School Board Wants Answers on Job Cuts

In two weeks, the Easton Area School Board will vote on a budget that -- if approved -- will cut 40 teaching positions, as well as 37 other jobs.

But board members said Tuesday they were concerned that the district hasn't given them a clear picture for what happens next. They also worry about how the district -- which is projecting deficits in the next two years -- will improve its financial situation.

"What is the plan here? asked board member Janet Matthews. "What does increased class size look like? What does middle school restructuring look like? How do you decide what teachers are cut? This is troubling that we don’t know any of this, and we're scheduled to move on the budget."

That vote is slated for May 22. The for 2012-2013 is balanced with a 2.2 percent tax increase, 77 job cuts, and $1.5 million from the district fund balance. Michael Simonetta, the district's COO, says the average Easton Area tax bill will go up by $88.

This is the third year in a row the district has looked at cutting jobs as a way to balance the budget. Last month, board members rejected a more stringent budget plan that would have eliminated even more jobs. Since then, officials have met to discuss district finances, but board members say they still don't know what happens if there are 40 fewer teachers next year.

"We are in the dark in this area. It hasn't been discussed," said board member Pat Vulcano. "I want to see where these cuts are going to be and how big those classes are going to be. If we're going to see 40-50 sized classes I don't think we’re doing the best for the students."

Superintendent Susan McGinley assured board members that they'll have the information they need prior to the vote. She said there will be an increase in class sizes because of the cuts.

Board member Robert Moskaitis said the issue goes beyond just this year.

"Nothing has changed. There will be large cuts coming up, to be followed by the same situation over the next two years," he said. "My concern is a broader one: the financial path this district is on could very well lead to a distressed school district."

The district is looking at deficits in the next two years: $4.5 million for the 2013-2014 budget, and $7 million in the 2014-2015 budget.

And that means the board will likely be looking to make cuts again and again, said President Robert Fehnel.

"You could cut out all sports and our busing and you still wouldn't have enough. It’s going to have to be severe," he said.

The district is taking steps to raise revenue. For example, Simonetta is scheduled to meet in the next few days with local Chamber of Commerce officials to . But he told the board any money earned from those ads would be a drop in the bucket.

"We're looking at $4.5 million," Simonetta said. "It's not going to do what we need to do."

Longtime board members Vulcano and Kerri Leonard-Ellison say they have been unhappy with the way the district has managed its finances.

"It's disturbing for me that when we get to the 11^th hour, we’re scrambling," Leonard-Ellison said. "We should have been moving forward…to say that we’re going to have to be distressed is disturbing."

Vulcano said the problems go back several years; five years ago, he said, the district was "hiring 30 or 40 teachers a week."

"Everybody said 'Oh, we've got plenty in our fund.' And I didn’t buy that," Vulcano said. "It was like 'Grab every teacher you could,' and I knew that wasn't going to work."

Board member Bill Rider said the district needs to negotiate with its largest union, the teachers, who took a pay freeze last year, and whose contract has given union members average raises of 12 percent in the last three years.

"We cannot sustain that contract," said Rider, a former teacher and principal. "I think the teachers deserve everything they can make. But when teachers are making more than assistant principals, I have a problem with that. Unless we can work out something with them, we’re going to sit like this for the next three years."

Resident Curt Ehly told the board the cuts should come at the top, noting that the district administration has lost only nine positions in the last five years.

"This district is top heavy when it comes to administrative staff," he said. "We keep eliminating teachers, we keep eliminating support staff, but the adminstrative side of things continues."