Weast outlines ’08 plan

New initiatives in the $1.98 billion budget focus on middle school reform, more counselors and principals

Wednesday, Dec. 13, 2006

Salaries and benefits, including salary increases proposed in pending employee contracts, make up the bulk of a $132 million hike to the school system’s day-to-day budget, beginning July 1.

Tonight, Superintendent Jerry D. Weast will recommend a $1.98 billion operating budget, including $69.9 million more for salaries and benefits for employees. The rest of the increase includes $9.6 million in new initiatives aimed at middle school reforms, adding middle and high school counselors and elementary school assistant principals and class size reductions.

Weast’s fiscal 2008 recommendation increases the budget by 7.1 percent over fiscal 2007, which ends June 30. That is the same percentage increase called for in last year’s $1.8 billion budget.

Teachers, principals and supporting services employees unions all had input into the budget. Employee compensation, which accounts for 89 percent of the budget, is the reason for the greatest increases, Weast said Monday.

The school system announced last week that it had reached a tentative agreement with its three employee unions on salary increases in each of the next three years as part of new contracts for more than 20,000 teachers, administrators and supporting service workers.

Under the agreement, which must be approved by the school board and ratified by union membership, salaries would increase 4.8 percent in fiscal 2008, 5 percent in fiscal 2009 and 5.3 percent in fiscal 2010.

The 4.8 percent increase would add $69.9 million for salaries and benefits to the proposed operating budget for fiscal 2008, which begins July 1.

The school board must approve the recommendations before sending the budget to the county executive and County Council, who both may make changes before the council gives its final approval in May.

Weast’s budget presentation tonight in Rockville will highlight a number of teachers, principals and support staff that he said represent the 21,840 employees who have contributed to the school system’s continued academic success amid significant demographic changes during his seven-year tenure.

While enrollment fell slightly to 137,798 students this year, the number of students with limited English skills increased by 1,200. Students on free and reduced-price meals, an indicator of poverty, increased by 3,000.

To highlight academic success, Weast noted a school system report on participation in Advanced Placement classes by the Class of 2006.

The report, to be released today, shows that 5,282 — or 56 percent — of this year’s graduates took at least one AP exam; 4,234 (45 percent) earned at least one AP score of 3 or higher, the minimum required to earn college credit. That includes significant increases between 2002 and 2006 in both categories among boys and girls, across all ethnic groups and among low-income, special education and limited-English students.

‘‘What’s driving the success?” Weast said. ‘‘It’s the quality of the employee.”

His recommendation includes $9.6 million in new initiatives at all levels, including:

*$3.7 million for the first phase of a three-year, $10 million plan for middle school reform, including 16 new middle school counselors. The plan, which will be discussed when Weast brings recommendations to the board next month, will begin at five schools next year. It includes training, accelerated curriculum emphasizing math and reading and leadership improvements.

‘‘We think in three years we will have the full $10 million and more kids able to do ninth-grade work when they hit ninth grade,” Weast said.

*$1.6 million for 15 elementary assistant principals, bringing the number of elementary schools without assistant principals to 25.

*$1.2 million for school support, including $500,000 for implementation of a new financial management information system.

*$546,000 for 10 more high school teachers and resource teachers to reduce class sizes.

*$305,000 for four new high school counselors.

*$217,000 to expand online student learning.

*$116,000 to phase in 10th grade of the Poolesville High School magnet program.

About $2 million for special education will be shifted so that hours-based staffing can be expanded from two to 12 middle schools. Traditionally, the county has assigned teachers based on the number of students and not on the number of hours of instruction. The hours-based model assigns teachers based on student needs, Weast said.

‘‘Where I would have just one teacher following kids around, I’ve got three and they know math,” he said.

The model has proved successful, Weast said. At Silver Spring International Middle School, which piloted the staffing model along with Forest Oak Middle School in Gaithersburg last year, sixth-grade special education students improved by 32 points on the Maryland School Assessment test.

The budget increase also includes $16.1 million that it is projected the school system will have to pay to a trust fund to cover retiree health care costs. The County Council set aside $32 million for all county agencies under a new accounting rule. The school system will set aside the money and invest it for each of the next five years, said Marshall C. Spatz, the school system’s budget director.

County taxpayers will contribute about 40 percent of the $1.98 billion budget, including $56 million (4 percent) more than in fiscal 2007. State and federal contributions will total about $74 million more.

The recommendations assume that the state will fully fund the $1.3 billion Thornton school funding law, including a formula that apportions money to school systems based on the cost of living in their county and on needs related to addressing student achievement.

Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. (R) has left out funding for that formula in past budgets. But Gov.-elect Martin O’Malley (D) said this week that he is committed to fully funding it, leaving Weast optimistic.

‘‘I heard it from the governor[-elect] today,” he said. ‘‘Right from his lips. That’s a promise after the election, which is always better than a promise before the election.”

$1.98 billion for fiscal 2008, which begins July 1

$132 million increase — about 7.1 percent over the previous budget

$69.9 million of increase goes to salaries, benefits

$3.7 million for first phase of a three-year, $10 million plan for middle school reform, including 16 new middle school counselors

$1.6 million for 15 elementary assistant principals

$1.2 million for school support, including $500,000 for implementation of a newfinancial management information system

$546,000 for 10 additional high school teachers and resource teachers to reduce class size

$305,000 for four new high school counselors

Source: Montgomery County Public Schools

Tonight

What: Superintendent Jerry D. Weast announces fiscal 2008 operating budget proposal

When: 7:30 p.m.

Where: Rockville High School auditorium, 2100 Baltimore Road

Free child care and interpreters in Spanish, French, Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese and American Sign Language will be available.

What happens next?

School board will hold public hearings at 7 p.m. Jan. 10 and 11 in the auditorium of the Carver Educational Services Center, 850 Hungerford Drive, Rockville. Speakers must register; call 301-279-3617 beginning Dec. 20.

Worksessions will be held at 7:30 p.m. Jan. 24 and Jan. 25 in the Carver Center.

Board will approve the budget on Feb. 13 and forward it to the county executive and the County Council.

To read the fiscal 2007 budget recommendations, go to www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org⁄departments⁄budget.