So What Does The Budget Overview Tell Us?

Below are selected points from the Community Budget Forum last week:

• The District significantly underestimates fund balances because they overestimate spending considerably.
• The result of the District’s budgeting practices is that the District has ended the last four years with as much as six (and no less than three) times the budgeted ending fund balance– and yet still KSD says there is a budget crisis.
• Revenue from local levies and levy equalization combined has grown and continues to grow consistently.
• Kent’s 2008-9 ending fund balance, equivalent to 9.3% of spending, was third highest among 9 districts of similar size.
• Based on this year’s fund balances to date, the current trend indicates that the District will end the year with more than $21.7 million in the ending fund balance.  (aka “Rainy Day” Fund)  That amounts to 8.3% of budgeted spending, 8.8% of KEA’s forecast of their spending level, and over five times the budgeted fund balance.  That’s far more than sufficient for a District of Kent’s size.
• KSD’s own forecast (as of April) is that the ending fund balance will be four times the budgeted level this year!

Where are KSD’s priorities when it comes to budgeting and spending?   By spending less than they budget, while projecting with near pinpoint accuracy how much they will take in, they continue to maintain (and even grow) their fund balance to levels well above what even conservative and prudent budgets would call for.  Meanwhile, they have laid off 24 teachers this year, and have not yet recalled all those laid off last year!    Clearly, their priority is not providing the best education for kids.  Teachers and programs are cut, class sizes increase, and the quality of education in Kent suffers.

You can view the entire Community Budget Forum presentation from June 2nd here.  We welcome your comments and questions!

KEA Members Save Life of Horizon Elementary Student

http://kent.komonews.com/content/he-stopped-breathing-and-his-pulse-stopped

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CWBDEU_nUN4

The links above point to the original story and YouTube posting of the news broadcast.

On May 12th, a child at Horizon Elementary School stopped breathing.  Teacher  Beth Lott was first on the scene, followed by music teacher Robert Heyde.  The two teachers performed mouth-to-mouth and CPR until help arrived.  Thankfully, the child survived and is currently recuperating. 

The sad part about this story is that Mr. Heyde is one of the teachers recently RIF’d by the Kent School District as part of their May budget cuts.  As one comment on the KOMO website’s story put it:

Best wishes to Austin for a speedy and complete recovery and yes, these folks are heroes, but one of them, Robert Heyde, has received his RIF notice for next year. Yes, the Kent School District, with over $20 million dollars in reserve, far in excess of their school board mandated 5% of an approximate $250,000,000 budget, has laid off teachers, one of whom I am sure will ironically be hailed as a hero, even by the district that sees no future need for his services. Another sad day in Kent.

Obviously, the KSD didn’t know that the teacher they RIF’d would perform such a heroic action.  However, the story illustrates just the kind of dedicated professionals that KSD has chosen to layoff rather than reduce its ridiculously large “Rainy Day Fund.”  Those in attendance at last week’s Community Budget Forum heard how the Kent School District continues to make maintaining their fund balance a bigger priority than preserving the teachers and education professionals that actually provide the services necessary for the children of Kent.  If Mr. Heyde was not there, would another teacher have stepped in and saved young Austin’s life.  Most likely, yes.  But isn’t it nice to know that Mr. Heyde was there?  And doesn’t that make his RIF even that much more of a travesty?

What Are KSD’s Budget Priorities?

When we asked this question last year, parents and community members stood behind Kent teachers in responding that KSD’s top priority should be students and supporting learning in the classroom.

Nevertheless, KSD is pursuing a course that will negatively impact our children by cutting elementary staff positions: Librarians who provide key literacy support; counselors who provide support emotional health and coordinate services; intervention specialists who support struggling learners and coaches who help teachers implement best practices.

Yes, KSD is surveying the community about these potential cuts. The catch? To submit your survey, your answers must accumulate at least 60 “points”. Reducing elementary staff, such as librarians, counselors and specialists, is the only way to accumulate these points. This does not truly allow the community to establish district priorities.

Does KSD have other options? Absolutely. In the last five years, KSD has had as much as $15 million more in its “rainy day fund” than the school board policy calls for. Last year, KEA forecast a KSD “rainy day fund” of $22 million, while KSD asserted that the fund balance would not exceed $17 million. At year end, it was $22.6 million. This year, KEA forecasts KSD will end the year with a “rainy day fund” of $21.7 million.

KSD has maintained a fund balance between three and six times the budgeted level and well over the board policy of 5%. What’s more, they spend just 90% of what they budget to spend in the classroom and about half of what they budget on purchased services (hired consultants, attorneys and other outside contractors). Just setting the budget for the actual expenditures would reduce the budget significantly and potentially eliminate the need for cuts.

Families must sometimes dip into savings to cover expenses. If necessary, the Kent school district should do the same.

During a budget crisis, staff members agree that support in and for the classroom should trump new programs and trainings with consultants.

We believe that the number one priority of the Kent School District should be the students. We urge the district and community members to keep cuts as far away from students as possible to ensure that our children continue to have the opportunity for a quality education.