Schools
Cobb School Board Begins Looking at Budget
Cuts to the number of teachers wasn't mentioned at Tuesday's hearing.
The Cobb Board of Education got its first look at a slice of the proposed fiscal year 2012 budget Tuesday, but estimates on the final spending figure and what will be required to make up for deep deficit projections are far from complete.
That's because a more precise accounting of anticipated property tax revenues and the amount of state funding is still in progress.
Tuesday's hearing was devoted to teacher and school personnel staffing expenses—including salary and benefit packages—totaling an estimated $27.6 million.
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Mike Addison, Cobb schools chief financial officer, said in January that the anticipated budget shortfall is between , but that the figure is very "preliminary." That's still far less than the $126 million in cuts the school board made last summer in passing an $819 million fiscal year 2011 budget that included hundreds of teacher layoffs.
School board members delved mostly into teacher and staffing allocation questions. Some, including Chairwoman Alison Bartlett, expressed concern about uneven staffing of specialist teacher positions, such as art programs at the middle school level, to cite one example.
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"When we have schools that don't offer art, that is an opportunity that isn't going to be offered," she said. "That's a child's future."
What wasn't discussed was the possibility of having to make more cuts in the number of teachers.
"It's a dicey situation," Connie Jackson, president of the Cobb County Association of Educators, said after the hearing. "There are a lot of nervous teachers, and that doesn't lead to a good atmosphere."
"We don't blame the county," she added. "It's reality. If you have less money, you have less teachers."
The average teacher salary for the 2012 budget is $55,413 and $73,056 with benefits included. (see chart below for more salary breakdowns)
Projected student-teacher ratio allotment formulas in the 2012 estimate are as follows: 22-1 for kindergarten; 23-1 for grades 1-3; 30-1 for grades 4-5; 30-1 for middle school; and 32-1 for high school. (see chart below for current elementary highs and lows)
The school board will conduct another public hearing on Monday at 5 p.m., with transportation costs the main topic.
AVERAGE ESTIMATED TEACHER, SCHOOL STAFF SALARIES FOR FY 2012 BUDGET
Salary With Benefits CERTIFIED Teachers $55,413 $73,056 Counselors $62,381 $82,244 Media Specialists $60,990 $80,409 Asst. Administrators $68,290 $90,034 Asst. Principals $75,457 $99,483 Principals $98,355 $129,671 CLASSIFIED ES & MS Secretaries $33,275 $43,870 HS Secretaries $36,574 $48,219 School Clerical $24,120 $31,799 Paraprofessionals $20,386 $26,877 Custodians $29,615 $37,394 School Nurses $29,847 $39,350 Special Ed Nurses $55,629 $73,342 Cafeteria Manager $29,665 $39,110 Cafeteria Staff $11,232 $14,183HIGHS AND LOWS IN CURRENT ESTIMATED CLASS SIZE AS OF FEB. 23
Sys.
Avg.
KK 14 Blackwell 26 Teasley 18 1st 14 Powers Ferry 23 Baker, Clarkdale, East Side, Ford, Kemp, Lewis, Pickett's Mill, Varner, Vaughan 19 2nd 10 Clarkdale 24 Argyle, Garrison Mill, Vaughan 19 3rd 16 Clay 26 Riverside Int., Sedalia Park 19 4th 13 Austell Int. 30 Dowell 21 5th 18 Austell Int. 31 Sope Creek, Tritt 21 Target 4 Birney, Clarkdale, Milford 22 Baker, Bullard, Eastvalley, Ford, Kincaid, Mt. Bethel, Nickajack, Russell, Shallowford Falls 14Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.