Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, May 13, 1995 TAG: 9505160043
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-1 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: PAUL DELLINGER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: PULASKI LENGTH: Medium
But school officials still hope to give 3.75 percent raises next year.
The School Board had requested a $500,000 increase in local funding next year.
"The amount that we asked for was bare bones. We had already eliminated $800,000 or $900,000 out of our recommendation," Superintendent Bill Asbury said at the School Board meeting Thursday night.
County Administrator Joe Morgan reduced the increase by $75,000 before presenting a budget for consideration to the Board of Supervisors. That board then cut another $8,000, with supervisors saying teachers needed no more than the 3 percent raise other county employees would get.
But Asbury said the budget changes would preserve school salary increases as much as possible, believing that the school's employees are its prime asset. He said he still hopes that some of the $83,000 would be restored in local funding.
The supervisors will have their budget public hearing at their May 22 meeting, and adopt a budget one week later.
"I think we have to defend our budget," Asbury told the School Board. "There's nothing in here we've asked for that isn't critical."
Asbury recommended accommodating the $83,000 less than requested by reducing the amount for salary increases from $795,000 to $745,300, and eliminating one of the two buses to have been bought next year, saving $333,000.
Business Manager Walt Shannon said school employees are being offered two health insurance options next year, a "Key Advantage" policy with extended benefits at Pulaski Community Hospital, and a health management organization using Radford Community Hospital. Of the 153 employees enrolled so far, he said, all but 16 have chosen the Key Advantage option.
Shannon Turner, outgoing president of the Pulaski County Education Association, said teachers appreciated the board giving them a choice.
Turner has headed the PCEA for four years, a record. She introduced her successor to the board, Dana DeHart, a teacher at Critzer Elementary School.
Pam Selleck, a local parent, expressed concern to the board about increased Pulaski County High School graduation requirements to be phased in for the incoming freshman class. She said she and other parents understood there would be another public meeting before action was taken on the changes.
The School Board had been set to act on the proposed changes Thursday. Asbury said parents had been able to express their concerns at a previous public meeting and to high school, guidance and administrative staff members, and that information on the changes had been sent home by students for parents to see.
But School Board member Lewis Pratt also thought that there had been an indication at the earlier meeting that parents would have more chance for input. "If it wasn't said in so many words, it was implied," he said.
"Well, I can solve it right now. Let's hold those meetings," Asbury said. "We did have the one big meeting where we encouraged people to come and say what was on their minds. They did come, and they did say what was on their minds."
"We'll have to do it quickly. We're running out of time," School Board Chairman Ron Chaffin said. An attempt will be made to schedule one more meeting, which will also be open to parents of students at Pulaski and Dublin Middle Schools where scheduling changes are being considered. The board will consider the proposals again May 30.
Another parent, Dr. Don Miller, expressed concern about longer classes being planned for the middle schools. He doubted that students in those school had attention spans for classes of more than 80 minutes.
Miller also said that, while he applauded the school system's effort to bring special needs children into traditional classrooms, he was concerned that more advanced students were not being sufficiently challenged. He said his own daughters, who went to school last year in Hanover County, N.C., found themselves repeating much of the material here that they had already had there.
"What we found was basically a review course," he said. "We have noted that even textbooks are not always available." He said advanced algebra and social studies lacked books.
"We're concerned about some of those same issues," said Asbury, who promised to meet with Miller on the matters.
by CNB