Schools and Financial Conflict

Learn the facts of school finances - where does the money really go?

Schools and their financial situations are the topic of a great deal of controversy lately. Many schools are facing hard decisions about what can be cut back while still preserving and upholding high standards of educational excellence. Schools are often stuck between what's best for the students and what is necessary to keep the district from failing entirely. Hiring teachers is no longer about finding who is going to be the best person for the job, it is about who the district can afford to hire. More and more after school programs - many of which were originally implemented to keep at-risk kids busy and out of trouble - are becoming "pay to play," making them too costly for those same kids to participate. Every school district has been affected by the recent economic issues, and none of the changes have been easy.

Struggling school districts and the communities they serve often come into conflict, especially when it comes to finances. Whether it is cut-backs to programs or new levies, it is often difficult for schools and community members to understand the decisions leading to changes. This can be due to many different issues within the particular situation, but I believe that the two factors that have the most influence in every case are ignorance and misinformation - a nasty combination in any arena, but particularly one in which the future of our kids hangs in the balance.

Ignorance

I first want to address the term ignorance. This word had gotten a bad rap over the years, as it has often been used with the connotation of intentionally failing to learn the facts. I don't believe that this is the case for most people. Many of us simply don't know what we don't know - or as it was once put, we are unaware of our "unknown unknowns." How can anyone be expected to be an expert, or even well-informed, on a topic with many variables for which information is often intentionally obscured?

The finances of educational institutions are a primary example of this sort of semi-hidden information. Yes, it's all a matter of public record, but how many of us know how to or are willing to go to the effort of gaining access to those records? As a very surface-level example, many school districts do not post their salary schedule and will not discuss it unless someone directly asks at their HR office - and even then many districts will attempt to redirect questions on the topic. Teachers applying for positions are often not told about their potential salary until after they have done a call-back interview. It's a common understanding that teachers are supposed to teach because of their love for students, not for the money - yet can you imagine any other business (and please don't hold any illusions on this score, schools are a business) that wouldn't tell their applicants up-front what their salary will be?

Misinformation

Because it takes effort and can be difficult to find the true paths that money takes within a district, many people - both within the schools and in the larger community - rely on information that is being distributed by those who have already taken sides in a given issue. While this is not necessarily a poor decision, it does often lead to the second culprit of community-school conflict: misinformation.

Some misinformation which is given out is simply a mistake, and some is deliberate.  This is true anytime there is a campaign, whether it is for a small school levy or the presidential candidacy - it is the nature of human beings to take sides and to do what we can to convince others to take our side as well. I believe that while a few people intentionally lie or mislead others, most will simply tout certain "facts" that they've heard while leaving others out, making their version sound like the only reasonable option.

As an example, look at attitudes surrounding school levies. On the surface, it is often a very "teachers vs community" issue. Teachers want the levy to pass at all costs, community members don't want to see their taxes go up. Underlying this very basic idea are many others - some of which are known to one side or the other, and some of which may not be known to much of anyone outside the upper levels of administration within the district.

Community members are heard to say things like, "The money is only going to pay the bonuses for greedy administrators, my kids will never see the benefits, so why should I be paying more?" Teachers look at the community members who vote against levies and say, "How much do you spend on coffee each day? Or on car washes for your luxury vehicle? And yet you can't spend an extra $100 per year to support the future of America?" Both sides' opinions can be seen as valid, depending on the viewpoint - and what's more important is that it is likely that neither side truly knows where that new money is going to go.

Fixing It

So how do we fix this? Go to board of education meetings. Drop by the school board office, and ask detailed questions. Before major changes can be made within your district, the reasons for those changes have to be made a matter of public record. Find out where those records are, and make yourself aware of the facts. Then, share them with others.

Many people will be shocked to find out where money is going. This can be a negative experience - such as one district I worked in where outraged parents found out that the sports stadium was going to be rebuilt while music and art programs were scheduled to be cut. It can also be VERY positive. At least two districts I know of have passed petitions asking teachers and administrators to take pay freezes and give up bonuses and stipends so that students can keep their non-core courses and so that some educators can keep their jobs.

It can be difficult and dangerous to learn the truth - difficult because records are not always easy to access, and dangerous because we may have to face truths that deeply change our world view. However, I believe it is always best to seek and know the truth. Knowing the facts puts the power to instigate change in your hands. What you choose to do with that knowledge and power is up to you.

Coffee = Love

 

No, really. When it comes to school environments, coffee = love. Or at least, coffee = appreciation.

Let me paint a picture for you: It's 7am. You are a teacher. It doesn't really matter what grade level or subject you teach. Last night was rough - four hours of lesson planning and/or grading before bed. Then this morning brought snow, and with it traffic, frustration, and a complete lack of time to eat breakfast if you had any hope of getting to school for the ever-important 7:15 staff meeting. You've just arrived at school, and are desperately in need of sustenance if you are going to make it through the morning. You walk into the staff lounge to check your mail and - oh glorious day! The smell of coffee greets you. You walk over to the cupboard, grab your mug, fill it up with the lovely black brew, and instantly feel a little better. Maybe even a little more capable of facing the million things you know you'll need to do today.

So I'm going to make this very, very simple: A positive staff attitude is invaluable. Coffee machines are cheap.

I hope you're with me when I say that every staff lounge in every school in every district in America can afford one. A good one can be bought for $25 new, and often $10 at second-hand shops. Your school, no matter how tight the budget, can afford a coffee machine.

What about providing the coffee, creamer, and sugar? Have each coffee-drinking staff member pitch in $10 at the beginning of the year, and budget the supplies from that. Alternately, keep an empty coffee can with a slit in the top for people to put in a quarter whenever they take coffee. True, some people will take without giving, but some people will give more than required. It generally evens out. As a third option, have people sign up to bring in supplies - each coffee drinker should only need to provide something once or twice a year, and that's still cheaper than buying it for their own use all the time. Trust me - having seen many staff lounges and talked to many teachers, this seemingly simple and innocent process of caffeinating the overworked and short-on-sleep teachers will make a world of difference in how they face the challenges of each and every day.

And this concept goes far beyond coffee. The first school district I ever worked in had Friday morning breakfasts. At the beginning of the year, a list was posted with the dates for each Friday of the school year, with two blank lines next to each date. Each teacher would sign up for one Friday (or occasionally two). The sign-up list was for providing a basic breakfast to the staff. Generally one of the two teachers for a given date would pick up various juices and a fruit tray while the other would grab bagels, cream cheese, and donuts. Again - no matter how poorly a staff is paid, every teacher should be able to afford bagels and donuts once a year in exchange for breakfasts every Friday.

The best part was that benefits of Friday Breakfasts went well beyond a happier and better nourished staff. They provided a forum where teachers could meet and talk about their students with each other. Young teachers could get advice from older teachers, and older teachers could get new ideas for projects from the younger teachers with more recent course work. Teachers from different grades or different subject areas could collaborate on long-term projects, or themes, or performances.

Best of all, teachers could get to know each other as real people with families and hobbies and interests. The breakfasts often lead to sign up sheets for 5k running groups, knitting clubs, and movie nights, all of which helped the staff to become more to each other than faces in a hallway. The staff at that school was one of the most cohesive and supportive that I have ever had the privilege to work with. I'm sure that this was due to a combination of many factors, but I'm equally certain that Friday Breakfasts were a very important component - and they are both easy and inexpensive to implement. I challenge anyone reading this to try this at their school, or to suggest it to a teacher they know.

So there you have it. Caffeinate and feed your teachers, without spending much, and reap from it happier teachers, better attitudes amongst staff and between grade levels and departments, and greater cohesion and collaboration within your school. How easy is that?