Letter from the Superintendent

If you are not already on Kyrene’s listserve, you will want to be! Important information is relayed via the system. This is some of that information. (Refer to the previous post for how to add your email to the list)

June 2, 2011

Dear Kyrene Community:

In last week’s edition of “Kyrene Communicates”, I outlined the recent budgetary challenges Kyrene has been experiencing. As I met this spring with parents, staff, school board and community members, I have been filled with pride as people describe the quality of the Kyrene Schools and the programs that they are passionate about. 

As you know, over the past three years Kyrene’s funding from the state has decreased by 10 percent.This year, our deficit is over 4 million dollars. With these reductions, we simply must adapt to new ways of doing things. We are unable to provide exactly the same education as in the past. Staff, parents, community and school board members have had challenging conversations on balancing the budget for the upcoming school year. 

The recommendations for 2011-2012 are:

• Over $700,000 in administration reductions

• Adjustment to the schedule for elementary classes in Library, Art, P.E. and Music. 
Each subject will be taught 45 minutes per week.

• Class size ranges will increase by 1 student in kindergarten, 2 students in first and second grade, no change to third, fourth and fifth grades and 1 student in sixth through eighth grade.  (See table below)

• Akimel A-al, Centennial, KMS and Pueblo on 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. schedule, Altadeña and  Aprende on 8:15-3:15 schedule to save $500,000 in transportation costs

• Reductions of some social services/ prevention

• Reductions in district department budgets

• Reductions in school supply budgets

• Reductions in utility expenses

• Reductions in academic intervention

• Pursue revenue enhancements including web and bus advertising, field naming rights, increased preschools and other business partnerships.

 

CLASS SIZE INCREASES

Grade Level / Current (2010-2011) / New (2011-2012)

Kindergarten / 21-23 / 22-24

Grade 1 / 22-24 / 24-26

Grade 2 / 23-25 / 25-27

Grade 3 / 26-27 / 26-27 – no change

Grades 4 & 5 / 28-30 / 28-20 – no change

Grades 6, 7 & 8 / 30-32 / 31-33

 

As we look to the future, we  must leave no stone unturned and  will continue to examine efficiencies in every area of district operations from transportation to administration. Statewide, Kyrene is recognized as a district that maximizes dollars in the classroom and spends the least on administration. These priorities will continue. School districts across our nation are struggling to compensate for lost funding for education.

In Arizona the situation is particularly acute and we anticipate these challenges to continue for another few years. Thankfully, we are in a better position than other districts that have closed schools and/or completely eliminated programs like library, art, music and P.E.

We encourage parents, business leaders and others to suggest creative solutions that may result in budget savings. To provide your input or get more information, go to: Kyrene School District - Budget Update. Working together, I know that Kyrene will continue to be a premier place to educate Arizona’s youth as we move into the next part of the 21st Century.

Sincerely,

David K. Schauer, Ed.D.
Superintendent

Stay IN THE KNOW

Stay connected with Kyrene’s email system! One of the most important ways to be involved is to be informed.

Dear Kyrene,

As a community member or parent, you can stay up to date on what¹s happening in your public school district by signing up for our E-newsletters at   http://www.kyrene.org/ksdportal/list/index.htm.

It’s best to choose your child’s school and also the Kyrene Community news so you can stay informed on district-wide issues.

Special note to:  PARENTS of incoming 6^th Graders remember to sign up for the middle school newsletter as your child  transitions from 5th to 6th grade.

Some schools will be sending out important information in July so we urge you to remind other parents of this important communication tool.  (Hard copies will be made available to those who do not have regular internet access.)

Nancy Dudenhoefer, Community Relations Manager

Volunteer Appreciation

Calling all Pueblo

Volunteers!

Allow us to appreciate all that you have done for Pueblo this year by attending our Volunteer Appreciation this Thursday, May 19th from 6:30pm-7:30pm.
We will hold a very short PTO meeting to vote in our 2011-2012 PTO Board and approve spending of the remainder of our income from this year. We will then have a casual, fun evening. Refreshments will be served.
Please RSVP by 10pm TODAY, Wednesday, May 18th so that we may prepare a special, little thank you for each of you! RSVPs should be sent to:

 Pueblo-PTO@hotmail.com

See you Thursday!

Cutting $5.3 million

The Parent Network is a non-profit organization, serving parents of Kyrene Elementary, Tempe Elementary and Tempe Union High School Districts.

They are providing us with critical district budget information that will affect our children beginning next school year. We are sharing this information with you so that parents are not caught off guard with the changes in our schools.

There are many updates. The Parent Network is suggesting that if you do not have time to read through all the updates, you may want to concentrate on the first three major changes listed below facing the Kyrene Elementary School District. There are also additional details provided in the attachments.  We realize the following is a lot of information, but we wanted to pass it along to our PTO network.  Also, at the end of this email is a list of upcoming meeting dates, so if you are interested in learning more and/or having a chance to ask questions of District officials, this is your chance.

Total M&O Budget Reduction/Deficit for 2011-2012 = $5.3 million

(In other words, $5.3 million needs to be CUT from the budget for the upcoming school year)

Proposed Reductions or Cuts for 2011-2012

1. Raise Class Size (lose teachers) grades K-3: increase by +2 students, grades 4^th-8^th: increase by +1 student

SAVINGS: $1,350,000

2. Change 4 middle schools start time to 9:00am. [PUEBLO, Akimel A-al, Centennial, Kyrene Middle School] (lose 14-15 bus drivers)

SAVINGS: $540,000

3. Change grades K-5 Specials [includes music, PE, art & library] (Note: library will now be considered a special in the rotation and be the same at all schools)

Current Specials Scheduling in Kyrene Schools:

· PE- twice a week for 30 minutes each

· Art- once a week for 40 minutes

· Music- twice a week for 30 minutes

· Library- varies among schools

THERE ARE 3 OPTIONS FOR THE GRADES K-5 SPECIALS SCHEDULING CHANGES:

OPTION 1:

Music, Art, PE and Library will be ONCE a week for 50 minutes each.

Teacher Hours-

· PE teachers go from 25 to 17.6 hours

· Music teachers go from 24.3 to 16

· Art teachers go from 15.6 to 17.6 hours

· Library goes from 19 to 17.6 hours

(total loss of teachers: 13.5)

SAVINGS: $756,000

OPTION 2:

Music, Art, PE and Library will all be ONCE a week for 45 minutes each.

Teacher Hours-

· PE teachers go from 25 to 16 hours

· Music teachers go from 24.3 to 16

· Art teachers go from 15.6 to 16 hours

· Library goes from 19 to 16 hours

(total loss of teachers: 19.9)

SAVINGS: $1,121,120

OPTION 3: (Hybrid)

PE stays like it is – twice a week for 30 minutes each

Music – once a week for 30 minutes each

Art stays like it is – once a week for 40 minutes each

Library would be once a week for 40 minutes each

Teacher Hours-

· PE teachers stay the same at 25

· Music teachers go from 24.3 to 16

· Art teachers go from 15.6 to 15.5 hours

· Library goes from 19 to 15.5 hours

(total loss of teachers: 11.9)

SAVINGS: $666,400-$722,400

4. District Office Reductions includes reduction in positions, budget & benefits

SAVINGS: $600,000

5. Prevention Services: Loss of Prevention Specialists at KMS & Centennial and Loss of Social Workers (from 4 positions)

SAVINGS: $220,000

6. Limit on Substitute Budget (not benefits)

SAVINGS: $500,000

7. Elementary School Gifted Program: combine 4^th and 5^th grades (already being done at some schools)

SAVINGS: $250,000

8. Grades K-3 IA Allocation – 15% reduction in allocation (pertains to use of aides)

SAVINGS: $150,000

9. Transition additional campuses to contracted custodians (will retain those long-term custodian employees. Note: some campuses already use contracted custodians)

SAVINGS: $120,000

10. Resource sharing among schools (for example, if a school needs 20 more desks, a search would be made throughout the district to find these, rather than order new ones)

SAVINGS:$75,000

11.Changes Temperature Settings for Heating and Cooling (raise in summer, lower in winter)

SAVINGS: $62,000

12: School Budget Reductions (includes non-personal budgets by 5% and change in allocation based on differentiated needs-based model)

SAVINGS: $141,000

13: Substitute Costs (eliminating stipend and require administrators to substitute)

SAVINGS: $40,000

14: Maximize Capital Override (some expense in personnel in technology will be shifted to Capital Override)

SAVINGS: $260,000

TOTAL SAVINGS: $4,874,000 - $5,329,000 (rounded to nearest $1,000 range because it depends what option is chosen for specials)

Additional information from last Kyrene Governing Board Meeting provided by The Parent Network:

Last night (4/26), at the Kyrene Governing Board Meeting, a list of 40 teachers to reduce in force was given to the board to approve.   The meeting lasted over 4 hours and at the end of the meeting, the vote was to approve.
    K to 6th grade: 27
    7th -8th grade Language Arts: 2
    K to 8th grade PE: 5
    K to 8th grade Music: 5
    K to 8th grade Art: 1
Under the budget agenda item there were approximately 15 speakers from the audience. (Note, this is Sandy Lowe's summary.)

· 4 Cielo parents in support of the Hybrid specials model

· 2 Librarians supporting Library as a "special" and consistent at all schools

· 2 social workers/prevention specialists supporting keeping these critical services at Centennial and KMS

· 3 PE teachers supporting the Hybrid specials model. One suggested a revenue generating idea of collecting a small amount of money from families to offset cuts.

· 1 classroom teacher supporting the process of the sub-committee made up of teachers, who brought recommendations to the K-8 committee regarding the Specials options

· 1 KMS parent asking for process involving shareholders in the community begin earlier than late April.

· 1 parent who was asking questions clarifying reasons for changes and offering revenue enhancement solutions as a possible alternative to cutting programs.

· 1 community member asking for consideration in providing more information about possible changes earlier in the year.

What's Next:

May 3rd at 4:30pm at District office:

K-8 program committee meeting with the governing board to discuss budget options. 

This would be an excellent meeting for parents to attend to understand what changes are being considered and to see how governing members are responding to the proposals.

Kyrene continues to have meetings with school communities:   

April 28th:

· Paloma 3pm

· Sureno 3:30pm

· Waggoner 5pm

May 2:

· Akimel A-al 1pm

May 3:

· Sierra 9am

May 4:

· Lagos 3:15pm

· Kyrene District Office –COMMUNITY MTG 6:30pm

· KMS 8:15pm

May 5:

· Estrella 7pm

May 6:

· Brisas 7:15am

May 9:

· Norte 7pm

May 12:

· Centennial –COMMUNITY MTG 6:30pm

Letter regarding district budget concerns.

Dear Kyrene Community,

As you probably know, the Kyrene School District is nationally recognized for its excellent reputation.  The District is located in established vs. growing neighborhoods and has experienced declining enrollment in the past. State funding is based mainly on student enrollment.  However, for the first time in many years enrollment is stable and on the increase.  This is a positive development but, due to the state’s economic crisis, the Kyrene budget has decreased by over 10% in the past three years. In 2008-09 it was approximately $107 million and is predicted to be approximately $95 million for 2011-12.

You can learn about the 2011-12 budget at Governing Board Meetings and upcoming Community Forums: 

• Tuesday, 4/26 at 7:00 p.m. – Next Governing Board Meeting, District Office Ben Furlong Center Board Room, 8700 South Kyrene Road, Tempe, 85284

• Wednesday, 5/4 at 6:30 p.m. - Community Forum, District Office, Ben Furlong Center Board Room, 8700 South Kyrene Road, Tempe, 85284

• Thursday, 5/12 at 6:30 p.m. -  Community Forum, Centennial Middle School, 13808 S. 36th Street. Phoenix, 85044

While other districts have closed schools and eliminated special programs like Art, Library, Music and P.E., Kyrene values experiences for children in all content areas including the special area classes.

Kyrene has been able to avoid cuts like these by:

• freezing employee wages

• using available Cash Reserves (savings account)

• reducing staff

Kyrene has had amazing community support to raise funds through bonds and overrides. These funds help us:

• reduce class size

• provide state-of-the-art technology learning tools that are integrated into children’s learning, making Kyrene’s technology program a national model

• secure our campuses

• maintain our buildings

• purchase buses

During the Kyrene budget process, over 130 efficiency ideas were brainstormed.

Which of these considerations would specifically affect your child’s school?  Things being considered include:

1. Cuts to Administration

2. Program Reductions/Efficiencies

a. Elementary School Special Areas scheduling**

b. Transportation – Middle School Start & End Times

c. Gifted Program scheduling

d. Prevention Services

e. Substitute Budget

3. Class Size Range Adjustments*

Other ways to gather information on the budget process include:

• Governing Board Meetings and Study Sessions in person or via video - (Next meeting is Tuesday, 4/26)

• The Superintendent/Kyrene parent Video Sessions

• The Budget Pages (which include FAQ’s, Facts and Myths and a Feedback section)

• Talk with your Parent Superintendent Council (PSC) representative.  (On a monthly basis each school sends a person to a meeting with me and we have provided them with facts on the budget)

Thank you for being a part of the Kyrene Elementary School District. While budget struggles have forced us to operate with reduced revenue for some time now, we are working hard to ensure that, despite those reductions, the community can continue to be proud of the education our children receive.

Sincerely,

Dr. David Schauer

Superintendent

*Class size is determined by ranges (Kindergarten is 23-25, 1st grade is 25-27, etc.) and if we raise that range by one or two then some classrooms could be larger.  However, we do have some dollars that will be applied specifically to the primary grades to lower class sizes in K-3.

**We are studying possible changes in scheduling for Elementary Library, Music, Art and P.E.  However, none of these programs will be cut out of the student experience.  For more information on this study, visit www.kyrene.org/k8

PUEBLO SUPPLIES: How to donate a free ream of paper! (Act by this Saturday, 4/16)

Public schools increasingly rely on donations for many basic school supplies.  While everyone's pocket-book is feeling the economic pinch, you have a way to help donate that won't end up costing you a cent. 

Now through this Saturday, April 16th, Staples (the office supply company) is offering a rebate that covers the entire cost of a ream of multi-purpose paper.

Here are the easy steps to follow:

Link to Staples Coupon
1) click on the link above-- this will redirect you to a Staples webpage (note: you may have to temporarily allow pop-ups on your computer);
2) print out the "FREE HP multipurpose paper ream, 8-1/2 x 11" coupon;
3) redeem the coupon at any Staples store & purchase the specific $5.99 ream of paper;
4) go online (or mail-in) following Staples rebate instructions;
5) turn in the ream of paper to your child's AcLab teacher (you will make them very happy!)
6) pat yourself on the back for taking the time to do something to help our school, while you wait for your rebate check to arrive in the mail from Staples!

Thank you for supporting Pueblo!

Seussical theater experience for grades 4 - 8

Students in grades 4 - 8 can participate in Kyrene School District's summer production of Seussical the Musical Jr., whether as a cast or crew member. It will be a memorable experience!

Auditions are coming up April 25 and 27 at Akimel Middle School in Ahwatukee. Performances are June 28 and 29 at KMS. All who audition will be part of the production.

Details:

http://www.kyrene.org/commedfhb/SummerTheater.html