Comments on Aberdeener: More School Budget Woes

Joey, On the agenda was a discussion about the bud...

2010-02-09T15:35:16.193-05:00

Joey, On the agenda was a discussion about the budget. What is the verdict? Fill us in.

Joey?

2010-02-05T09:14:57.954-05:00

Joey?

Joey, Speaking of budget woes, what is the distr...

2010-02-04T12:04:25.900-05:00

Joey,
Speaking of budget woes, what is the district doing about non residence students attending our schools especially in the area of special education. Who is responsible for making sure all of our students legally live in the town? The rumor is we have some students who don't belong here and nothing is being done about it.

So true.

2010-02-03T20:57:55.351-05:00

So true.

Rich V. You are a joke. You on the school board ...

2010-02-02T16:36:24.822-05:00

Rich V. You are a joke.

You on the school board is also a joke.

You as a voulnteer coach is also a joke.

And as a joke you are not funny.

What is the football budget? What is the sports ...

2010-02-01T18:07:59.070-05:00

What is the football budget?

What is the sports budget?

What is the band budget?

What is the theatre budget?

What is the pre-k budget?

Everything needs tbe looked at.

If it is not the basics of education it needs to be looked at.

Salary of Glastein first to go.
Salary of Spells second to go.

Reality sucks don't it.

I am losing my home and I am fed the F up with teachers and administrators who feel privilidged and all too safe because of the NJEA and salaries too generously awarded in the past for hack administration personell who do little. 25% of their healthcare costs they should pay as well in this next contract or let them walk the picket lines.

Welcome to our reality.

Mr. Warren, Why should the union give concessions...

2010-02-01T17:05:17.255-05:00

Mr. Warren,
Why should the union give concessions? The people you have so much respect for negotiated this miserable contract and now these same people will do it again. This time, if you don't rein in salary increases that far exceed the rate of inflation and find a way to require all employees to pay a portion of their health care costs comparable to those in the private sector, you will have failed us. Negotiate a fair contract, one that takes into account ten percent unemployment and wage freezes in the private sector, and we won't have to be looking for concessions to properly educate our children within our means and without our property tax bills soaring.

Teacher pay tied to student success? It will be am...

2010-02-01T07:33:27.816-05:00

Teacher pay tied to student success? It will be amazing how many kids will get good grades in class and then all of a sudden will have it be said that the student didn't test well. The MTEA will fight this tooth and nail. Just like the tenure clause that allows for too many teachers to languish in their own hypocricy.

I am a parent in Aberdeen and one of my son's ...

2010-01-31T20:58:52.512-05:00

I am a parent in Aberdeen and one of my son's friends is over every night. He never does any homework while my son does. I ask him if he has any, he says yes. My son tells me that he never does anything, his parents dont care how he does in school.

Is it fair to tie a teachers pay to whether this kid works?

Why are we letting the union stop us from taking a...

2010-01-29T13:44:30.741-05:00

Why are we letting the union stop us from taking a stand? Teachers pay should have some correlation to their performance and student performance.
Can't the board refuse to negotiate with the union?

I reiterated my position and I've been asking ...

2010-01-26T20:13:46.288-05:00

I reiterated my position and I've been asking the administration for an Armageddon budget.

We're trying to cut as much as possible without touching the classroom or extra curricular activities. However, absent some union concessions, I don't see how it's possible to cut 10% without hitting the students some way.

Mr. Warren, At the last board meeting did you pas...

2010-01-26T20:00:51.401-05:00

Mr. Warren,
At the last board meeting did you pass a motion for no tax increases?

Now the teachers have to agree to have your suppor...

2010-01-24T12:50:40.966-05:00

Now the teachers have to agree to have your support of what the taxpayers want. Your the employer, they are the employees. Of course that would be the position of union thugs who have gotten away with bullying a broken system and feel they can hold you hostage without performing. Under instruction from the taxpayers, inform the teachers union the district will not agree to anything other then tying pay to teacher performance. Your supposed to represent us.

Merit pay is a contractual issue. Under instructio...

2010-01-23T19:47:16.423-05:00

Merit pay is a contractual issue. Under instruction from the NJEA, the teachers union informed the district it will not agree to anything that ties teacher performance to student performance.

If the teachers agree to merit pay, they'll have my support.

Two thirds of New Jersey voters favor merit pay fo...

2010-01-22T19:02:22.644-05:00

Two thirds of New Jersey voters favor merit pay for public school teachers according to a new Quinnipiac Poll. As a board member you should listen to the voters and negotiate for what the majority is in favor of. Here is a big opportunity to really do something constructive that could make a difference, instead of wasting time on writing mission statements. Your mission, should be to do what the taxpayers are overwhelmingly asking for.

I've been intending to write a piece "How...

2010-01-21T18:23:00.754-05:00

I've been intending to write a piece "How to Lobby the BOE". It's an issue of who, when, and how. The problem is people are coming to the mike during a 3-minute comment period immediately prior to a vote being taken. Plus, the comments are usually regarding personnel, an area where the board has very little involvement.

If you want the district to change direction, you need to become part of the conversation. The board won't be recommending a budget until March. Now is the time to be heard. Don't wait until after the conversation has ended.

Did you ever wonder about low attendance at board ...

2010-01-21T17:10:02.573-05:00

Did you ever wonder about low attendance at board meetings even with the attempt to rotate the meeting place. Is it because of the great jobs the schools are doing and our taxes are so low? Is it because no one cares about the issues, especially taxes or doesn't have the time? I think not. Its because the attitude most people have is minds are already made up, so why bother. Another great one is they are going to do whatever they want anyway. That is the perception of past and the current board. When was the last time administration or board members changed their position based on public comment? Why bother, no ones listening. With unopposed elections of recent years you have no consequences.

Some of the cuts will be draconian and have politi...

2010-01-21T15:17:39.396-05:00

Some of the cuts will be draconian and have political consequences, like the disgruntled former employee running for the school board.

Appearances to the contrary, voices at the school board meeting do carry weight.

Joey, You said we need to make some noise at the ...

2010-01-21T14:25:45.704-05:00

Joey,
You said we need to make some noise at the next board meeting for a no tax increase. Who should that be directed at? We know where you stand on the issue. Does the superintendent, the business administrator or other board members need convincing that we can not afford any more taxes at this time. It seems from your tone that everyone is not on board with that.

My money is on O'Malley that he comes through ...

2010-01-20T22:17:31.438-05:00

My money is on O'Malley that he comes through again for the taxpayer! Mark down this comment. Joey has the inside scoop and he knows what O'Malley is doing.

The business administrator did exactly that and fo...

2010-01-20T19:53:13.789-05:00

The business administrator did exactly that and forwarded the responses to the board. Every single insurance provider we approached rejected our business because, even after the cost increases, our staff's health insurance claims were higher than our premiums. In other words, even after a 25% increase and paying over $19,000 for family coverage, the state was still losing money on us.

This is what happens when employees have zero incentives to restrain health costs.

Get our high priced Business Administrator or her ...

2010-01-20T19:47:55.823-05:00

Get our high priced Business Administrator or her assistant to get prices from different insurance companies.

The district can not find comparable insurance for...

2010-01-20T19:45:37.262-05:00

The district can not find comparable insurance for less than a 25% increase? It needs to be shopped and start saving us money as soon as possible.

The current contract remains in effect until a new...

2010-01-20T18:09:49.378-05:00

The current contract remains in effect until a new one is signed and the benefits section is very bad for the district. It requires us to maintain a teacher's current level of benefits, regardless of cost to the district.

So, let's say insurance costs rise 25% (which they did), we have to foot the entire bill. Then, let's say the state changes its plan to no longer cover abortions. The district would be required to either purchase supplemental insurance or reimburse any teacher the full cost of getting an abortion. If the state changes the cost of co-pays or deductibles, or anything, we have to guarantee the difference.

Joey, If the contract can not be settled and it r...

2010-01-20T17:55:45.822-05:00

Joey,
If the contract can not be settled and it remains the same as last year, who pays the difference when the benefits increase? Shouldn't the district continue to pay the same amount, not the increase if it is not negotiated.