Public School Funding in Massachusetts: Putting Recent Reform Proposals in Context

June 20, 2006

A new analysis by the Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center of the most recent US Census Bureau data on state by state education financing finds that between 2002 and 2004 Massachusetts lost ground in three critical measures: spending on education as a share of total income in the state; the share of spending paid for by the state, rather than local governments; and cost-adjusted spending per pupil.

The study – the fourth edition of “Public School Funding in Massachusetts” - also discusses the changes to Chapter 70 education funding included in the FY 2007 budget proposals of the Governor, the House of Representatives, and the Senate. It examines both how the proposed changes in calculating the costs of education, local contributions, and the distribution of state education aid would address some of the shortcomings of the current system, and how they would leave other problems unresolved.

In addition, the report reviews the state education spending and inflation requirements in current law and shows that despite the proposed reforms, the budgets put forward by the Governor, the House, and the Senate fall short of the amounts called for in Section 12 of Chapter 70 of the state general laws by $276 to $322 million.

View full report at http://www.massbudget.org/Public_School_Funding_in_MA.pdf

School fees increased for sports, transportation

By Ryan Davis
Daily Hampshire Gazette
Friday, June 09, 2006
NORTHAMPTON - Parents will be paying higher fees next year for children who play sports and ride the bus, after the School Committee approved increases Thursday to help balance the budget.

Every board member except one voted for each increase, though Ward 1 representative Davina Miller spoke for many when she said, 'I hate all these fees.'

Discussion centered on the inequity of relying on certain groups - athletes and those who take the bus - to balance the budget. But members concluding that raising fees is better than cutting positions.

Due to increasing costs, the district is looking to bridge a gap of $225,000 in its proposed $26 million budget. The plan is to raise fees and cut the budget for supplies, two aides, and an elementary school band program.

The fees have now been approved, but all other parts of the budget will be finalized at the next school board meeting on June 22.

Sports fees

Athletic fees for team sports at Northampton High School are now $75 per student per sport.

Committee members voted to raise that to $125 per student for the first sport, $100 for the second sport, and $75 for the third sport. There will be a $500 per family cap on athletic fees.

By comparison, students in Amherst pay between $160 and $180 per sport, students in Easthampton pay $100 and those in South Hadley pay $75.

Business manager Susan Wright said that she projects the amount of fees collected will increase by $25,000. Committee members also approved raising the cost of tickets for sporting events by $1, generating an expected total of $11,000.

The school department has a total high school sports budget of $272,000, most of which pays the salary for the athletic director, stipends for coaches, equipment, awards and other costs. The increased fees and ticket prices will generate $96,000 towards that total, Wright said, with the rest coming from an appropriation.

Bus costs

Bus fees, which apply only to middle and high school students, will also go up next year.

For families with one child, the fee will increase from $180 to $210; for two children, the fee will go from $315 to $375; and for three children the rate will increase from $400 to $490. Wright said the increase is expected to bring in an additional $12,000.

At-large School Committee representative Kathy Foote Newman, who voted for the bus fee increase and against the athletic fee hike, pointed out how unequal the fees can be.

She said a family with three children all playing sports and riding a bus would pay $1,000 in fees. A family whose three children are in the school band and walk to school would pay nothing.

Balancing a budget: a cut and hike dance - Parents lament loss of program

By Ryan Davis
Hampshire Daily Gazette
Friday, June 09, 2006 NORTHAMPTON - A program that teaches about 130 elementary school students to play musical instruments inspired well over an hour of debate Thursday.

School Superintendent Isabelina Rodriguez Babcock has proposed eliminating the program in order to save about $17,000 in the budget. Children will still have regular music classes.

The move has the support of all four elementary principals, who maintain that while the program has produced excellent results, it doesn't benefit the majority of children and it is disruptive to classrooms because students are pulled out to participate.

However, five parents speaking during a public comment session at Thursday's School Committee meeting and two board members argued forcefully to maintain the program. Other members said they support cutting the program, but a vote won't be taken until the June 22 meeting.

''I don't think you're helping anyone by doing this,'' said Nick Kachulis of Harold Street, whose children were both in the program. ''You're destroying the feeder system to the high school band.''

Heidi Stevens of Upland Road in Leeds said that she was ''overwhelmed with gratitude'' that her son was able to develop an interest in music in elementary school and will be joining the high school band. She said eliminating the program will make some parents send their children to other schools.

Ward 5 representative Stephanie Pick said she believes that if it is cut, only children whose parents can afford lessons will learn to play instruments.

The four principals each said they'd rather not cut anything, but saw more pressing needs in schools besides band. They acknowledged that many students enjoy it, and Jackson Street School Principal Gwen Agna even plays the flute in the band at her school.

But they said dropping the program was preferable to cutting other areas.

''This is a program that doesn't really fit in the same way the rest of the elementary program fits,'' said R.K. Finn Ryan Road interim principal Margie Riddle.

Rodriguez Babcock said the program serves less than 10 percent of the elementary population and all students will still have a full music program without it.

Northampton gets upbeat budget

By Daily Hampshire Gazette
June 2, 2006

NORTHAMPTON - Mayor Clare Higgins unveiled a $67.6 million budget proposal Thursday that boosts funding in several key departments, including a 7.5 percent increase for schools, adds positions and callsfor no layoffs.

The proposal represents a 5.2 percent increase over the current year's $64 million spending plan, and 56 percent of the budget is drawn fromlocal property and motor vehicle excise taxes.

The mayor also has tapped $900,000 from the city's stabilization fund for the second consecutive year to balance the budget, leaving the citywith nearly $1 million in reserves.