So I am here at the budget meeting for my kid,  his school,  his education.  I didn’t quite know why I was here at first,  as more people testify I understand what it is all about.  They are looking to reestablish the baseline budget and how they evaluate how much a given school system needs to properly educate children. 

Budget for ESL kids,  asked to double services,  budget model has not changed.
State allowed preschool education but based on previous year enrollment. So first year leaves gap.
11:42

Springfield: Foundation budget established in 1993.
Extended services based on lvl4 recommendations but no increased budget to support the required services. Cutting regular students to address special needs. Reimbursement needs to match services provided.
Chapter 70 reimbursement. Mental health has been huge impact to cost.
We’ve got a 40 year teacher who is getting loud and preachy. He has a point but coming off as potential loose cannon. The long white beard, fedora and tweed is not helping his idealist argument. Do what is right for the children, just come up with the money.
Parent teacher home visit program. Full day summer school. These are the kind of needs they have and they’ve only been able to do i5 through hat in hand charity.
11:59

Holyoke: recalibration needed, 8nflation he outpaced. Accounting for special needs. Counting them, providing per child instead of base or average, often not enough. Not punish schools by linking financial support to tests. Many new good calculations that have proven to be much for accurate guage.
220,000 to manage a school 2.5 teachers instead of paying for outside management for. Level 4.
12:05

NH Vocational teacher. Internet connectivity is a challenge. Less of an emphasis to use it at home if they do not have the resources especially at home so miss opportunity to reinforce techy lessons. Minimal technology standard. Whitehouse Connected, unable to install on school computers, not powerful enough.
12:10

My idea, better use of old technology, 1/3 replacement program with older machines used for alternates such as Linux, or dismantled for hardware instruction and building.

Video will be posted at nhstechnology.com

Foreign language does not get budget due to special needs, children denied, can’t go higher due to staff deficiency
Still using Windows me
$500 annually, books, supplies, everything
12:18

Montague
What services are necessary, just take top performing schools 14,000 per kid. Have everyone start with that and add ELL needs to that.

Chapter 70 formula has low income, propose rural consideration as well, their increased needs lack as well, ring average, 5 year. Not getting hit, average and soften the drop.
Provide research on actual spending vs foundation budget. Might be more realistic than per pupil.
12:25

Belchertown
Everything is paid for by homeowner, look at rural towns, busses, stretches much thinner, tech, requirements can’t be met if there is no MO ey, will never catch up. No additional business or industrial taxes. Farming communities have special needs.
12:32

Highschool student. Butter them up, best education in the state. To give student perspective. Layoffs 7 teachers due to transportation budget, it is a human system. What is adequate, acceptable to the promise of education and it is the best investment that can be made. Huntington.
State promised in the past to cover rural cost. Hadn’t done it.
12:37

Holyoke superintendent
High ELL special needs and poverty. Costs rise, we cut. Each of those 8 years as principal we cut cut cut, positions every time due to rising costs special services wrap around services. Sam e pool of money, so can only cover by cutting.
18 months as superintendent
2002 started in Holyoke
12:39

My idea, set goals first. Ideally how often replace books? Computers? Arts? Music, gym. How much to run, to cover growth in general population, special services. Then see how much it costs cN we do it. Post numbers of what taxes would be if we had to cover it all. Governor then budgets based on weighing school against other costs.

NorthAdams
State of PA uses 15% special needs of population, should, Ltd be at least that. “circuit breaker”? 2 disabled students that take 350000 and are unable to be educated, blind, deaf, feeding tubes. Why does medical never provide these services.
12:48

Representative Aaron Vega joined the room.
12:58

Vivianna from Holyoke
Investment to 28% tax against stocks or bond.
My video
Representative gets insertion, out of order.
Vega Holyoke gets 5% reimbursement but actual spending is %26
2 payments a year, so if kid moves full year of money left hanging
1:14

Investigative financial journalist. This is not a cross section (old and white)
1:20

Montague again.
Budget, chapter 70 is brilliant for measuring theoretical, has consistency. Example of a policy that has unintended consequences, primarily due to changes in enrollment. Minus contribution should have an enrollment factor.
…another Montague finance committee member
1:28

Springfield parent
97% poverty, level 4 past 4 years finally stepping out.

Northampton School committee, Chicopee teacher. Fighting over crumbs. See so many other places have so much more spending and charter schools giv8ng so much more to a kid for the same amount of MO ey or because they are better at paperwork and red tape.
1:45

Granville superintendent
Circuit breaker is a major help. Pothole funds. Small but helpful
Special ed assumptions in bill needs review. Inclusion costs more than it is on paper.

My idea, data and tracking requirements are huge, big data, hard to do. How to submit, value added to schools to upload their info, reporting framework.
1:51

Northampton
20 years, xportation for special ed, not addressed. Half a million for 40 students. More than 100000 per kid. Unable to e Pell. They’ve had too hire 3 new employees just for response them due to this requirement that they can not b en suspect did or expelled.

Idea. Are we looking at education or social services? Education costs the same for all. Overages should be handled by health insurance, or at least another specific plan. Additional staff and costs due to I creased medical needs.
2:03

Russel finance commitee
One town doesn’t like the formula, lost school, pays most taxes

NH parent
Passionate about creating schools children can thrive in
Charlie Backer address included his reflection on his school experience and how we can get back to that excellent t, money for special ed, we send to charter schools more than we get per kid, causing deficit.
2:10

NH ed director
Chapter 70 reductions has impacted curriculum. No vice principals so principal can’t spend any teaching time with teachers.
2:15

NH public schools
Parent, principal here too 1988 (pre 1993 changes)
Pot should be increased, NH needs bigger slice.
2:18

orange parent
Head of school committee
Suffer from city problems although small 8k population lvl3 school
Chapter 70 is 80% but town has nothing, what about elderly homeowners, can’t afford tax 8ncdease for the young ins. Sounds like someone in Orange politicals has an agenda.
2:22

Very loud past NH mayor.
Efficiencies: Boston says schools are efficient enough, won’t find a single school where they haven’t done their best to be efficient. Has point, can’t cut, can’t use Boston s baseline since there are so many other costs in the rest of the state.
2:31

Gateway public school district
Finance committee
Challenging, try to put children first. If withdrawal pulls through will set the stage for others to do the same. Don’t believe up on high should tell us how to educate our kids. Keep it simple stupid. Family’s could Co tool their own schools, less from above, more self management.
Money has to come from somewhere and it comes from us
2:35

And it’s over, I was one of the last speakers. Nerve racking to speak, didn’t say any of my ideas but 8 wanted to shine more light on #Holyoke.
It’s a good place, hope exists.
2:43