Proposed state budget cuts to education could mean teacher layoffs, increased class sizes, staff benefit reductions among other cost-cutting measures in Renton School District.
The district is facing more budget cuts because Gov. Chris Gregoire has called for more than $2 billion in state spending cuts.
Gregoire presented a supplemental budget plan to the state Legislature Nov. 21. Overall her proposal cuts more than $500 million from kindergarten-12 education programs and colleges and universities by another 13 to 17 percent.
Gregoire has proposed increasing class sizes for fourth through 12th grade. Such a move would reduce the number of overall classes and therefore reduce the number of teachers.
In addition, low-income schools in the district would no longer be funded for full-day kindergarten. If parents want their children in full-day kindergarten, based on the proposal they might have to pay $300 a month like some currently pay in the Renton School District. Last year the district had to make the same cut in schools that aren’t low-income. Kindergarten is extremely important to have children ready for all the grades to come, said Randy Matheson, district spokesperson.
He cites research that says kindergarten and pre-school programs better prepare young children for an education all the way through high school. “We would love to provide all-day kindergarten for every student at every school free of charge,” Matheson said, but it seems that isn’t possible anymore.
Right now, the governor’s proposal has even fully funded kindergarten at low-income schools on the table for a possible cut. Gregoire has also proposed cutting the number of school days from 180 to funding only 176 days. Mattheson called that idea troubling because it reduces the amount of days kids are in the classroom. The Renton School District can continue offering 180 days, but it would have to find the money in its budget to do so.
For example in the past, instead of taking the proposed teachers’ salary cuts, the district has found the funds by cutting administration and staff positions away from the classroom. It hasn’t filled retired staff’s positions and has spread those responsibilities to other staff. There could also be a reduction in the health-care allocation the district gets from the state with what’s been proposed. The district’s budget has been cut by $20 million for the last four years and the district has tried to keep the impact of those cuts away from students.
In February, voters will get the chance to vote in support of Renton schools and their future endeavors.
There are three measures on the Feb. 14 mail-in election ballot. The Education Maintenance and Operations Replacement Levy, the Technology Levy and the Building a Lifetime of Learning School Improvement Bond are all on the ballot.
The district hopes to alleviate over-crowding in its junior high schools with the construction of a new middle school. McKnight Middle School is the biggest junior high in the state and Dimmitt and Nelson are also big, said Matheson. If the measure doesn’t pass, the district can’t build new schools. The district would have to fire a bunch of teachers and classrooms would double up if the maintenance and operations levy doesn’t pass, Matheson said. And the district would be unable to upgrade technology across schools if that levy also did not pass.
The Renton School District hasn’t had a levy failure in 20 years. “We only go out to voters to ask for continued support because we’re doing good things and we want that to continue,” said Matheson.
Thirty cents of every dollar the district spends comes from local tax payers, which is why the maintenance and operations levy on the February ballot is so important, he said.
