School budget increases while people are losing jobs
Mar 04, 2011 12:01 am
To the Editor:
The Western Regional School Unit 10 could be losing about $1.2 million in federal aid.
In the 2010-11 budget, RSU 10 received about $700,000 in stimulus money, which was to be used to help schools downsize and adjust their budgets.
When RSU 10 received this stimulus money, they did not downsize but kept running along as usual. They held off any layoffs until the money ran out as it was scheduled to do. The school district now wants to add the lost $700,000 funds on the local town taxpayers. The raises and benefits continue to be provided to teachers and school administrators because of so-called prior agreements.
The system has about 2,800 students with a budget of $34,128,000 results to $12,188 cost per student. Auburn school budget for the FY11 was $34,167,477 and resulted to $7,807 per student, published in the Sun Journal on Feb. 18, 2011.
The state average is $9,632 and RSU 10 needs more money? This school budget is increasing while people are losing jobs and have not received any cost of living increased for the last couple of years.
Richard McInnis,
Rumford