BSD Budget - Community Meetings

I attended the first of three Budget meetings presented by the district at Newport on Thursday evening. I was impressed with the information and the NEED for our feedback in the form of a survey. The superintendent and her cabinet led the meeting and were very open with information and answering questions. I recognized many teachers and other administration from Newport as well as PTA, yet was disappointed with the parent turnout. So with that said here are some choices that we are faced with:

• Do we increase athletic fees to $100-$200 per participant?
• Do we eliminate swimming, golf, wrestling, and gymnastics?
• Do we cut the 7 period day at the middle schools?
• Should class sizes increase by 1 in all high school classes, and cut 17 teachers?
• Does the district eliminate librarians, specialists, band and/or art at the elementary schools?

I would like you to KNOW and CONSIDER the following:

• Budget cut decisions have NOT been decided.
• Not only cuts are being considered. There will be revenue options to consider as well.
• BSD has a "Your Input Form" on their website. Continue to ask questions and provide input even if your issues/questions are not on the survey.
• The Superintendent and her committee are available for input and feedback at the meetings.
• The district WANTS to hear from the community. Take the survey on-line www.bsd405.org. IF you are unable to take the survey on-line, you can stop by the school and get a paper copy.
• The district has asked for input from all parties (curriculum, transportation, nutrition services, classified, teachers, admin., etc) PRIOR to these meetings. The cuts that you will see in the survey represent this.
• Some of the decisions will involve BEA and union consideration.
• Bellevue Schools Foundation funding is moving from small teacher grants to more systemic funding that helps more teachers/students. This does represent how the district allots some of the funding from BSF (for example for special grants that BSD uses for ILT (training that is funded by a grant from BSF that is not on the potential cut list).
• The survey asks you to review budget cuts that represent the worst case scenario of $6 million dollars. Hopefully it will be less than that. Each of the items under consideration have a point value. You have to come up with 60 points (or more) overall. This information will then be prioritized by the Fiscal Advisory Committee and presented to the District.
• As you consider the "potential" cuts, think about the district mission and what is best for all students.
• The on-line survey will close March 25th.
• The Financial Advisory Committee will prioritize the result of the survey and any additional input provided on the "Your Input Form"
• The 7 period day and why that is not on the cutting block for high school - 23.5 credits are needed for graduation. Allows for some cushion for those students that need to get credit for classes as well as allow for students to focus on a particular course study (class or AP). 5 periods are funded by the state, 2 periods funded by BSD

Call to Action- How can you make a difference:

• You can either sit on the sidelines, and let others make those decisions for you, or you can jump in and have your voice be heard!
• Attend one of the community meetings, March 18 and March 24
• March 18: Community Information Session, 5 p.m. - 7 p.m., Sammamish High School Library
• March 24: Community Information Session, 6 p.m. - 8 p.m., Interlake High School Library
• You will hear a presentation by the superintendent and her staff and have a chance to ask questions. Then you will have the opportunity to review the survey, ask more questions from the superintendent's cabinet, discuss with others, and finally vote your choices- whether you do it that evening or on-line. You decide how to cut $6 million from the budget
• If you don't attend a meeting - Big disadvantage: if something doesn't make sense, there is no one to ask.
• Continue to make your suggestions for cuts or opportunities to raise revenue. These won't be part of the survey, but they will be reviewed and considered by the Fiscal Advisory Committee.
• The Fiscal Advisory Committee will then take all of this information prioritize (rank-ordered) recommendation of how the district cuts the budget. The meeting is open for observation. Check the website for details.

You can contact me with any questions that you might have. I will do my best to get your answer. I ENCOURAGE all of you to take the time to attend the meetings and get on-line and take the survey. Both Audrey Bennett, PTSA Region 2 Director ptareg2@wastatepta.org. and Janet Suppes, Bellevue PTSA Council President janetpta@gmail.com are on the Fiscal Advisory Committee and are also available to answer questions.

For all of you that may be on FaceBook - join the BSD Financial Advisory Committee - Parent Communication http://www.facebook.com/pages/BSD-Financial-Advisory-Committee-Parent-Communication/246944589944?ref=nf

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Julie Rooney
PTSA Class of 2011 Liaison
http://newport-ptsa-2011.blogspot.com/