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CtfY PAGES
continued from page 5
Wetcome to the world of the "65 percent solu
tion."
Perdue has had legislation introduced—which
is expected to pass the legislature—to require
all public school systems to spend at least 65
percent of their yearly budgets on what are cat
egorized as "direct classroom expenditures." The
idea is to spend more money in the classroom,
where teachers interact directly with students,
and less money on "administrative expenses"
that presumably don't contribute to the learning
experience.
It's a proposal that was developed by First
Class Education, an organization founded by a
Republican political consultant whose intention
is to help more Republicans get elected this
fall by appealing to voters on education issues.
Perdue has wholeheartedly signed on to the
group's idea that spending 65 percent of educa
tion funds on the classroom will resonate with
voters—particularly women—who have kids in
school.
The "65 percent solution" has predictably run
into opposition from school officials and admin
istrators—after all, they would have a vested
interest in protecting their jobs and salaries from
shifts in budget priorities. But it's also stirring
up opposition among teachers and parent groups
like the Georgia and National PTA, which call it a
simplistic solution to a complex problem.
The problems arise when you look at what are
classified as "direct classroom expenditures" in
the governor's proposal. Direct classroom expen
ditures include salaries for teachers and parapro-
fessionals, tuition paid to private institutions for
special needs students, the purchase of instruc
tional materials and supplies. But Perdue's pro
posal also includes such activities as "field trips,
athletics, music and arts" that would legally be
part of the 65 percent used for direct classroom
expenditures. The proposed law specifies that
building maintenance, food services, transporta
tion, media centers, teacher training, nurses and
guidance counselors are not considered classroom
expenditures.
That's all part of the game plan. A memo
drafted by First Class Education state' , "For po
litical reasons, it is very helpful that athletics,
arts, music, field trips and instruction and tuition
for special needs students are all included in the
NCES [National Center for Education Statistics)
‘in the classroom spending' definition. This will
deny the validity to the opponent's arguments of
'Johnny won't be able to play football, Jan won't
learn the violin, and Joe's special needs instruc
tion won't be possible.'"
The "65 percent solution" is all but assured
of being signed into law by Perdue as one of his
primary accomplishments for this election year.
It sets the governor on a collision course with
school officials who remember Perdue's state
ments of support for local control of schools back
when he was first running for governor in 2002.
"It represents a pretty high intrusion of state
control into local schools," says Herb Garrett,
director of the Georgia School Superintendents
Association. "It doesn't have anything to do with
education and everything to do with politics."
A more serious problem for Georgia schools,
educators say, is the fact that during the Perdue
Administration, state funding for local systems
has been cut by more than SI.2 billion. Even
with the additional money that Perdue is put
ting into education this year, his recommended
budget would reduce formula funding for public
schools by another $169 million. "Local systems
will still have to scrape up money or eliminate
programs," says Jim Puckett of the Georgia
Association of Education Leaders. "Some have
raised taxes, some have tapped into their re
serves, some have cut programs, some have done
all of the above."
Perdue contends that the spending limits will
fix what's ailing with Georgia schools. "When you
boil everything else down, education takes place
in the classroom between a teacher and a stu
dent," he said recently. "That's where we're going
to put our focus."
Tom Crawford lcrawford©capitolimpact com
Animal Control
Last Week’s Scorecard
Athens-Clarke County Animal Control respond
ed to 87 calls: %
7 complaints of animat cruelty
2 bite cases
2 complaints of barking dogs
5 citations for ordinance violations
61 animals impounded:
50 dogs
2 chickens
1 goat
7 raccoons
I robin
42 dogs placed
II adopted
18 reclaimed
13 turned over to other agencies
ACC Animal Control press release for the week
of Jan. 26 to Feb. 1.
Bumpersticker
Of The Week
Forget Fallujah, Save New Orleans
Keep 'em coming, friends. That's 549-9523 or
ben@flagpole.com.
# UPCOMING *
ATHENS-AREA MEETINGS
Please note: times, dates, and loca
tions of many of the’se meetings are
subject to change. Check back with
local government websites for updates
and information on additional meetings,
Feb. 9,6:30 p.m.. Clarke County School District
offices—Board of Education*
Feb. 9,6:30 p.m., Madison County Government
Complex—Public meeting on Madison County
future land use*
Feb. 9,7 p.m., Oconee County Courthouse—
Oconee County Board of Commissioners*
Feb. 13.6:30 p.m., Dudley Park—Presentation of
preliminary plans for Dudley Park improvements*
Feb. 14,5:15 p.m., Dougherty Street
Governmental Building—Mayor & Commission
Work Session
Feb. 15,7 p.m., Bishop Park—Presentation of
preliminary plans for Ben Burton Park improve
ments*
Feb. 16,7 pjn., Barnett Shoals Elementary School
—Neighborhood Notification Initiative informa
tional meeting for residents of neighborhoods
along Barnett Shoals Road between Whitehall and
Bob Godfrey roads*
Feb. 21,5:30 p.m., City Hall—Government
Operations Committee
Feb. 21,6:30 p.m., City Hall—Legislative Review
Committee
‘ *r Jr. v '" • 4*! v \ * * *
Feb. 23.7 p.m.. Crty Hall—Mayor & Commission
Agenda-Setting Session
Feb. 28,5:15 pjn., Dougherty Street
Governmental Building—Mayor & Commission
Budget Work Session
Mar. 7.7 p.m, City Hall—Mayor & Commission
Regular Session*
* Public comment accepted
6 FLAGPOLE.COM • FEBRUARY 8,2006