getting cuts, and after living through the already affected program cuts that have been sweeping through...it really burns me! We apparently are more involved in things like the BUSHES than our kids!! Although I am fortunate thus far to not need the assistance, there are children that need extra help and tutoring and remediation...where's the money going? Beautification. I'm all for our schools looking beautiful on the outside, but if the children's education isn't just as beautiful we need to look at the big picture here...
Nope. Probably not. And this is the biggest problem with the budget. There is no flexibility. X amount of dollars has to be spent on landscaping and that school is probably searching for ways to spend it even though they are lacking money in other areas. The appropriation of funds is the biggest problem in my opinion. I've said this in another thread, but I'll say it again...why in the world are teachers being laid off or losing their yearly raise when we're adding bushes to the landscaping and buying ipads for every teacher, as is the case in another county? We need to change the appropriation percentages in time like these and put a higher percentage towards what really matters, which is anything that directly affects the students and their learning. I guess they think the bushes are going to do the teaching. Or maybe they'll try to turn the trees into paper! :lol:
I think school grounds upkeep like landscaping should be the responsibility of students and parents, I can't think of a better volunteer opportunity and valuable lesson for students.
I know that our family did this at East Clayton Elementary when it opened and the whole time my child went to that school, so did many other families. Butterfly gardens and all. Sherry
How are principals allowed to 'reallocate' some funds from this into that, and not others. Seems to me the school board should give each school the total amount of money per pupil at the start of the year and let the principal, Head of PTA, and a few parents allot the spending, ensuring that the basics are covered. That way, local folks can prioritize the spending so that it makes sense. I'm constantly amazed by those who don;t seem to have ever heard the sage advice of an old Army sergeant: "Don't do dumb things."
Every business operates like this. From local govt to the private company. If you spend 100.00 less than what you were allocated, they subtract that 100.00 from what you get in your budget for the next fiscal year. I think it's crappy to spend money on things you don't need - esp luxury items (like fancy chairs, etc), just because you fear losing a few dollars the next year.
I agree there should be more autonomy at the school level. Currently, budgeting at the school level consists of figuring out how to spend the money within the predetermined categories. They have no say in how much is allotted to each category or even what the categories are.
