Unregistered
June 9th, 2003, 09:30 AM
I have been reading with great concern the excellent series of News articles about Buffalo's financial crisis. Even though I do not live in Buffalo, I believe that "as the city goes, so goes the region." The latest crisis in the Buffalo school system needs to be put into perspective.
The problem is not lack of money. It is rather waste and inefficiency brought on by years of mismanagement. With a proposed budget of $503.8 million (half a billion give or take a few million) and approximately 42,000 students, the annual expenditure per student is very nearly $12,000. This is one of the highest rates of spending in the entire country, where the average is $7,000 per student.
The budget of the Buffalo Public Schools could be cut by 40 percent and still be above the national average. Where is this money going? Not to teachers. While handsomely paid by national standards, salaries are low compared to other local school districts. The answer to the problems in the Buffalo schools does not lie in laying off teachers. I believe that the entire system needs to be re-engineered so that the students are getting an education commensurate with the huge expenditures.
RICHARD S. KRAUSE
East Amherst
The problem is not lack of money. It is rather waste and inefficiency brought on by years of mismanagement. With a proposed budget of $503.8 million (half a billion give or take a few million) and approximately 42,000 students, the annual expenditure per student is very nearly $12,000. This is one of the highest rates of spending in the entire country, where the average is $7,000 per student.
The budget of the Buffalo Public Schools could be cut by 40 percent and still be above the national average. Where is this money going? Not to teachers. While handsomely paid by national standards, salaries are low compared to other local school districts. The answer to the problems in the Buffalo schools does not lie in laying off teachers. I believe that the entire system needs to be re-engineered so that the students are getting an education commensurate with the huge expenditures.
RICHARD S. KRAUSE
East Amherst