Schools survey: Taxes OK, program cuts not

By Emily Richmond

Tuesday, April 1, 2003 | 11 a.m.

Higher taxes to pay for public education? Absolutely, said the more than 14,000 parents, students, teachers and administrators who took part in a Clark County School District survey.

Eliminate or cut existing programs to make up for a $220 million deficit if Gov. Kenny Guinn's budget plan doesn't pass? Absolutely not, the majority of the same people surveyed said.

District officials released the results of the much-touted survey Monday, tallying responses from 2,470 attendees at four town hall meetings and 11,758 school employees.

Of the town hall participants, 84 percent said they agreed or strongly agreed with increasing taxes to maintain current education programs and 83 percent agreed or strongly agreed with Gov. Kenny Guinn's proposed increases and additions to the state's tax structure.

Among employees support was equally enthusiastic -- 75 percent favored increasing taxes for education spending and 80 percent backed the governor's proposed budget.

"This is very good news," Greg Bortolin, Guinn's spokesman, said. "The governor's budget is built around the idea that education is the answer to diversifying our economy. An educated work force attracts new types of businesses, which in the long run will make us less dependent on one industry."

Clark County school officials have been warned by Guinn's office that unless his budget plan wins approval, the district will need to cut $220 million over the next two years. That's on top of the nearly $90 million that's already been shaved from the $1.2 billion annual budget in the past three years.

The community meetings were held to alert the public to the district's impending crisis, Superintendent Carlos Garcia said.

Assemblywoman Vonne Chowning, D-North Las Vegas, said the school district's survey results jibe with the hundreds of telephone calls, e-mails and letters she receives each week from parents, students and other community members.

At the same time, Chowning said, she's hearing from hundreds of people daily who urge her to oppose any tax increases.

"It's running about 50-50, with people saying 'No new taxes, period' and people saying they don't want more taxes but understand we're in a time of crisis when it comes to funding our schools," said Chowning, who sits on both the Ways and Means and Education committees.

The possible cuts chosen by attendees at the town hall meetings total just $12 million -- barely a drop in a deep bucket, Garcia said. The cuts backed by district employees total $18 million -- again, not enough to make a significant dent, he said.

"This illustrates the dilemma we're facing, and clearly the public is starting to share our frustration," Garcia said. "The message to our legislators is clear -- people don't want to see any programs or services cut and they're willing to pay higher taxes to improve education in our state."

The spectre of the cuts is already having an effect on the district's ability to hire staff for the coming school year, Garcia said.

Enrollment projections show the district will need about 1,500 new teachers, but the budget cuts could eliminate funding for up to 2,000 positions district-wide, Garcia said.

"We have 11 new schools to open, and we can't open without the people to staff them," Garcia said.

Clark County School Board President Sheila Moulton said the survey results would be reviewed carefully in the coming months as the district prepares to submit its budget at the end of May.

"We're going to be looking at some difficult choices, but one thing we will not sacrifice is student achievement," Moulton said.

The largest disparity was on the question of shortening the school week to four days. While only 49 percent of town hall attendees said they either favored or strongly favored shortening the week, 70 percent of district employees backed the idea.

Shortening the school week may not be a realistic option, Garcia said. The state requires students receive a set number of instructional minutes, which means the class time would have to be made up on the other four days.

"It may not be a savings at all in the long run, but it's something we're looking at," Garcia said. "We're exploring every option."

Other survey highlights include:

When asked what school programs and services they wanted to see maintained, eight items showed up in the top 10 for both the town hall responses and the in-house survey: instructional supplies, smaller class sizes, school librarians, substitute teachers, elementary music and art programs and special education teachers.

Also on the town hall list were middle school and high school music programs. District employees included school custodial services and school maintenance to round out their top 10 items.

When it came to eliminating programs, eight of the top 10 were the same for both as well: the Teacher on Special Assignment program, community use of schools, high school block scheduling, board service centers, distance education, community college high school program, summer school subsidies and the varsity and junior varsity quiz program.

Rounding out the town hall list for elimination -- the JROTC program and the court continuation programs for juvenile offenders. District employees favored eliminating busing for magnet school students and the credit retrieval program.

The survey also sought opinions on ways the district could increase revenue. More than half of the community members and district employees favored charging students to participate in music, sports and the Gifted and Talented Program.

Kathy Garcia, whose fourth grade daughter is in her third year of the GATE program, said it would be unfair to charge parents for participation in the program. The benefits outweigh any extra cost, she said.

"GATE is a way for these kids to express themselves and use their minds and senses in different ways," Kathy Garcia said. "It should be a part of public education available to every child who needs it, just like special education."