Superintendent David Title and First Selectmen Kenneth Flatto agreed on one thing Monday night: Fairfields schools have excellent teachers. But they dont agree on whether Fairfield needs more of them next year. Title pitched the Board of Educations 2011-12 spending plan to the Board of Finance and Board of Selectmen, but one of the major sticking points was his proposal to add six new full-time teachers.
Titles plan would move six teachers from elementary schools into middle and high schools, because enrollment is dipping in the lower grades. But he said that to keep class sizes at their current levels, he would still need to add even more staff to the higher levels. Where the enrollment is going down, were cutting the positions, Title says. But because of the enrollment, we do have some increases.
The Board of Education initially asked for a 4.9 percent boost to its funding of more than $189 million. However, in his first draft of the town budget last month, Flatto cut the districts spending increase to 3.75 percent.
The boards can cut the amount of money for Fairfields schools, but they cannot tell the Board of Education what to trim. Flatto said last month that the district could make do without hiring six new full-time teachers and expanding hours for part-time educators, as Title pitched in his spending plan.
Title and Flatto disagree over whether enrollment would grow over the next few years. Title cited the audit done by MGT of America late last year, which predicts 102 new students next fall and 95 more in 2012-13. Flatto, however, does not trust those estimates. He used birth rates to make his own calculations and predicted only 53 new students next year and declines after that.
I do think some of their needs, or should I say some of their desires, are reasonable, Flatto said. But I think in this environment ... I think theres a ratio that we have to consider.
Do you think Fairfield should hire more teachers? Or do you think it should try to save money? Voice your opinion in the comments below.
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