Cuts could slice $22 million from Fulton schools

The Fulton County School System is bracing for expected cuts as it waits to see the financial impact of falling state revenues on its current year budget.

Revenue figures from the state point to a shortfall of $1.6 billion, prompting Gov. Sonny Perdue to require every state agency to submit a budget proposing a six percent cut.

State agencies are also being asked to prepare budgets with eight and 10 percent cuts in the event cost cutting must go even deeper.

At the state level, the Georgia Department of Education has recommended a hiring freeze of all open personnel positions, and cuts to programs including all or partial funding for academic coaches, central office, charter schools, curriculum development, graduation coaches, and testing. For fiscal year 2010, which starts July 1, 2009, the state is proposing a 50 percent reduction in teachers supply cards – the $100 gift card teachers have received at the beginning of the school year for the past two years.

What is not currently on the table is any reduction in the 2.5 percent raise teachers received this year.

Fulton Schools receives about 35 percent of its revenue from the state, with the remaining 65 percent made up by local tax revenue. Because of this, Fulton Schools will likely weather the state cuts in better shape than other school systems which rely primarily on state revenue. In addition, the system is sitting on healthy reserves of nearly $100 million, which it could dip into if necessary. Regardless, a six percent cut to the funds received from the state requires action, noted Fulton School officials.

During the August meeting of the Fulton County Board of Education, Fulton Superintendent Cindy Loe outlined a number of measures proposed in anticipation of a revenue reduction of up to $22 million this fiscal year. The current budget for FY2009 is $857 million.

Loe emphasized that cutting the budget is challenging when you consider 85 percent of it is dedicated to salaries and benefits for staff.

"These are things we need to do in order to be prepared," said Loe. "Our focus continues to be [on cuts] in areas that we believe will have the least impact on instruction."

Some of these measures have already been implemented, note school officials, while others will be considered once the extent of the revenue cuts is realized.

Those cuts include:

• Freezing the hiring of all non-instructional positions, except those absolutely critical to the operation of the district

• Freezing the instructional reserve and moving teachers as needed to meet instructional needs and stay within state-maximum class size. Fortunately, enrollment projections appear on target so the system anticipates little impact, noted Loe.

• Delaying the language arts textbook adoption scheduled for this spring. The system will instead phase in the textbooks, beginning next year with a pilot in selected schools

• Eliminating free summer school except for students in grades three, five and eight who are taking summer school to prepare for a retake of the CRCT

• Eliminating most field trips except to the teaching museums

• Eliminating mail courier service on Tuesdays and Thursdays and using those personnel for other needs.

• Limiting overtime to only critical or emergency needs.

• Asking each department to review their central office budget to identify a five percent cut

• Closing all schools and offices during Spring Break
- www.northfulton.com

Sphere: Related Content