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Hernando Today

Schools Earn $1 Mill Plus From State - Or Not

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By LINNEA BROWN

Hernando Today

Published: September 20, 2008

BROOKSVILLE - Administrators are already dreaming of the ways more than $1 million in "A" school money will fund bonuses for teachers, afterschool tutoring programs and the hiring of additional help for Hernando County Schools.

But Superintendent Wayne Alexander isn't sure it's a done deal.

Alexander said Friday he thinks state officials won't be able to follow through on their promise to award $85 per student in "high performing school" money to 12 Hernando County schools, and instead will reduce the amount and expect districts to make up the difference.

"It's going to be less than $85. There are more schools getting the money this year, but the money's not there," he said.

Late Thursday, the district received word that the state's sales tax collections continue to decline and that the district may receive a 4 percent reduction in state revenue. That's in addition to a decline in student population of 428 students, which could equal a shortfall in per-student revenue for the district of $1,711,144.

The news came a day after the Florida Department of Education announced that 12 Hernando County schools earned more than $1 million this year in recognition of their academic achievement and improvement during the 2007-08 school year.

Right away, administrators began forming committees to determine how to spend this year's funds, unaware that they money may not be there.

"It's wonderful," said Sue Stoops, principal of Challenger K-8 School of Science and Mathematics, which earned $124,828.

"These teachers and everyone associated with this worked so hard. I just couldn't be happier to get this money," she said.

Schools receive the money each year either by obtaining an "A" ranking or improving by a letter grade from the previous year, based on scores from the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test.

"This is very exciting. Our main goal is for student achievement, and we are looking at different areas for increasing that," added Toni-Ann Noyes, principal of Brooksville's West Hernando Middle School, which earned $94,748.

Due to budget cuts, the amount given to high performing schools this year has already been cut to $85 from the usual $100.

Since the school recognition program's inception in 1999, local funds have been used to build a state-of-the-art outdoor education center at Brooksville Elementary School and pay teachers who teach after-school academic enrichment programs at J.D. Floyd K-8 in Spring Hill, among other initiatives.

Brooksville Elementary - which has earned an "A" for the fourth consecutive year since principal Mary LeDoux took over - has spent more than $70,000 of school recognition money on the outdoor classroom, completed this spring.

This year, Brooksville Elementary earned $65,848.

By state guidelines, the funds can only to be used for purposes that fall within three categories: awarding staff bonuses, hiring additional personnel or buying additional resources to help improve student performance.

At Nature Coast Technical High School in Brooksville, which earned $121,189, principal Margaret "Tizzy" Schoelles said that based on meetings with teachers, officials are in the process of developing a mathematical formula that would award bonuses to all staff.

This year marks the first time the school has earned high-performing school money.

"I think it feels good for the faculty," Schoelles said. "It's a nice way to recognize teachers and they're appreciative of the legislative intent."

Because the cost of paying for additional personnel is typically the most costly, the majority of local schools have used their money for other purposes, such as staff bonuses, updated televisions or curriculum-based computer programs for classrooms.

At J.D. Floyd K-8 - which earned award money for four of the five years that district curriculum specialist Marcia Austin served as principal - officials have used the money in past years to buy enrichment resources for afterschool programs and technology for the school's environmental science program.

J.D. Floyd's current principal, Joe Clifford, said the school's committee is examining the issue and would likely use the $137,068 for additional technology, the hiring of two part-time paraprofessionals to work with students struggling in classrooms and staff bonuses.

"I think we have to be sensitive of the fact that these economic times are challenging for everyone," he said. "We need to provide additional support for kids and put more technology into our teacher's hands, but we also need to take care of our folks."

But Alexander pointed out that the state has a current deficit between $1.4 and $1.8 billion dollars - and with the district already working within tight means, he's not sure how much could be contributed.

"I'm very concerned about the current situation," he said. "I anticipate that come December or January, there will be another reduction that may take the form of people and positions."

Other schools set to receive high-performing school money this year were Springstead High, Fox Chapel Middle, Spring Hill Elementary, Parrott Middle, Pine Grove Elementary, Chocachatti Elementary and Gulf Coast Academy.

Reporter Linnea Brown can be reached at 352-544-5289 or lbrown@hernandotoday.com.

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