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More than 100 patrons of Warsaw Community Schools crowded into the small board room at Monday's school board meeting, while still others leaned against the walls or sat on the floor in the doorway and into the lobby.
At least half of those parents, teachers, students and interested community members were there to ask the board not to do away with block scheduling at Warsaw Community High School, which would include cutting eight teachers from the WCHS staff.
Superintendent Dr. David McGuire said, "For the last several years, we've been told to reduce costs or suffer the consequences." Most of the general fund is employment costs, he said, and block scheduling is one of "the only two programs that can generate the savings we need to stay solvent so all students, K through 12, can receive an education next year."
Block scheduling added 18 teaching positions, he said, and the alternatives would be going to a seven-period day or a trimester system. Eliminating eight teaching positions, he said, would save $320,000 to $400,000 per year.
Parents had a variety of questions. Susie Higgins wanted to know if honors classes would be cut or if it would be non-academic classes like weight-lifting. She also opposed the idea of a mandatory study hall for students if more class periods were added. "I'm not paying for my kid to go to study hall," she said.
Other questions and comments included the suggestion that coaching staffs be looked at instead of teachers, that seven periods would allow less in-depth study in each subject, that administrators' salaries be examined and the hope that students who are not in honors classes or who will not go to college will "not get lost in the shuffle."
Some questioned the need for the building program at a time when teachers will be laid off, and McGuire emphasized that, by state law, money to pay for teachers and for construction projects comes from different funds and cannot be transferred from one fund to another.
"We could build what we're proposing for the high school and probably build a couple of elementary schools without impacting the tax rate," he said.
"It's an archaic system because the state doesn't trust education, they don't trust educators. To have the capacity to (finish what we started 15 years ago) and refuse to do it because it looks bad, I think that's immoral."
However, parent Jay Haughee pointed out that area residents pay the taxes, no matter what fund the money goes into.
"Tax money is tax money," he said. "It's all coming from the same place. It's our money. ... I'm not in favor of not building, but there's a time, and this ain't it."
Teacher Mary Behny asked McGuire what would happen if the school corporation did nothing and simply continued as it is now.
"Bottom line - at the end of this year, the state would take over Warsaw Community Schools. They would come in and impose their criteria to make our budget balance," he said.
McGuire and the board promised to answer all the questions asked in the meeting by writing a newsletter that would be sent to patrons later this week or early next week.
A final board vote on the issue will be taken at the March 17 meeting.
