State Superintendent Atkinson and Education Leaders Warn Additional

Budget Cuts Put Public Schools at Serious Risk 

State Superintendent June Atkinson today joined Asheville City Schools’ Superintendent Allen Johnson, Buncombe County Schools’ Superintendent Tony Baldwin and principals, teachers and students at Hall Fletcher Elementary School in Asheville to discuss the impact of proposed budget cuts to K-12 education at both the state and local levels.  

"North Carolina ranked 42^nd in the nation in the amount of money it spends per student in 2007-08 and this year, our public schools received a smaller appropriation from the state’s General Fund than in 2006-07, even though we now have 30,000 more students." Atkinson said. "A decrease in state funding provided for K-12 public education is a harmful trend that, if it continues, will endanger our schools, our students and our state’s economic health in the future." 

In the 2009-11 biennial state budget approved last year, the public school budget was cut by 12 percent and schools lost 16,253 state-paid positions this year. Additional cuts under consideration for this year bring the total amount of public school cuts to $1.2 billion. This represents a 16 percent total decrease in North Carolina General Fund support for public schools compared to the 2008-09 funding level.  

The budget for the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction (NCDPI) was cut by 8 percent for 2009-10. This reduction, when combined with cuts slated for 2010-11 and additional cuts in the Governor’s proposed budget, add up to a two-year cut of 24 percent for the NCDPI while other state agencies have been cut by only 2 to 7 percent. These decreases also are coming at a time in which the U.S. Department of Education is requiring more state monitoring, reporting and technical assistance and the agency is undertaking an ambitious effort to redefine the state’s Standard Course of Study, testing program and the school accountability model. 

Education leaders at every level agree that any additional reductions in funding for public education will translate to more teacher layoffs, increased class sizes, fewer middle and high school electives and sports, fewer programs to help at-risk students, fewer summer programs and a significant decrease in support districts, schools and teachers receive from the NCDPI.   

"Buncombe County Schools has already lost $17 million in state and local funding and 115 positions going into the current year,” said Superintendent Baldwin. “We have protected K-3 classrooms so far, but class sizes for other grades have increased substantially, and will continue to do so if the budget outlook does not improve. If we are to continue doing all we can to prepare young people for their future, we need the support of parents and the community more than ever before."

Classified Salary Supplement for all classified employees is 10.77% ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++