Comments on the WPS budget before the Council

Monfredo: suggests a working group of Council and School Committee
mention of Medicaid, grant decision
split of new revenue (it was a 50/50 split in the 90's)
"shape the economic future of our city"
Rob Cohane, co-chair of CPPAC (who's a South High grad, class of 1988)
"over 450 petition signers" asking for 3% over the state mandated foundation requirement
"what we think the priorities of Worcester should be"
"by at least 3% above"
since 1988 the city has consistently contributed less than 1% above the minimum
statewide average is 14%; urban districts is 3% in spending

"nothing above the minimum for public education"
"show we are competing with communities across the Commonwealth"
60% of money from city coming from other sources
20% of city revenue goes to schools; 80% goes to city
"we need a safe city with a competitive public education"
"not whether we need this, but how we are going to do this"
 "find the revenue to increase the budget in a sustainable way"
"I ask you to make public education a top priority by establishing competitive funding"
Deb Steigman
"year after year, we talk about..."
"eight classes that have 26 to 29 children in a class"
 "how can I honestly look in somebody's eyes and say, 'send your kids to my school!'"
"the last time I checked there are police and firemen who have kids in our schools...about us and our children"
"paying for the sins of past City Councils" and the lowest residential tax rate
"where's the long-term strategy?"
"we can do something in the short term...I can't believe you can't come up with at least the $700,000 to bring down those class sizes"
 Jenith Charpentier
"a lot of parents that are there are real watchdogs of the administration and what's going on in our schools"
core of our mission is to make sure that that communication is having
"we've been going to budget presentations on the School Committee side for years and years"
"where we ask for the 3% above, it comes from the research we've done of communities across the state"
"we would like to work toward reversing that trend"
"we really hope that you will join us in that pursuit"
Karin Valentin Goins
"my kids are good students and work really hard"
"I'm wondering what I'm supposed to tell her when she asks why we live in a place that does not fund our schools as like communities do"
"it's really an economic development strategy to invest in public schools"
Charles Gruzska
 frequent correspondent of the Committee and Council; retired principal
taxpayer of nearly forty years
"I retired in 2006; well before that, we were projecting how the foundation budget was getting way out of line"
"the time was going to come where that was just going to become so prohibitive"
"foundation budget is $2.1 billion inadequate statewide"
"all I can do is verify in personal experience"
pleased that class size coming down is a priority
"I was fighting if I was going to have a 25th student in my classroom"
"a mere beginning from my perspective trying to get the best for students"
"the need for a school nurse in every building"
"I will never consider a position in a building that does not have a full-time nurse"
 "I don't mind paying the tax dollars, but I do worry about the property value"
"I ask you to realize that 3% above foundation...that's paltry..it's going to take years...foundation is inadequate...the measure has to be taking up at the local level if we're going to have that quality"