[UPDATE - March 26, 2009: Last night, the Boston School Committee unanimously approved the budget proposal described in this press release.]
BOSTON – Superintendent Carol R. Johnson today submitted a balanced budget proposal to the Boston School Committee for the upcoming 2009-2010 school year. The revised recommendation calls for a budget of $812 million next year, up from the $787 million initial proposal Dr. Johnson presented last month.
Mayor Thomas M. Menino announced last week that the City of Boston would increase the Boston Public Schools’ target allocation by $25 million in order to protect and advance educational priorities. The proposed budget represents a 2.5 percent decrease over the current year budget. The school district also has received several sources of federal aid through the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act (ARRA), including an additional $16 million to help restore teaching positions. City and school officials emphasized that while a considerable number of teaching positions have been restored, the Boston Teachers Union must agree to a one-year wage deferral in order to protect the jobs of all teachers in good standing.
Dr. Johnson noted that the revised budget reflects the district’s academic priorities and the reforms needed to protect core services. The budget balances the need to restore positions at schools with the need to invest strategically in initiatives that will improve educational opportunities for children.
“Here in Boston and across the country, these incredibly challenging economic times require us to make difficult decisions with the limited resources available,” said Dr. Johnson, “but they also provide a valuable opportunity to take a hard look at how we provide services and to consider new or more efficient ways to operate.
“Boston remains committed to offering families a first-rate public education,” said Dr. Johnson. “This budget is designed to advance our academic agenda by directing as many resources as possible to the classrooms in our schools. We will continue to work diligently to give our schools the tools they need to ensure every child succeeds.”
When the Superintendent presented her preliminary budget proposal in February, she anticipated the need to eliminate more than 900 positions in schools and central offices. The increases in City and federal dollars enable the district to restore approximately 370 positions, most of them classroom teachers, guidance counselors, librarians, lunch monitors, and specialists in arts and music. When identifying positions to be restored, Dr. Johnson prioritized those that ensure the district meets all collective bargaining agreements, high school accreditation standards, and graduation requirements, with a focus on equitable distribution across all schools.
Given significant financial constraints, the revised budget recommendation still includes approximately 536 position reductions, which are likely to result in the layoff of approximately 134 teachers and 78 paraprofessionals (teacher’s aides). Dr. Johnson reiterated Mayor Menino’s challenge to all City employee unions to accept a one-year wage deferral in order to preserve jobs and provide vital City services to Boston families. She noted that if the Boston Teachers Union agreed to the freeze, no teachers in good standing would be laid off next year.
Through favorable health insurance negotiations, improved debt financing, and other cost-cutting measures in City operations, Mayor Menino identified an additional $25 million to allocate to city schools. While other City departments have been asked to present budgets that represent a 7 percent reduction from current year spending, the Mayor requested only a 2.5 percent reduction for Boston Public Schools next year, emphasizing the importance of sustaining progress in public education.
“Mayor Menino has once again demonstrated his commitment to the children of Boston with this additional investment in the Boston Public Schools,” said Rev. Gregory G. Groover, Sr., Chairperson of the Boston School Committee. “These dollars, along with the new federal funding, enable us to put some resources back in the schools, where they belong. But we are still far from where we need to be, and we are counting on Beacon Hill and the Boston Teachers Union to help us close the gap.”
The Superintendent’s Acceleration Agenda for the Boston Public Schools includes specific academic goals and targets to close the achievement gap and ensure that every student graduates from high school “college-ready and success-bound.” Key academic initiatives include:
• A consistent new citywide approach to K-12 literacy instruction, to ensure that every child learns to read and write well;
• Expansion of challenging learning opportunities, especially Advanced Placement courses in all high schools, and increasing access to algebra in every middle school;
• Dropout prevention and recovery initiatives, such as a new Transition Center to welcome back students who have dropped out;
• A Newcomers Academy for students with little or no English who arrive in the country during the school year;
• Additional arts and music programs, and other enrichment opportunities;
• Expansion of K-8 schools and high-performing pilot schools, in response to the needs of families; and
• New pre-Kindergarten classrooms for 4-year-olds.
Over the past six weeks, the School Committee and Superintendent have hosted six community meetings about the budget proposal, including a hearing specifically for students. State law requires the Boston School Committee to vote on the Superintendent’s budget proposal by the fourth Wednesday in March. The Committee will vote on the recommendation on Wednesday, March 25, in a meeting at the Lilla G. Frederick Pilot Middle School, 270 Columbia Road, Dorchester, at 6:00 p.m.
For more information about the BPS budget, visit www.bostonpublicschools.org/budget.
Attachments:
Final Budget Recommendation: Superintendent's Memo to School Committee
FY2010 Budget Summary
Expected Layoffs and Restorations by Program and Union
Recommended BPS Budget Detail
