North Little Rock School District staff members and parents questioned School Board members Thursday about the district's plans for middle school construction, budget cutting, academic rigor and a supportive school climate.
Thursday's community forum was the first of four that the board is hosting at different locations in the city to get feedback on the district's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and challenges.
The forums come at a time when the board is considering budget cuts -- primarily to employee-longevity, sick leave and holiday pay -- for the 2017-18 school year to help offset the end, after the 2017-18 school year, of the $7.6 million a year in state desegregation aid. They also come at a time when the district has built new, or extensively remodeled, its elementary and high schools but has had insufficient funds to extensively renovate North Little Rock Middle School.
"I have a lot of concerns about taking away unused sick leave, longevity pay, holiday pay and outsourcing [to private companies]," Freida Womack, an elementary school computer lab manager, told the board.
"I feel that the type of teachers and educators and workers that we have who are already trained -- that if we start taking away things that we have been given and we have earned -- then I feel we won't get the type of teachers we need," Womack said. "We'll have to go back and get somebody who just started," she said, also adding that employees will take more of their sick leave and cause the district to rely more heavily on substitutes.
Marsha Satterfield, the district's director of child nutrition, was among the audience members who urged the board to finalize and communicate its decisions on the budget cuts so as to end rumors, ease stress levels and curb the exodus of employees from the system.
"The reason people are stressed out is because decisions have not been made," Satterfield said. "It's making them sick. I'm constantly putting out fires at one school or another. People are saying they are going to lose [benefits or jobs] and 'I'm going to go ahead and retire now.' They are ready to jump ship. They are scared they are going to lose something. I'm hoping you guys will make decisions this month because these people .... are trying to get jobs with other districts. We are losing or are going to lose some really valuable people."
Robert Donaldson, the district's director of transportation, suggested that the district's department heads be asked for recommendations on cutting costs in their sections without causing services to deteriorate.
School Board member Scott Teague said he liked that idea of pushing the budget cutting onto the administrators.
"We need $3.6 million in cuts and we've been struggling. We've been dealing with this for three or four months. Maybe it's time to stop and say this is the number we need collectively. Bring it to us."
Board member Luke King said the board has identified what could be the most effective way to reduce costs and that it is the route the board will take unless different ideas are forthcoming.
Faculty members at North Little Rock Middle School asked about a timeline for replacing or otherwise addressing the building needs at the middle school, which is made up of the former Lakewood Middle and North Little Rock High School-East Campus.
Superintendent Kelly Rodgers said he has a contract waiting to be signed on his desk for the replacement of the roof at the middle school as well as at Ridge Road Elementary and North Little Rock Academy.
The district has about $15 million in a construction fund that could go toward additional work at the middle school, but also could be used in offset operating expenses -- minimizing the budget cuts needed for the coming year.
King said he would personally favor doing "meaningful work" at the middle school "but that means going without in other areas." He said he wants to know from the district's residents what is their top priority for spending the money and what can be tolerated in terms of sacrifices.
"We want to create as much benefit as we can, but we must make choices," he said.
Board member Tracy Steele said he would like to see a new middle school building and that it might be necessary to ask voters to approve a property tax plan to pay for that construction. He said a new building could cause middle school-age students to remain in the district rather than exit the district after they finish elementary school to attend private and charter schools.
Steele also urged that the city of North Little Rock take steps to make the city more of a draw for families with children.
'The best way to build revenue is to keep the students you have and attract new ones," he said.
Prisca Selhorst, a teacher and parent in the district, urged the board to renew its focus on academics and to recruit students who have strong interests in academics.
"We have so much to offer. What are we going to do and how are we going to meet those needs and recruit those students to our district? I fear we will lose some for that."
Selhorst said she sees people "kind of denigrate the usefulness or the effectiveness of traditional classrooms and traditional classroom teachers.
"I see that as a threat to our district. What are we going to do to support academics in our district and rigor when the message that we are sending is that it's not a focus?"
One of the programs that the board has contemplate eliminating is the academically challenging International Baccalaureate program.
School Board member Dorothy Williams responded that she is not supportive of that proposed cut because International Baccalaureate is an instructional program.
"Our hearts should be in academics," Williams said.
Subsequent community meetings are set for the following times, dates and places:
• 5:30 p.m. April 11, Amboy Elementary School, 101 Auburn Drive.
• 5:30 p.m. April 18, Seventh Street Elementary School, 1200 Bishop Lindsey Drive.
• 5:30 p.m. April 25, Ridge Road Elementary School, 4601 Ridge Road.
"I've enjoyed all the comments," Williams said at the end of Thursday's forum. "It's been an eye-opener for me."
Metro on 04/07/2017