School budget draws little interest from public
By Donna C. Gregory ASSISTANT EDITOR

Even with more than half a billion dollars in spending at stake, only four people spoke during a public hearing last week on the FY08 budget for Chesterfield County Public Schools.

And, most of those speakers and their messages could have been predicted by school board members. The roster included Lois Stanton, president of the Chesterfield Education Association, and county critics Brenda Stewart and Shelly Schuetz. All three regularly speak before the school board during public comment sessions.

The fourth speaker was county resident Fred Dumay, who complained about the school system's proposed nine percent increase in spending and how the additional funding is likely to help drive up the county's property tax rate again this year. The increase is "three and a half times the rate of inflation," criticized Dumay before asking the school board to consider scaling back its funding request.

Stewart agreed. "We cannot sustain such growth rates," she said, alleging the salary for the school superintendent has grown by 30 percent over the last two years

"It may seem like a lot of dollars," responded Dianne Pettitt, school board vice chair, later in the meeting, "but we are trying to be very diligent of taxpayer dollars."

Dumay also complained that about 60 percent of county households don't have children in the school system and are helping to foot the bill for those who do by paying higher property taxes.

In contrast, Stanton maintained that some critical school needs are still under- or unfunded, including efforts to lower teacher-student ratios and to retain high-quality teachers.

Schuetz talked mainly about ways the county could deal with overcrowded classrooms, asking school board members to consider kindergarten houses and a voucher system.

Overall, the proposed FY08 budget totals more than $566.5 million, an increase of $46.3 million over FY07. Of that, Chesterfield's contribution would be $246.2 million, an increase of $19.4 million over last year. The balance comes from federal and state sources.

The school board is expected to vote on the budget on Feb. 27. For more information, visit www.chesterfield.k12.va.us and click on "Proposed Budget."

Longer school days

A recent survey taken by the school system revealed a majority of teachers, parents and students do not support extending the school day.

The survey, which included responses from about 9,000 teachers, parents and students, was taken after Superintendent Marcus Newsome suggested lengthening the school day to increase instructional time based on international trends.

"We will not be able to compete in the future if we don't ratchet up the rigor," Newsome told school board members last week.

Some board members agreed.

"Most of us do support more time for students," said Bermuda District School Board member Marshall Trammell Jr., "but the community as a whole doesn't seem to support it."

Midlothian representative Jim Schroeder responded, "Things will never change if we're not willing to go through the discomfort…We're just going to have to bite the bullet."

The school board is expected to vote on the proposed calendar for the 2007-08 school year on Feb. 27.