Leading Question

Anything from additional help in the classroom to band uniforms.

Although teaching positions haven’t been touched in Lee County, classroom aides and other support jobs have been sacrificed, says Mark Castellano, president of the Teachers Association of Lee County. "When you don’t have a paraprofessional in the classroom that needs a paraprofessional, that’s going to impact kids directly."

Joe Donzelli, director of communications for Lee County Schools, says most of the trimming—a result of lower enrollment than expected and state budget cuts—has been at the expense of the district office, where 155 jobs were eliminated. That accounted for $7 million of the $20 million slashed from the 2007-2008 budget. The district needed another $29 million in cuts for the 2008-2009 school year.

There aren’t any substantial cuts to programs or classes this year, but that might not be true next school year, he adds. "There’s no more fat to trim; we are now cutting muscle and bone."

In the 2008-’09 school year, Lee students will lose two days of after-school activities and intramural sports, and they’ll have to wait another year for replacement of band uniforms and fine arts equipment, which puts more pressure on parent and booster groups to pick up the slack, says Castellano.

Collier is in a better position than most Florida school districts, because it began planning last year what changes would have the least impact on the classroom, says Jonathan Tuttle, executive director of the Collier County Education Association. Between $4 million and $5 million has been cut in central administration costs, and the number of deans, program specialists and those who monitor Exceptional Student Education (ESE) programs have been reduced. The school board also is considering outsourcing custodial services.