10
Never
in
my
42-year
educational career have I
witnessed the dire financial
condition of the State of Illinois
like it is today. I have kept
detailed figures and analysis of
state funding for public
education over the 32 years I
have
been
involved
in
educational administration and
the lack of state support for
public education is at an all-
time low.
Considering the following:
reading and listening to the
various
candidates
for
governor, the large-scale pension changes already
enacted, the expiration date of the temporary state
income tax increase, the continued explosion of
families in need of public assistance, the newly
enacted health care law, the multitude of mandated
changes to public education from NCLB to PERA and
much, much more…
How are we going to deal with all these issues at
the same time state support for public education is at
a historic low point? I think the only way public
education can survive is to retool itself. We need to
start thinking outside the traditional box of public
education and start to incorporate different
processes,
strategies,
teaching
techniques,
bargaining methodologies, class size restrictions, and
much more in order to educate the students of
tomorrow.
I suggest that every district that is experiencing
financial difficulties start a process immediately to
develop a new strategic plan around the concept of
changing the traditional methods of teaching and
learning. Most school districts spend 70 percent to 80
percent of their expenditures on salaries for staff.
Districts can make headlines by cutting sports, music,
extracurricular activities, administrators, supplies,
field trips, etc., but in the end these expenditures will
have a minimal impact on the overall budget. The
real savings comes from cutting teaching staff.
Many districts have cut staff over the past several
years only to see increased spending in special
education services that are mandated.
Mooresville Grade School District in Mooresville,
North Carolina would be an interesting case study for
Illinois school districts to investigate. Dr. Mark
Edwards, Superintendent of Mooresville, initiated a
1:1 computer program in his school district several
years ago. Mooresville has increased its student
academic scores to one of the highest performing
districts in the state with one of the lowest per-
student expenditures.
You can read and view much more about
Mooresville Graded School District at
and
The following has been copied from the above-
mentioned article from American Radio Works;
“Before the laptop program began in 2008, only
73 percent of students in Mooresville were scoring
proficient on the state's standardized tests. In 2012,
89 percent of students scored proficient. Mooresville
was the second-highest performing school district in
North Carolina.
The high school graduation rate went from 77
percent to 90 percent in that same time. Students
from poor families are now graduating at nearly the
same rate, on average, as other students: 86
percent. And African-American students are doing
better than any other group. The black graduation
rate went from 67 percent in 2007 to 95 percent in
2012.
It's impossible to say whether the district's
success is because of the laptop program, and
school leaders are up front about that.
"We did mess up the research," says Mooresville
Middle School principal Carrie Tulbert, because other
aspects of the school district changed, too. "We didn't
do it on purpose, obviously. But it would not be
accurate to say" that laptops are the only reason
Mooresville Schools have improved.
When Superintendent Mark Edwards came to
Mooresville, he made a number of changes, such as
adjustments to the curriculum and a new program
focused on building better relationships between
teachers and students.
Any one of these things could have made a
difference. And it could just be that people in
Mooresville got behind something new and by all
pulling in the same direction, they improved their
(Continued on page 11)
Dr. Richard Voltz
IASA Associate
Director/
Professional
Development
Public education forecast: Time to think about retooling
