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Mostly Cloudy Concerns center on pre-K changes
Lawrence school officials defend decision to revise program
Monday’s Lawrence School District town hall meeting at the Number Four School was crowded with teachers who expressed their anger over proposed changes to the budget that include outsourcing the Universal Pre-K program.
Dr. Ann Pedersen, the district’s assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction and the Number Four School principal, and Superintendent Gary Schall addressed the changes, which would include the offer of a $30,000 retirement incentive to 13 senior pre-K faculty members.
The tentative spending plan for the district is $93 million. However, Lawrence officials must also fill a $3.2 million budget gap in revenue created by increased payroll, employee benefits and special education and transportation costs.
Pedersen explained that although New York state requires only a half-day pre-K program, Lawrence provides a full-day schedule to families who choose that option. “Any 4-year-old who wants the program will get it,” she said. “But it’s very expensive, so we have to look at ways to sustain it.”
The district plans to partner with a local university to conduct the program. According to Schall, the students would stay at the Number Four School, and the college instructors would go through the same interview process as any teacher coming into the district. They would be paid as first-year teachers but would not be offered benefits, so the entire cost for the pre-K program would stay within the $570,000 grant the state gives the district for the program.
Teachers and parents who attended the meeting raised questions about bringing inexperienced teachers to the program, removing senior faculty and whether the curriculum would change. “We have had conversations about the curriculum and are committed to keeping it the way it is,” Pedersen said. “We don’t want it to change and will not have the university impose on our curriculum.”
Lawrence High School teacher Linda Gerard, an alumna of the district and the mother of Lawrence graduates, said she was upset about the proposed changes. “I’m a little perplexed as to why these changes are taking place,” she said.
