http://commweb.fcps.edu/newsreleases/newsrelease.cfm?newsid=1881

Highlights:
*$2.4 billion, 9% increase over FY2012
*8.4% increase in the county transfer over FY2012
*Increase in student population by about 3,900 students, pushing FFX Co. over the 180,000 student mark
*FY2013 Cost per pupil = $13,654; 6.5% increase over FY2012
*2% COLA plus step increase for instructional staff
*Increase salary of entry-level custodians to match market scale
*FCPS had the lowest percentage of leadership team and management positions in relation to total positions of all Washington area school systems for FY 2012
*Since FY2008, total enrollment is up by 15,000 students, ESOL enrollment is up 48.3%, and the number of students eligible for free and reduced lunch is up 35.4%

"The Fairfax County School Board will hold public hearings on the FY 2013 budget on January 30 and 31 at Jackson Middle School, 3020 Gallows Road in the Falls Church area of Fairfax County; the speakers list for those public hearings opens on Friday, January 13, at http://www.fcps.edu/schlbd/meetings/requestspeak.shtml. For complete information on the FCPS FY 2013 budget, including the budget calendar, visit http://www.fcps.edu/fs/budget/index.shtml"



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/13/2012 07:39AM by Random Dude.

Wow, over $40k for my kids! I'm finally getting something back from all the taxes I paid during those years being single and no kids.

The 2013 school year may start in August if the Kings Dominion law is overturned. Jack Dale said this would give the kids an extra two weeks to study for the SOL's.

SOL's are a joke. I feel sorry for kids if they have another two weeks of boring SOL pre-tests. Enough.
.

It is quite likely that the "Kings Dominion" law is going to be repealed/amended but FCPS has already stated that it would not affect the FCPS calendar until 2013-2014.

school year Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> The 2013 school year may start in August if the
> Kings Dominion law is overturned. Jack Dale said
> this would give the kids an extra two weeks to
> study for the SOL's.
>
> SOL's are a joke. I feel sorry for kids if they
> have another two weeks of boring SOL pre-tests.
> Enough.
> .

God no more time for SOLs -total waste of time. I thought Dale applied for federal appeal not to do that. when is he leaving anyway?

Did anyone watch the school board meeting? What's up with the committees?

Jack Dale has said they need the money and that has been good enough for years. Bulova and the rest of the tax and spend liberals will be only too happy to hand over 9% and more if he wants.

I would be glad to spend more for education, if it improved the education, we need fewer stupid people here like the above teastooge.

I, too, would be happy to spend more on education if it improved it. However, if you do a little research, you will find that there is an inverse relationship between the amount of money poured into education and the results......

Why? because the money does not get to the classroom or the teachers. It ends up going to bureaucrats who justify their positions by giving more demands and paperwork to teachers. The students do no benefit most of the time.

I do believe teachers should get good pay--but the idea of merit pay will not work until we identify what makes a good teacher. Here's a secret--it is not test scores. There are too many variables on test scores and far too many opportunities for fraud--particularly if money is involved.

Instead of merit pay (I heard this a.m. that NY mayor wants to give $20,000 annual salary increase to "great" teachers), we should start with getting rid of "dead wood" and give the jobs to good teachers. This starts with good principals, which come from good supervisors, which comes from a good superintendent......(secret: not Jack Dale). A good superintendent is not necessarily the best paid (see Jack Dale), but someone who truly cares and is capable of managing a large organization. It is not a "glad hander" with a fake? tan.

Hopefully, our new school board will not look for charm, but competency in its search for a new superintendent.

0ver pay

Read between the lines, a majority of the money will be directed to the non english speaking / immigrant students which account for the large increase in the student population. If you the taxpayer think much will be used to help your little darling, I have some land off the coast of Florida to sell you. The pie can only be cut into so many pieces. Learn a lesson from Prince William County.

P T Barnum said..... Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Read between the lines, a majority of the money
> will be directed to the non english speaking /
> immigrant students which account for the large
> increase in the student population. If you the
> taxpayer think much will be used to help your
> little darling, I have some land off the coast
> of Florida to sell you. The pie can only be cut
> into so many pieces. Learn a lesson from Prince
> William County.


FCPS is projecting an increase of more than 3,900 students for the 2012-13 school year. Since FY 2008, the district’s enrollment has grown by more than 15,000 students. “We are seeing the greatest increases in the numbers of our students with additional needs,” the Superintendent explained. “Since FY 2008, the number of students enrolled in English for speakers of other languages (ESOL) has risen 48.3 percent, and the number of students eligible for free or reduced-price meals is up 35.4 percent.”

Fairfax County is full. Over capacity. Time to SHUT THE DOORS. Before we collapse under our own weight.

Thank you Gerry Connolly and Sharon Bulova for making us a sanctuary county. If you think the financial engine of Virginia can steam along like this forever, then you have not read the history of California, 1990 - 2010.

3 in FCPS, soon 2B 4 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Wow, over $40k for my kids! I'm finally getting
> something back from all the taxes I paid during
> those years being single and no kids.

Unless your children are special needs or ESOL, the actual amount spent to educate them is less than $2400 per year, roughly $72,000 for a 30-child classroom of general ed elementary children. Not an easy number to derive from the way they present the budget, but true.

Enough of the needs-based budgeting crap - lower MY kids class size now! I pay the %$%#@$$# taxes that educates all the illegals - the least FCPS could do is give my kids classes less than 34 students.

Former teacher has it right. Money is not what makes a good education. Yes, pay the teachers, but get rid of the layers and layers of bureaucrats who just make the teachers miserable and demoralized. Get rid of the tests that don't prove anything real anyway. Yes, the taxes go higher and the class sizes just keep getting higher and the students have less choice (no honors classes anymore). Something is terribly wrong. Where is the money going????????

The SB closed a school last year and one of the reasons used was declining enrollment. Do they just pull these numbers out of their ass?

About the $2M "reserve" to help overcrowded classrooms ..........is this the answer to balancing against the "needs based" staffing? Why not just set a basic standard for class size and put a "reserve" to help the schools that need it more. The poor schools already get federal funds to reduce class size.

It seems to me that when it comes to cutting, that the $2M "reserve" will be the easiest place fo staff to cut--and the affluent schools will be back to 30 plus classrooms....

If you read the Patch news, you know that BOS members --including Bulova--have already said that the budget is unrealistic.

isn't the school board once again trying to get taxing authority from Richmond?

Man can you imagine the horror that would bring!

board watcher Wrote:
> If you read the Patch news, you know that BOS
> members --including Bulova--have already said that
> the budget is unrealistic.

The schools always ask for some huge amount knowing it will be cut back. They ask for 9% and get 7%, in Fairfax speak that is considered a cut in the school budget.

721 new staff members because they expect to add 4,000 new students?

5 staff members per new student? He did say that some of the new staff would be in the construction area, I think.........Wow! Is this incompetence, basic math issues or sheer arrogance?

What in the fire is FCPS paying Jack Dale to do? This is beyond pitiful.

Go to FCPS home page and click on the slide show for the budget. You can listen to Jack Dale as well as see the slide show.

http://www.fcps.edu/news/fy2013.shtml

If anyone is fed up with the current status quo "TAX AND SPEND" please look up the Libertarian Party of Northern Virginia www.lpnova.org . Thanks!

Patty Reed and Eliz. Schultz both Republicans made insane statements about the budget. Reed was praising Dale for the increase and Schultz made comments that no sane person could possibly understand. Are these ladies Republicans or did they just have time on their hands and decide to run for school board? Schultz doesn't have a clue and Reed is clueless. Is this a bad reality show?

Inquiring minds want to know.

They have both displayed intelligence and astuteness in the past. I was surprised at Reed's comments, but I think it may have been a little tongue in cheek. She basically said she was happy to see some of the increases. I think she was speaking about teacher pay, etc.

Schultz's question was quite astute--I don't know why you couldn't understand it. She said that what drives the budget is the number and type of student that FCPS gets. Since Dale was basing much of the increase on the expected population growth in FCPS, her question was about the projection. (Projections have been poor in the past.) When Dale responded that he had already hired a demographer, I think that Schultz just decided to hold her fire. I'm pretty sure she already knew that since it had come up during Clifton closure--and she also would know that said demographer had left out chunks of Clifton in the population projection. Her suggestion was to get outside help as other districts seem to project better than FCPS. What was "insane" about that?

I would think that Reed and Schultz both decided to hold their fire. There is plenty of time for that.

Schultz's question was stupid, there is a demographer per Dale's comment and they have improved projections per data and percentage rates in CIP. All that is old news the issues are class size, too much $$ going to certain areas and taking from the mainstream pop.

Schultz is a disappointment and will not get votes to win a motion---too ego driven.

Over 54% of the local government budget goes to Fairfax County public schools.

If you want your real estate taxes to increase even higher, then support the proposed 9% increase in the FCPS budget.

If you DON'T want your taxes increased, then engage and tell FCPS and the School Board where the budget has to be reduced.

Fat chance getting anything near 9%. The overall economy cannot support it. Nobody's home value has increased, oil prices are up, salaries are not increasing. Federal government budget is decreasing. Where do they think the money will come from? Unless there is suddenly an upturn in the private sector (?)

Oh, yeah, and Jack Dale's almost gone . . . he has no incentive to "get real". The SB has to start doing real work . . . getting real information and making decisions---not sure they know how to do that.