BFA cutting down on the arts?

[slpott]

I would not think that our next generations education as a whole should be the target of "cut backs". Kids today barely have a chance as it is, growing up in this world. Some of these kids need physical dedication to stay on the right roads. Some need various ways of expression whether it be the arts or music. I could think of a lot of other ways to balance the budget. I personally would rather have an optional band teacher than an elementary music teacher. Soley my opinion. I also think that with the sports there is a community effort that comes together. Count the number of people that come and watch these games that don't even have kids in school. It is just as much a community effort and entertainment. Maybe there is a fee that we pay to offset the coach or maybe get a volunteer. It appears to me that the coaches are usually a teacher of some other sort. I praise them and as far as my family is concerned we love the sports and will do whatever we can to keep them. Especially soccer. (In our case).

[mirjo]

in my opinion it is the parents responsibility to provide extra activities for their children not the schools and if that had been adhered to along time ago we wouldn't be in this mess now ,it has turned into a big babysitting job for someone else,take care and spend sometime with your kids the just might surprise you

So, do I understand correctly Ed, what you're saying is that kids shouldn't be involved in any extracurricular activities?That they should only spend their free time with parents, because those parents with active kids don't spend enough time with them and if they bothered to, they'd be surprised by the experience? Just making sure I have it right.

It's a proven fact that students who participate in extracurricular activities are overall higher achievers, so there is something to be said/gained from arts/sports programs in schools. Parents' of said kids are generally very involved in attending these functions, volunteering time for the team/group; are therefore interacting with their child regularly and are much more in tune to and involved in what's going on in the school community in general. I'm not seeing a downside. If you've got one (other than the obvious $$) please share.

The one taboo subject that no one ever mentions, for politically correct reasons, is the REAL budget buster, year in year out. Anyone who has ever attended a budget meeting knows that the largest chunk of school funding is for teachers' salaries. I don't want to set off a firestorm about the injustice of it all, because WE KNOW, I know. Teachers have an important job that really isn't all that easy (regardless of all the perceived vacation time). They are public servants and get paid accordingly. We are all aware that salaries are not created equal in this country.

That being said, reality bites. Maybe it's time for the teachers' to go a year w/o a pay raise. It's not that I don't think they deserve one, I just think that every other sector has taken a hit in jobs, pay cuts, pay freezes, health care premium hikes, but when it comes to teachers everywhere there seems to be this sense of entitlement in the air around them simply, because they teach our kids. they shouldn't have to pay higher ins premiums are take a pay cut or anything that the rest of the American public is doing. They don't have to, they have the power to strike.

I personally feel it's a highly important job, but I also feel that the title also bears some altruism and this would be a good time for all teachers to show it. Prove that their career choice is truly about the kids--allowing any program cuts for the sake of their raise is not about the students.

I know their are union rules, but I think they could collectively agree to not take a raise. That's just one idea to keep costs down.
Probably an even bigger part of the problem is the government itself and all of the ridiculous mandates that are now in place.

Has anyone ever wondered why there are so many para-eds in the school? I don't know, but it seems like there was an explosion of paras in the past 10 or so years. I think the sixth grade alone has more para-eds than teachers. I'm sure the ratio is similar in the elm and 7/8th grade. They aren't paid a lot, but it adds up.

What's unfortunate is that many people have plenty to say about how a school is funded (and for good reason usually) but very few people attend the budget meetings and ask the  necessary questions to really find out where the money is being allocated and why.

So much for a quick response.

[rod anode]

im saying that the parents should pay for their kids activities dont make the taxpayer do it, that is what i am saying .if your kid wants to learn to skydive should the taxes pay for that ?i didnt think so . the same goes for music ,baseball ,soccer ,football ,painting ,drawing ,and whatever else happens there ,when I was in school we wanted to play baseball ,we found a way to pay for it,I think that just the process of getting together as a group with one thing focused on will bring a community much closer together that is what i`m saying

[El Heff-ay]

I am new to this , but I am going to ask that if you are at all concerned about this situation PLEASE attend the meeting on Monday night. My wife and I will be there and I have quite a list of questions. The only way we can get answers is by going to the meeting. I don't mean this in a bad way,  but bantering back and forth will do us no good. We all have our own opinions and that is what this country is all about. Board meetings are always open to the public and your comments are always heard. If you don't go you will let five individuals plus a select few others decide the future of your children. The board has until December 15th to submit their recomendations to the state. According to the minutes from the September 13th school Board meeting  after the meeting on the 11th, they have set another meeting for 25th at 6:30 for budget planning. There is another meeting on the 8th of November   (regular meeting), and according to the minutes November 22 if needed. So these are our chances. There have been numerous letters /emails written to Mr. Clark and more wouldn't hurt.

Just a sidebar, If you look at the announcement in another section of this great site There are three AP scholars recognized and all have been involved in music or the arts. Have a great evening.

[Rev. Elizabeth]

Many of the athletic teams raise much of their money through a variety of fund raising events: the football p layers sell gold cards; the nordic skiers sell citrus fruit, and have a skiathon...the list is endless.   There is interest in developing a sports booster club.    So in some ways, parents DO pay for the extracurricular activities--both through their support of the various fundraisers, and through their taxes.

[El Heff-ay]

We have just started a new thing for the band in fact. It is called Friends of Music. it was an idea that came up from Bruce and Melisa (Band & Chorus) to come up with ways on how to get the community and parents more involved with the band / chorus and thuoghts to raise money to defray costs for trips and things. We actually had our first meeting on September 22 and figured out some ideas for a fund raiser for around the Holiday concert time. I don't have the next meeting date right now, but I'll post it when I get my hands on it. The band and chorus do some wonderful things and it would be a shame to lose that.

[Mike Raburn]

My wife "makes" me watch GLEE.

[trussell]

I'm here for ya, Mike.  I have one of "those" wives too

[mirjo]

Don't be dissin' Glee, it's good kitschy entertainment...

your wives make you watch it   is code for  you like the show, but not brave enough to publicly admit it! 

[Mike Raburn]

Shhhhhhh.

I don't wanna turn in my Man card.

[mirjo]

No worries Mike, I got your back. your secret is safe with me!

[FletcherGram]

Mirjo, Bravo and well said. This topic isn't just for the Fairfax school system but for all school systems and school boards.

[mirjo]

when I was in school we wanted to play baseball ,we found a way to pay for it,I think that just the process of getting together as a group with one thing focused on will bring a community much closer together that is what i`m saying

I have to ask (not in a mean way), where and in what era did you go to school? For as long as I can recall, a sport like baseball at the HS level has been funded by the school. That may not be true for all schools, so that may have been the case for yours.

I hear what you're saying and I don't entirely disagree; however, as part of the curriculum, students are required to have at least 1 fine arts credit  to graduate. I don't know if this is a state standard or a BFA standard, but it's a requirement none-the-less. The music program is considered a fine art and is part of that crediting process.

So, while the arts are considered an integral part of a well rounded education (and they are) I think all of the art programs, including band be covered under the  budget umbrella. The extra curricular stuff the band does should be subsidized with fundraisers (& I think it is), but it's a credited course and should be treated as such.

As for the sports programs at BFA, I believe they are dually funded by the school and the boosters. The Friend's of Fairfax Football were such successful fundraisers over several years by starting and continuing a successful DIII football program. They have been able to turn the team over to the school. The board voted to dissolve the FFF and established BFA,BFA (BFA Boosters of Fairfax Athletics) which supports all athletic teams. Katie Ballard is the president and Karen Langelier is the VP. You can become a member at a tiered level starting at $10. Memberships run from July1-June 30.

Since the community really supports these teams by coming out to the games, this is one more way to support them that takes some of the burden off of the school. The middle school sports main expense is in the travel and whatever small amount the coach is paid--those kids get the old JV and varsity uniforms to wear--at least for soccer & BB. I don't know about spring sports. The Nordic skiers supply  their own  equipment and hold fundraisers for trips.

I'm thinking that the perceived cost issue with sports isn't as big as imagined, but questions aren't being asked of the right people. There is an issue with school sports and transportation--the school has to transport teams, it's a liability/insurance issue, I believe. I may be wrong, but I believe there is some kind of insurance/liability issue that requires the school to be involved at a certain level.

So as with all things in life, it's not a black & white issue. Going back to what David Shea pointed out before, if the participation level of band students has dropped  such that a reduction in the amt of time a teacher is needed warrants the cut, then that's something that should be looked at, but there was always far more for the band teacher to do than band--ind lessons was one thing.

Again as I said previously, if schools are expected to level fund budgets this year, teachers should be expected to level fund their salaries also. with a little tweaking of things that need it and a faculty pay freeze for the year, I would bet that budgets would easily stay in line where they need to be. Just a thought...

[Chris Santee]

Meeting Tonight at 6:00pm in the Multi-Purpose Room at BFA Fairfax.

[CindyG]

Does anyone have any updates from the meeting?

I am concerned about this issue as well.