By Tom Lange, Truth Staff
tlange@etruth.com
ELKHART -- While school administrators look for ways to fill the massive tuition shortfall left by the state, parents and teachers are anxiously awaiting the fallout.
Many believe that administrators are doing the best they can, but question whether state officials truly understand how their actions affect classrooms.
Joann Williams is the vice president of Bristol Elementary School's PTO. Two of her children attend Bristol and she has a third at Pierre Moran Middle School.
Williams said it's sad to see schools suffering. Bristol has great teachers and paraprofessionals, she said, and she's worried that some may lose their jobs because of the $3.9 million in tuition losses for Elkhart Community Schools.
"With that much of a deficit I think it's inevitable," she said.
Michelle Kercher has two children enrolled at Model Elementary School in Goshen and is president of the school's PTO. A former kindergarten teacher for Middlebury Community Schools, Kercher said she doesn't know if GCS will cut faculty, but she praised the efforts of Superintendent Bruce Stahly. She believes he is working to insulate as many people as possible from the cuts the district will have to make.
Neither Williams or Kercher think state officials are in tune with area classrooms. Williams doesn't think lawmakers realize how cuts ultimately impact students. And Kercher suggested that officials should spend some time in front of a class full of students before reducing funding.
"I think there are a lot of those people in government who have never set foot in a classroom and have no idea what teachers face everyday," she said.
So far no area districts have announced plans to lay off teachers, a move that the Indiana Department of Education has said should be a last resort. ECS announced its first round of changes last week, which include a hiring freeze and an examination of employee efficiency. The changes should save the district about $1.2 million. More changes for ECS are on the way, and other districts are still examining their options.
Marie Giese and Sharon Frazer, Indiana State Teachers Association UniServ directors for the seven area school districts, aren't optimistic that faculty can escape the cuts unscathed.