Tuesday, April 15, 2008

No To School Levy

Unless I have missed it, I have not heard one word about what changes the school district is planning to make at the administration level if this levy fails.

Last month a citizen at a neighborhood council meeting asked Stu Nicholson (school board member) if the rumor that GF High was getting another associate principal was true. Mr. Nicholson didn't know. Yesterday I did a search and found TWO job openings for associate principals; one at GF High and the other at CMR. (The information now appears to have been pulled).

Are the current APs leaving their positions or is the district now hiring two additional ones?

Several years ago I worked for a company in the private sector that fell on very hard times. We did not have the luxury of holding out our hand to ask for help from the taxpayers. We had to figure out ways to keep the ship from sinking. Speaking from personal experience, it's amazing what can be accomplished when options are few and far between.

Quite often, most businesses do not operate as efficiently as they should be. Unless they find themselves in a serious bind, this usually goes unchecked; business as usual. People get very used to doing certain things in a certain way and actually believe there is only one way to do them. Not so. Being on the ropes forces one to reevaluate how work is being accomplished and if it is being accomplished in the most productive manner. Very often there is room for major improvement.

Yes, folks were laid off. Nobody wanted to see it happen, but very hard decisions had to start being made. No employee took a pay cut, but we didn't get raises either, cost of living or otherwise. And it was understood. Folks were just glad they still had a job. It's not even common sense to think that there should be pay raises when money is getting tighter by the day.

This company eventually went out of business, but the experience I gained from staying the course was invaluable. For those of who think the only way to gain an education is from a book, think again. NO advanced accounting textbook or otherwise prepares one for this kind of challenge. It's OJT, all the way.

Until the administration tells me how they plan to efficiently move the cheese at the top, I will be voting against this levy.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

GfGirl....thats what i've been saying also, but alas...still no budget to see. Makes ya go hmmmm

Anonymous said...

Anyone interested in discussing the School District's budget can contact me at 761-3300. If I can't answer your questions I can refer you to someone who can.

Steve Erwin

ZenPanda said...

I'm not voting for the levy.

Anonymous said...

Mr Erwin, can the budget be posted on a website somewhere so that the public can review it. We do not need to be spoon fed. Just post ALL the info somewhere and let us know where to look and if there are questions be prepred to answer them online for all to see. Thanks

Anonymous said...

Please see the posting "School Budget & Mill Levy Info" on this blog for the information you request.

Anonymous said...

The school district is in bed with city halls failing ECP program already getting subsidized with my taxes and bleeding money. Enough is enough!

No new taxes until this town learns fiscal responsibility with my hard earned cash.

Anonymous said...

I don't know how many of you were born & raised in GF but if the voters would have voted "No" when I was growing up, I wouldn't be the person I am today. You still have time to reconsider & vote YES!