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have made more than 12 million dollars in overtime and we don't have
money for teachers?!? What's wrong with this world? Why aren't the
voters up in arms? Let the politicians 'fire' an assistant and keep a
teacher. There is so much waste in government and they let 396 teachers go??? This odesn't affect me one way or the other but it certainly
affects you, your children and grandchildren. Sure, let's get upset
when the President takes his wife out on a date but let local
politicians fire teachers--sorry, I am angry, stunned and in disbelief!
Does a principal really need 2 assistants??
Broward County School District lays off 396 teachers; budget cuts blamed
By Kathy Bushouse
South Florida Sun Sentinel
6:54 PM EDT, June 15, 2009
FORT LAUDERDALE
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At least 396 public school teachers have been told they no longer have jobs with the Broward County School District.
Most are in their first year with the district and were given the news
in certified letters sent out Friday. The laid-off teachers taught in
17 subject areas, including elementary education, art, business
education, computer science, drama, English, physical education,
French, Spanish and social sciences.
School district officials blame the layoffs on budget shortfalls. State
legislators used federal stimulus money to plug their own financial
holes, so those dollars weren't available to help the Broward district
avoid job cuts, said School Board chairwoman Maureen Dinnen.
"I feel like I'm being forced to make this decision," Dinnen said. "If
I don't have the money to employ people, I don't go out and print money
in the back room."
Some of those teachers could be rehired before the school year begins
on Aug. 24, should vacancies open up because of people retiring or
leaving the district, said Lynn Strong, the district's associate
superintendent for human resources.
Such decisions will be made based on seniority and certification. For
example, if the district needed to hire a high school English teacher,
the job would go to the English teacher on the layoff list who had the
most seniority, Strong said.
Others will have to find jobs at a time when many other school
districts in Florida are also considering layoffs or have already cut
jobs.
"We tried to give people as much notice as we possibly could," Strong said.
Teachers who specialize in high-demand areas, such as math, reading and
science, were not affected by the layoffs; nor were guidance
counselors. The district expects additional vacancies in those areas,
Strong said.
Jobs were cut based on seniority and category, as stipulated in
teachers' contracts. Officials from the school district and from the
Broward Teachers Union spent several days determining which teachers
would lose their jobs.
Broward school board members will vote on the layoffs at a special meeting scheduled for 4:15 p.m. on June 23, Strong said.
District officials have said for months they would need to lay off
teachers for budget reasons. While the amount of per-student money
Broward receives from the state increased slightly, Broward Schools
Superintendent James Notter said the district must make up for $102
million of one-time money used for operating costs in the 2008-2009
school year.
Broward's student enrollment is also down, meaning fewer teachers are
needed. Student enrollment was down more than 3,100 in the 2008-2009
school year compared with the previous year, and down by more than
16,000 students since 2005, according to district statistics.
The district's own projections show enrollment continuing to slide in the next five years.
But teachers' union President Pat Santeramo said cutting teachers should have been a last resort.
"It's really shameful on the part of this district that they didn't
really do everything possible to be able to avoid layoffs," Santeramo
said.
The district has tried to avoid layoffs by cutting school budgets;
consolidating some administrative operations; requiring a four-day work
week during the summer to save money; and proposing an unpaid furlough
around Thanksgiving, Dinnen said.
She said if anyone has suggestions on what to cut, she's listening. She welcomed people calling her office.
"I'm just appalled that we're having to send out things like layoff notices, because that's our quality," Dinnen said.
Kathy Bushouse can be reached at kbushouse@SunSentinel.com or 954-356-4556.