Date: Sat, 9 Apr 2011 09:08:47 -0400 (EDT)
From: Daniel & Rhonda Sundberg
Subject: sudden budget cut reduction
Dear BOE members,
I would hope that an explanation will be given as to how a $ 2,768 ,359.00 proposed budget cut can be reduced to $ 2,431 ,173.00 from scenario 9 to scenario 9B and 9C. A difference of $337,186.00. This is close to the amount that was the justification of reconfiguring our K-8 schools into K-5 schools and putting our kids into an inadequate middle school and disrupting 900 students. It is also arguably more than the actual operational budget savings would have been. If it is this easy to change the amount needed to cut why did you put that that many parents and community members to that much effort to save our schools? Why did you carry this justification of savings to the very end pitting the K-8 parents against the middle schools and K-5 schools? You used the justification that if we kept our K-8 schools the middle schools will be have no choice but to have no band, less PE, less or no art and many teachers would be cut. Now the savings are as easy to accomplish as reducing the amount of money needed.
This is very wrong and should not be allowed to EVER happen again. Distortions of the truth and manipulation of the cost per pupil and other funds is not being fact checked by those elected to do so. The public will be alerted to what has occurred so that they will from now on pay attention!
Sincerely, Dan Sundberg