At the Called Board Meeting this week, District staff continued discussions with Board members about budget planning and our future as a school district. The headline from the meeting caused some to stop and catch their breath, so I wanted to follow up with some clarity and honest conversation about the discussions with the Board.
One of the ideas I’ve shared with principals is that while schools are not businesses, we have to begin thinking about them similar to businesses. What does that mean? It means a store, or business, can’t operate successfully without customers. Similarly, schools can’t continue to operate at the same level they’ve been operating at with less clientele - stakeholders in the form of students. We’ve continued to see a decrease in student enrollment in Bibb County as charter schools like ACE and Cirrus have opened, and county residents continue to send their children to private school over public school. Some parents or students even found they preferred virtual school as a result of online instruction during COVID. That’s one of the reasons we opened a virtual school in Bibb - to support students and parents who prefer that option without losing student enrollment.
Why is this important? The relationships we build with our students matter; the relationships we build with parents matter; and the relationships we build with community partners matter. Perception also matters. What do you share with other stakeholders about our schools? How do you speak about our schools in public - and in private? Our parents and stakeholders see you, our employees, as the expert on our district, so they listen to you and they look to you for answers. My hope is that even after I retire that you will continue the work you’ve been doing to build relationships and manage perceptions because Bibb can’t afford to continue losing students.
With the Board’s agreement, staff will begin reviewing student enrollment numbers and projections for future enrollment, and comparing this with the funding provided by the state based on FTE (student enrollment). Did you know that a good chunk of our elementary schools have such low student enrollment compared to what the state expects student enrollment to be as part of its school-funding model that it actually costs the District more to operate those schools? Smaller schools are great when it comes to community and parent engagement - feeling like you’re a part of a neighborhood school. Smaller schools aren’t so great when it comes to the opportunities they might limit us on offering students. With smaller schools, the District doesn’t necessarily get funded for all full-time media specialists, all or extra full-time Assistant Principals, or even as many teachers and staff as we allot to schools. That means kids might miss out on expanded curriculum opportunities we could offer in larger school settings with more funded teachers.
Lower student enrollment also means we’re not earning as much state funding for operational costs. Think about the utility bills, the cost of hiring additional staff to maintain partially empty buildings throughout the district, the cost of providing security for each of those buildings. Teachers and instructional leaders are not the only ones impacted by lower student enrollment.
What’s most important right now is that you understand no schools are closing next year; however, we will be analyzing our operations and funding to ensure we’re operating our district in a way that ensures we can keep educating all students, keep ensuring the safety and security of students and staff, keep paying staff, and keep the lights on. That may mean we need to consider closing or consolidating schools. It won’t be an easy decision, and it won’t be a quick one. Know that a lot of thought and review will go into these decisions, and we will keep you informed as we move forward - because we value you and our relationship we’ve built with you.
VIP Continues!
Curtis