On March 17, CCHS Junior Will Brandenburg implored the school board to find a way to keep teachers and educational options that are especially valuable as they consider budget cuts.
TheISD 166 school board opened its St. Patrick’s Day 2010 meeting with a standing-room-only crowd in front of it. On the agenda was a vote to start the process of placing teachers on unrequested leaves of absence in the face of declining enrollment and budget shortfalls.
Some people were there to address teacher layoffs along with other cost-saving measures discussed at last month’s regular school board meeting, including larger high school class sizes, fewer electives, and more restrictive scheduling options.
Several people spoke up during the Community Comments portion of the meeting. Cook County High School junior Will Brandenburg read a statement from the junior class. He lamented the fact that English teacher Michael McHugh’s licensure and lack of seniority would make him the secondary teacher most likely to lose his job next fall.
“A teacher with such dedication and passion should not be let go so easily,” Brandenburg said. Retention of teachers should be based on the quality of their work and the contributions they make to the school, he said.
Brandenburg also stated that, according to the proposed schedule of classes, some of next year’s seniors would not be able to take both fourth-year Spanish and physics because they are scheduled at the same time. Thisis not good for college-bound students who were counting on having those classes under their belt before graduating from high school, he said.
Brandenburg pointed out that students have numerous options — Post Secondary Education Option (attending a college for both high school and college credit), the AFS (foreign exchange) program, and independent study — that would take dollars away from ISD 166.
Betsy Jorgenson said the proposed cuts would move her from an elementary classroom to middle school English, where she would be “like a first-year teacher again,” displacing Sue Nelson, who would bump up into high school in place of Michael McHugh. Jorgenson said she couldn’t compete with Nelson’s talent with middle school students. Michael McHugh might be a good carpenter, but he couldn’t be as good a carpenter as he is a teacher, she added.
Sue Nelson implored the board to let the teachers do what they each do best.
At the end of the public comment period, school board member Eric Kemp said, “We really want to thank you for coming. It really means a lot to see a whole roomful of people. … It speaks volumes.”
“We are limited in what we can do,” school board member Mary Sanders said. She suggested that the board and the staff talk together about their options.
Board chair Bill Huggins agreed. “It’s also hard to sit on this side of the table and make some of these decisions,” he said.
“We still have to go by the law,” school board member Leonard Sobanja said. “That’s the way the system works.”
Superintendent Schwarz commended every staff member impacted by the potential cuts. The district may have only 21 third graders next fall. “People want us to be frugal with taxpayer money,” she said. “How do I do that? …Twenty-one third graders. How do I split that?” Releasing an elementary teacher “has a ripple effect,” she said.
“I don’t envy your position,” Mitch Dorr, a teacher and ISD 166 parent, said. “I don’t envy Beth’s position. …I think it’s important that we do not start pitting people against one another. …We’re going to have to work together to make this work.”
Principal Gwen Carman said she and her staff are trying to balance class sizes and piece together class schedules the best they can. “Thisis complicated,” she said. She hopes to alter the schedule so students don’t have to choose between fourth-year Spanish and physics. “We are very aware that students have lots of options, including PSEO,” she said.
After the meeting, speech teacher Barb Coe stated that declining enrollment is not only a result of students leaving the district for other educational options. A lack of higher-paying jobs and affordable housing are significant barriers for young families who would otherwise live in Cook County and send their students to ISD 166, she said.
As reported in last week’s paper, teachers facing complete loss of their jobs are Michael McHugh, Ann Russ, and Julie Brandt. Facing loss of a portion of their jobs are Al Heine, Betsy Jorgenson, Cindy Muus, Dan Viren, Eli Hill, Kristin Carlsgaard, Marie Helbach, Mary McDonald, and T.J. Super.
Bond sale
Theschool was able to take advantage of lower interest rates by refinancing its bonds at an interest rate of 2-2½%, down from its former rate of 4.2-4.3%. This will save taxpayers $414,575.56 and will affect property taxes through 2016. Thebonds were for the school remodeling/addition in the late 1990s.
Early retirement incentives
Several teachers approached Superintendent Schwarz with a buyout proposal for early retirement. The incentives would cost the district $26,000 over the course of five years but would save one current teacher’s job and open up jobs for two others with licenses no current district employee has.
The board discussed the advantages of accommodating those teachers willing to retire and opening spots for other teachers. With enrollment continuing to decline, however, Kemp said, they might have to face laying off the same teachers next year.
A motion in favor of granting the early retirement incentives failed by a vote of 2-2, with Mary Sanders and Bill Huggins voting yes and Leonard Sobanja and Eric Kemp voting no. Staff photo/Jane Howard
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