Garth stands up for our kids once again

(UPDATE BELOW)

He just couldn't do it. And I applaud him for it.

Guilford County School Board member Garth Hebert was the lone dissenter during last night's budget cut vote. When it came down to it, Garth stood up for our children and our teachers.

High Point Enterprise:

"The real effects (of the cuts) are in the classroom," Hebert said. "We're taking $217,000 out of the classroom. This choice is being forced on us."

Hebert objected to funds for classroom supplies being trimmed instead of making more cuts in central administrative staff.
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He's right.

Now compare Garth's quote to Board member Deena Hayes' quote in yesterday's News & Record:

“There’s a lot of places in there I wish we didn’t have to make (cuts) but they’ve done the best they can.”
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I said yesterday that GCS had not done their best. I still stand by that. GCS still remains extremely top-heavy downtown. Trim some of that fat, then come talk to me, and ask me then if they've done their very best.

But GCS chose the cheap-and-easy way out instead, cutting supplies primarily to the Newcomers School and Kirkman Park Elementary School.

The irony is that Kirkman Park is a troubled school, where enrollment is down, reading scores are way down, and is one step shy of a state takeover. So why the hell would you cut supplies to a school that needs it the most? Where is the logic in that?


Welcome to Guilford County, where nothing makes sense.

Bad move.

Today's News & Record:

More than $665,408 is being cut from supplies for schools with international teachers. An exchange-type program provides supply funds on a per- student basis for students in classes taught by visiting foreign teachers.

Board member Garth Hebert worried that two special program schools, Newcomers School and Kirkman Park Elementary, which have small populations and a large percentage of international teachers, might be hurt by these cuts.

Chief Financial Officer Sharon Ozment told the school board that the supply funds would be made up with funds that buy supplies for traditional schools.

“You’re not convincing me this is safe, wise or the way to go,” Hebert said.

The budget cuts include a 1.9 percent reduction in the per-student dollar amount for all schools.

The cuts were approved in a 10-1 vote with the addendum that if the two schools, Newcomers and Kirkman Park, need additional funds, then the board could return to the issue.

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Again, it was Garth that stood up for our schools, who stood up for our kids and our teachers.

Back to the Enterprise article:

The cuts in materials will be spread across the school system, affecting 117 teachers.

"Our schools are still going to get instructional supplies," said board member Nancy Routh.

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Are they? They're not getting them now. Schools are already running low on supplies, in fact some have already run out completely!

HPE:

"Although I am troubled by these cuts," said board member Jeff Belton, "I am going to support these recommendations."

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I'm sorry Jeff, but if you were troubled by the cuts, why did you vote for it? Both you and Dr. Routh had an opportunity to make a bold statement last night, along with Garth.

You didn't.

So when the so-called Teacher Supply Warehouse runs dry and teachers have to continue dipping into their personal pocketbooks for county-issued supplies, maybe they can send you the bills, how about that?

Trim the fat, guys. Trim the fat. That's where your savings is.

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UPDATE:

See this GCS page with links to the line-by-line adjustments and reductions.

See GCS Supt. Mo Green's blog about last night's actions.

E.C. :)