| Colorado City teachers may see 15 percent less pay | |
|
By Patrice St. Germain patrices@thespectrum.com | |
COLORADO CITY -- Teachers who are devoted not only to teaching but to teaching in the Colorado City Unified School District, may soon be looking elsewhere for employment due to the possibility of a 15 percent cut in pay. More than 30 teachers, paraprofessionals, support staff and a few residents attended the Colorado City school board meeting Tuesday night to express their concerns to the school board. Everyone who spoke at the meeting made emotional pleas to the board members, who made few comments. Their behavior prompted one teacher to call the board members "aloof." Superintendent Alvin Barlow told those present at the meeting that legislative budget cuts may force the school to take drastic measures to meet the budget this year, one that is still in the planning phase and has yet to be finalized. As of Wednesday, Barlow said he didn't have any idea what the proposed budget for the 2004-2005 school year would be but did say that the school would be losing about $700,000 from legislative budget cuts. The budget cut is the result of a legislative decision to cut 50 percent to the rapid decline program for fiscal year 2005. Barlow commented at the meeting that non-renewal letters and the letters regarding the possible pay cuts -- which would also include loss of benefits -- were sent out without knowing what the budget would be because of the state's deadlines. Barlow stated that deadlines are what prompted the letters and that the pay cuts would not necessarily take place. But School board president Lee Bistline said the only way around a pay cut for the staff is for the board to raise property taxes. The legislative cut to reduce the step-down reduction payments by 50 percent affects only six schools in Arizona, said Mohave County School Superintendent Mike File. Colorado City is one of the six. "The 50 percent cut would have hit them hard," File said. The rapid decline program gives schools a chance to, over a period of five years, reduce budgets by a certain amount due to rapidly declining enrollment. Under the program, a school does not immediately drop to the funding level proportionate to the school's new, much lower enrollment. Colorado City schools lost about 1,000 students several years ago, File said. But unlike some areas such as districts near military bases or agricultural areas, Colorado City isn't seeing any increased enrollment nor is there that possibility in the near future. File said other schools in the Mohave County area have also been hit, like Kingman. Utility rate hikes of 22 percent and enrollment growth has left the Kingman district in a gray area, File said. "The schools funded are a year in arrears, so right now, Kingman is in that real bad gray area, but after this, it should be pretty good," File said. File said part of the problem with the Colorado City Unified School District, which had a budget of $5.6 million and a student enrollment between 300 and 340, is the staggering number of staff members. As of Wednesday 102 people were on the payroll list. "I have told Alvin Barlow as the enrollment continues to dwindle, at some point, he will not be able to fund the community with the school," File said. Barlow said the school does have a high number of staff but said File is way out of line. If File would go to visit the school, Barlow said, he would see that all the personnel on the payroll are being utilized. "If he (File) would come and visit our school, he would see our efforts," Barlow said. "Every employee is vital to the program for the children." But the Littlefield Unified District, also in Mohave County, has a student enrollment of 469 students, a budget of $4.7 million for the 2003-2004 school year and a staff of 34. Several teachers remarked at the meeting that the CCUSD would save money if it sold its Cessna 210 airplane that the district purchased several years go when it's budget to purchase the airplane was approved. Barlow defended the purchase of the airplane saying that the airplane saves a lot of travel time for staff and school board members. Instead of driving over five hours to the county seat of Kingman they can fly there in only an hour. Barlow said he regrets that the personnel employed at the school may take a 15 percent pay cut but said it is for all the employees across the board, including himself. Teachers and staff at the meeting expressed concerns that the school board doesn't come to the school and said the board hasn't been honest with them over the years. Because of the possibility of large pay cuts, the teachers said the children have been asking questions about who will be at the school next year - a question that at this point, no one can answer. | |
|
TheSpectrum.com Originally published Friday, May 14, 2004 | |
| Back | |
| For more information email: | |
