Friday, February 6, 2004
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Friday, February 6, 2004 |
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School system facing lean times By JOHN THOMPSON During its retreat last weekend, the Coweta County Board of Education got the gloomy forecast for the upcoming budget year. Comptroller Keith Chapman told the board members they were facing possible cuts from the state of more than $10 million. “We won’t know the exact amount until April after the General Assembly has adjourned,” said public information officer Dean Jackson. One of the biggest cuts the system approved was just over $3 million by upping the student-teacher ratio in the elementary schools. The system will adjust the class sizes in first grade from 17 students to 20 student, which will still be under the state standard of 23, Jackson added. Another major area cut was in reducing planning times for middle and high school teachers. The system will save over $3 million by cutting the teacher’s planning period from 50 minutes to 25 minutes and having them teach the additinal 25 minutes. Other cuts approved by the board included: • $285,000 in cuts at the central office. • $1.5 million by postponing the new textbook adoption. • $138,000 by eliminating the night high school. • $ 425,000 by eliminating the master teachers in high school. • $135,000 in cutting the signing supplements. Jackson said the school system will be monitoring the General Assembly’s budget actions and continue to adjust their proposed budget for next year.
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