d181 parent & key communicator fy18 budget reduction survey · we have great teachers but that...

D181 Parent & Key Communicator FY18 Budget Reduction Survey.docx 2/20/2018 – of 27

2018‐19 Parent and Key Communicator Budget Reduction Survey


Do you have any additional comments you would like to share?

Follow the LAW. Law only requires 1.5 miles to be bused and no longer requires daily PE. This is a public school district. I just returned to this survey (thankfully had this option). I am disgusted that you only ask ONE question on this survey. Are you kidding me? What about asking about what parents think should also be cut or changed? You need to freeze administrative salaries. You need to freeze teacher salaries in their next contract. You need to get rid of positions that are not doing their job. TOSAS need to go. Ask anyone. Everyone knows they are just sitting around and enjoying their easy job now that they are no longer in the classroom.

The burden on taxpayers is extremely high in this community. Increasing fees and decreasing services will only serve to increase the imbalance, make other communities more attractive than D181 for families moving to suburban Chicago and, ultimately, decrease the amount (not the rate) of property taxes. Correct the problem and not just the manifestations of it by "righting" teacher compensation so that it is not growing at a faster rate than revenues.

DO NOT INCREASE CLASS SIZES!!!

Cut staff and benefits ( preferably by attrition)

Or, you could actually have managed your finances in a responsible manner in the past, so that your facilities costs aren't overwhelming (fix problems before they become emergencies) and reduce administrative (as in people at the district who are making FAR too much ‐‐ the teachers are fine) pay. Funny how all the solutions put the burden on the parents and the students without any on the district administration.

Please do not reduce resources that provide effective teaching to our children.

Has superintendent consolidation been considered?

Wouldn't changing the bus zone effectively eliminate buses in CH altogether? Not fair or safe for CHMS kids south of tracks and/or 55th. Bus availability should be driven by geographic features like these. I'd be okay with reducing service or charging to the extent they don't have to cross a major street or tracks but are receiving bus service.


I support pushing Orchestra to 5th grade and eliminating 5th grade Spanish.

Why have we not considered early retirement buyouts of teachers? Several at our school are scheduled to retire in the next two years and are all making well over 100k a year. I do not want to see student facing staff cut, nor our student’s educational opportunities cut. I would rather see superintendent level staff realigned, salaries reduced, etc. Why don’t we offer before/after school care at our schools, that could make money for our district.

Would be helpful if you put a dollar amount against each option ‐ I doubt each have the same impact. I would also suggest choosing all of these in some form ‐ you need to pay more attention to costs !

Class time start end is the best idea. Transportation parameters should not be changed ‐ parents pay way too much in taxes and Hinsdale is way too small that the move to 1.5 mile eligibility would cause significant disproportionate benefit to others. Need to re‐work salaries and benefits in next union agreement for teachers. Our teachers are overpaid. Additionally, the District should reduce number of District wide positions, as well. Other measure to consider are deleting before and after school classes (like Chorus). That is a non‐essential public education expense. The District should look at administrative expenses first and renegotiate teacher contracts. Plus, thanks to the members of the School Board for wasting tons of money on firing

had the District on the right path and the morons that ousted him wasted tons of money and stunted the progress of our District. D181 is embarrassing ‐ led by the idiots that voted for ouster on the Board. Reduce salaries and cut positions ASAP.

Reduce the number of administrators and team leadership positions. The district needs to reduce administrative and teacher’s salaries. Way too high for quality we receive.

Although building maintenance has been put off for years, you can't expect to catch up in one year. Don't try to come up with quick cuts now without a thorough review. Keep expenditures as is for 2018‐19 school year and look to have a balanced budget for the following year ‐‐ after a comprehensive review (not just asking departments to come up with their own cuts).

Thank you for your time and hard work in evaluating these important issues. We appreciate you reaching out to parents and requesting our feedback.

The overwhelming budget issue is the compensation paid to school employees which is over double what a private person makes in the market who work a full year. Private schools cost vastly less than this district. All of the questions above are minor changes.

No

Consider increasing school fees to cover part of the deficit, or review other free services that could generate revenue if fees were charged. I would hate to see any teachers or faculty lose their job as a result of the shortfall. PE is an incredibly important part of the school day, and contributes to the students' learning in very measurable ways.

Lengthening the school day would interfere with students who have extracurricular sports and activities. Homework completion and study time would be more challenging. Consider giving student athletes a study period in lieu of PE class.

changing the school day to that much earlier for elementary school would eliminate early school activities. Same with middle school after school sports that start at 4 or 3:50. Buses wouldn't get home early enough. We pay enough taxes that we shouldn't have to pay for bus service.

The first thing I would do is stop hiring so many administrators who add zero value to the education process and we pay way too much money. I think we could get rid of 5 and save ourselves over a million dollars.

The bus provides a valuable service to us. We live ~1 mile from the school.

Like any business struggling to meet expenses: biggest cost is admin expenses; therefore Reduce employee/teacher headcount (bigger classes, without reducing offerings), cut back on pension and employee/teacher benefits—freeze “wages” for two years. Look to increase sales taxes for Hinsdale businesses before you increase already ridiculously high property taxes...just some thoughts

Our kids need PE

We are feeling negative right now ‐ please excuse the frankness of my comments: We pay exorbitant taxes and it is appalling to consider a cut of physical education to meet budget. This school district is leaderless, directionless and frankly I feel duped into moving here. Any district can demonstrate academic strength if all the parents are paying for private tutors. Please take a look at how the schools in the North Shore accomplish things ‐ such as the rebuilding of Sunset Ridge School ‐ without a controversial tax referendum. I feel our district is losing touch with normalcy and losing focus on core values, such as basic academics. A race to see who can build the first STEAM lab ‐ even without a curriculum in place ‐ is not of core importance.

I find it shocking 82% of budget is salary and bonuses. We have great teachers but that is just out of whack.


I think it's extremely important to keep physical education every day. I think it makes more sense to charge a fee for busing than it does to compromise the health and wellness of our children.

All studies show that physical activity helps learning. It's also crucially important for kids who have trouble sitting still and focusing. It's also important for setting a foundation for a healthy life.

None of these seem like sizable amounts of savings. There have to be other potential solutions including just more funding. This is a bit ridiculous!

Make everyone involved with the budgeting take a "budget 101" class at their own expense. Cut back on bigger budget items vs the small things. Find out who is misappropriating the funds. Stop overspending.

Get a forensic accountant to look at books. Look for fraud/graft. Prosecute any fraud/graft vigorously

With the increasing of families that have both parents working and paying taxes, we need to take consideration of the impact to them. Adjusting the school hours or stop providing bus service may cause big troubles to these families on a daily base.

ANY or ALL of these are very good options and make a lot of sense. I also think that at the middle school level there should be a program where the kids that are skilled math students and have good leadership skills could have a leadership group in order to take a class to help tutor their class mates that might be struggling in math. All approved by teachers as some kid would be good for this others not. This would be good for both students intellectually and socially forcing the invisible social boundaries to come down a bit in middle school.

Given our community I would explore every option available to create or increase a fee for non‐eductional services that benefit a significant proportion of the student population (busing being a prime example). Do what you can to not impact the current staff.

Freeze Teacher & Administrators Salaries and Benefits. Have employees pay more of thier health care costs.

All along, the budget reduction conversations have been laser focused on finding items that have the least student impact. Reduction of PE time is a detriment to our students in so many ways. Our district can do better and should do better for our students and teachers. This community is one of the most affluent in the state, there has to be another way.

Although my family is eligable for bus sevice, we do not use it. As a family directly affected by bus service restrictions, I am still in favor of increasing the distance for eligability and/or imposing a fee. I believe that kids need PE and would not like to see PE time decreased. Adjusting the start and end time for efficiency seems like an obvious choice.

The reduced activity for the kids is unacceptable. This board needs to become more creative in finding ways to find money. Teachers and students should not be punished for your lack of ability to think of them first. You should perhaps look into your on administrative spending before you try to punish the students and teachers. Parents are assembling and your lack of responsibility to our students and teachers best interest has insisted a firestorm. I suggest you prepare for a fight.

I believe that there is already too much emphasis on academic achievement to the exclusion of phys ed, art and music. In this day and age of technology, our kids, particularly at the elementary level, need daily physical activity ‐ I strongly oppose reduction of phys ed classes.

I would eliminate ipads for the elementary students as a cost cutting measure. I see no reason to introduce students to more electronics at an early age, especially given the resource on screen addiction.

reducing PE seems crazy to me. Our kids need to move. As messed up as the State of Illinois is, one thing I'm insanely proud of is every day PE. Childhood obesity is in the news non‐stop...PE helps to combat that. And from a savings standpoint, I'm guessing you wouldn't cut payroll enough to make up for the harm you'd be doing to the kids and morale. Lastly, in a district that is insanely competitive and where kids are pushed so hard academically, allowing them a short break daily to move around is vital to their mental and physical health. Please don't reduce PE! Change the bussing if you need to. In a town filled with stay‐at‐home moms, nannies, and plenty of money for most homeowners, there are plenty of ways to get the kids to school. And the earlier start for the youngest kids doesn't make any sense to me either. Kids need their sleep ‐ especially little ones. Going back to the insane wealth in Hinsdale and Clarendon Hills, what about reaching out to citizens to see if there are opportunities for private donations to cover some of the major infrastructure issues? Universities are constantly raising money and putting people's names on things ‐ why can't this happen in our town. There are many CEO's, professional athletes, high level executives, etc. that might be open to donating some money to support our kids and schools. And if you're uncomfortable


putting someone's name on a building or gym or something, what if you rally the two towns to start some sort of fundraising drive to see if people will step up to cover some of the short term infrastructure things.

‐Eliminate position of Director of Communications till we surplus budget; ‐ Eliminate HMS reading specialist; ‐ reduce PSA positions; ‐ freeze administrators salaries till we surplus budget

Please cancel or re negotiate the lease related to the d181 offices. Move the offices into the new hms or different school to save money.

Dump the current coven of PPS folks. The current group is penny‐wise & dollar foolish, & cares more about protecting their cohorts than providing what our kids need. They refuse to provide services to our kids & push the kids along. It results in higher SpEd costs down the road, not to mention how it destroys our children.

None of these options are appealing, but I feel strongly that 8:05 is too early a start time, and I also feel very strongly that kids need that time in P.E. EVERY SINGLE DAY to burn off energy so they can be more focused and ready to learn in class. Physical exercise and the ability to release that energy is as important and beneficial for these kids as your proposal to allocate that time towards additional instruction or targeted academic support.

Taking away PE from our children is not the answer for budget cuts. Not only do children need a healthy lifestyle including physical activity, they need to burn their energy during the day to be able to sit in a classroom setting the rest of the day. Our country worries so much about child obesity, learning disabilities including ADHD and more. Our children love PE and look forward to it everyday. PE is needed on a daily basis. Period. In regards to the bus situation. Families who live on the North side of Ogden Ave need their children to be bused. Cross walk or no crosswalk at Ogden & Madison — is not safe for young children to cross on a regular basis. Do not make a budget cut and put our children in danger of getting hit by cars.

PE is so critical for young children. It is so cold here this is often the only chance children get to play and move. With childhood obesity on the rise I can't even imagine how this is even an option. My daughter has really struggled with 1st Grade and she tells me often the best part of 1st grade is PE everyday. Each day when I ask her the best part of school she says PE. Please find another way.

Cut administration expenses. Hard to believe that we have one of the wealthiest districts and are in this situation. This is mismanagement plain and simple. I am disappointed that we are not going better.

For the love of God do not reduce these childrens PE time, to move their bodies and center their energy. Behavior and attention and processing is such an issue, please do not make it worse. Exercise is elemental. This is SO obvious!

I respectfully request that the BOE consider eliminating 5th grade Spanish instruction. I have a 6th grader at CHMS and personally feel that the instruction he received in 5th grade was not beneficial. Until our district can implement foreign language beginning in 1st grade, we should eliminate the 5th grade instruction. The BOE should request data from the CBO showing the benefits of 5th grade Spanish instruction. Ask the CBO how many textbooks our current middle school students make it through before 9th grade? I was told by our elementary principle that currently between 5th and 8th grade the students only use one textbook! And guess where 4 years of instruction lands them in 9th grade?! Spanish 1!!! So I'd like to know how 5th grade Spanish is beneficial? If you eliminate it not only do you save money you will give the teachers more instruction time for math/writing/reading/science. I also request that the BOE take a closer look at eliminating 2 additional TOSA positions at a savings of $200,000. Additionally, CBO administrators should take a salary freeze, period! In the private sector we wouldn't even questions this. Additionally, I request that the BOE take a second consideration at eliminating the part time secretaries in the elementary schools. Too much fluff!! Our school's full time secretary should be able to work on the weekly newsletter while manning the front desk. These cuts will be painful but the first people who should be affected are the administrative staff positions. Keep the cuts out of the classroom as much as possible. There is too much fluff in my opinion. Also, has anyone considered negotiating with the teacher's union to increase the amount the teachers/staff pay out of pocket for health insurance? These benefits need to be renegotiated. Everyone in the private sector is paying more. Please consider the savings there. Also, please reconsider all the items listed under "Other Consideration (Considered but not recommended at this time) items. The new Director of Communications can take a salary cut. Also, perhaps we should look at the number of "superintendent" roles within the CBO. Are all of these positions really necessary? One more request, please consider charging students to join the middle school teacher facilitated clubs, etc after school. If we paid for the after school activities perhaps that money could be used to cover the teacher salary for that extra time. Thank you.

Changing the school day would be very disruptive to families with working parents in need of childcare arrangements, and/or who have to balance pick ups and drop offs with other children in schools outside 181. Reducing PE also has a direct negative impact on students and their physical health. The transportation options at least have less of an impact on students’ education or day to day schedule. The children should not be punished for the districts’ budgetary issues.


please stop changing the middle school start time. transportation efficiency in terms of bussing should have been considered the first time you changed the time of the middle school start. if anything ‐ change it back to the original start time from 2 years ago ‐ then the bus efficiency would go back to previous years.

Charge everyone who takes the bus! This is a no brainer. A bus is a luxury that saves me time. Just make sure the bus stops frequently at safe locations for students. I would have gladly paid extra for my children to only walk 1/2 a block instead of 2 blocks to the bus stop. Also, make the buses go over the new bridge to avoid the terrible back up on the tracks. Buses have to stop and open their doors over the train tracks and it severely delays commuter traffic in Downtown Hinsdale. This town is already sports crazy. Kids on basketball, soccer, swimming and other after school teams should not be wasting their time in PE class at all if they already take part in more than 5 hours of physical activity a week. If a parent wants to enroll their non‐active child in PE, that class would be much more relevant to a group of kids who are not physically fit. This way they do not have to complete against sports super stars all the time. Just like all kids should not be in Algebra 2, all should not be forced to take PE. Physical health is the responsibility of parents, not schools.

Don’t change PE. The kids need exercise during the day. It helps them to burn energy and not just sit all day. Mine looks more forward to school because of PE. Not having recess was hard enough for my 6th grader. Don’t take his PE.

I think there should be a hard look at and benchmarking of salaries of all positions. When there is one line item that is 80% of a budget, it makes pretty logical sense to me that it would be a good place to start looking for cuts.

If your goal is to make cuts that have the least impact to students, then a significant staff reduction needs to be made in the administrative office. Once this is done, and your lease is up, the administrative office can move back to Elm School.

We moved to this area primarily for the excellent schools. We moved from an area where it seemed most major school district budget decisions revolved around busing. While I realize the budget gap must be remedied, I don't believe using busing (thus the classroom schedule) is the best manner to do so. This would also mean a change to district bell schedules for a second consecutive year. The 8:05 am start time for elementary school is too early.

1) I applauded the decision to delay middle school start times last year because it was based on solid research showing the benefits of more sleep for teens. Delaying it a little more to save money with transportation costs seems like a no‐brainer. So, YES, do this! 2) Reducing PE classes down from 5 days per week to anything less is completely contrary to all research ‐ research shows that physical activity helps kids learn!! Why would we eliminate this? Grades 5‐8 (maybe 4th too?) do not have recess either so eliminating PE for even 1 day a week eliminates a class period with much needed stress relief for them! Middle school kids, in particular, need that daily PE class to offset their heavy workloads. Many have early mornings for band or study sessions and many often have "working lunches" to make up work, finish tests, work on class projects, etc. so that PE class is especially important for them and might be their only "break" in a day! 3) It seems that there must be many more options than just the 5 listed above for cutting costs. There were many more options listed in the recent email sent out from the district so I'm not sure why we're being asked to rate only these 5. It's my hope that the board will give higher priority to options that have less impact on students.

When listening to the board meeting on livestream, it was very disappointing to not hear more overall context on the budget picture specifically regarding salaries and benefits. It was stated that 82% of the budget is salaries and benefits, but no further details were tied to those numbers (example with made up numbers of what I would have liked to hear: like salaries and benefits are 100 million, and we are trying to find 2 million in annual cost reductions). I think it is worthwhile and important to track the costs for items to find savings, but that needs to be done by the administration with some independent due diligence and review. Asking the board to go through administrative type cost reduction tasks to find 2 million in annual savings is not the right way to go about this. The board and community need involved in the MAIN negotiation which is salaries and benefits, teachers union contracts, and what level of service we as a community want. The fixed costs, or '18%' of the budget, are NOT the place to spend all of our time cutting looking for super small efficiencies that are not likely there to begin with. The community will support referendums and increased property taxes for schools (teachers salaries and benefits) to educate the children at a level that is comparably at or above average. I believe if we are above average on salary and benefits compared to other districts for the level of education we are receiving, then that needs to be the focus of the meetings and and conversation/debate in a transparent way. All five of these items listed above to rank are the wrong places to look for cuts. Discussions regarding salaries and benefits are the place to focus discussion. This is the same as the US government ignoring cost cuts related to defense, social security, and medicare, and going crazy about programs that fall in the small 18% piece of the pie.

I feel passionately that the kids need physical education everyday or their mind and body.

Can you give each of the 9 schools a portion ($153K) of the savings to go find? Also, does each school need 2 gym teachers, 2 art teachers? I would benchmark Teacher to Student ratios for these types of classes. Can there be a pool of music, gym, art teachers that work across schools? Do we need 9 principals? Can we give some early retirement packages for some of the long tenured teachers who are not performing well and bring in younger, more energized talent? Could people who live less than a mile join


the bus routes for a fee? I would die to use the bus service for HMS. Could it become a profit center? Have you looked at where we can get backroom/administrative efficiencies across D181 and possibly D86?

Please do not change the school schedule ‐ kindergarteners and the rest of the smaller children need sleep to be able to function properly, and an 8am start time will mean tired, cranky kids! Easier for older ones to get up earlier than the littles...

Eliminate 5th grade Spanish. The kids end up in the same place in 8th grade.

Please don't cut PE!

Regarding bus eligibility, knowing a likely fee amount would possibly cause my ranking to change from 2 to less desirable if it is much more than $100 per year per student and would definitely cause it to change if it was anywhere near $500 per year per student. I also think if you are no longer going to bus some Walker kids to CHMS, you must have a crossing guard working by the train tracks to ensure that no student tries to cross when the lights are flashing/train coming. Also, I am more in favor of decreasing PE time for middle school students than I am for elementary school students (although still not much in favor there either).

The 8:00 start time/2:40 end for elementary students would make scheduling exponentially harder on working parents. Please keep it as is.

Please do not cut foreign language programs, 5th grade is already late to begin a language.

Class rooms should also hold their full capacity of students before parents are allowed to petition for an extra classroom. Also, I agree with salary freezing for staff.

Do not charge for transportation. Parents who live inside the 1.5 mile radius will then just choose to drive their kids or arrange carpools and the district will not get as much if any revenue through this source. I do not want to pay a fee if I live inside the 1‐1.5 mile radius if I choose to drive my kids to school.

Kids on school teams, ballet, or travel teams don’t need PE. They are already getting exercise. Why not charge every kid who rides the bus? Those buses are half empty anyway. What about charging their parents to take the bus to HMS so their walk to the train is shortened? Make them pay to get fingerprinted in Wheaton for background check.

It would be interesting to review teacher salaries and benefits. I run a business and our labor costs are no where near the 82% in this district. I would benchmark against other schools and industry. I believe teachers are worth money but if the average teacher salary has grown sufficiently more than the budget allows, why aren’t you looking here too?

I wish we had the option to rank the elimination of 4th Grade orchestra. I was upset to hear of that decision, especially without the option to provide my input. I’d rank that a 5 (consider it last).

You should have eliminated the differentiation specialists. Their methods and role is far too unspecific. Hire more special ed people instead.

Students who attend other schools for the various advanced math classes should have their parents drop them off at the assigned school each morning. Then the district should provide a bus to transfer them back to their appropriate school upon the completion of the classes. The other option is a fee implemented to cover the cost of these students.This will be a financial savings. I rate this #1 budget consideration.

Reducing PE time is literally the most backwards, preposterous premise that this school district has ever put forth ‐ and that's saying a lot. I am appalled that it's even being considered. I can cite dozens of articles (and will probably forward them) outlining the needs for physical activity daily ‐ from higher brain function and longer attention span to fighting childhood obesity challenges and breaking kids away from staring at screens ‐ to help our children achieve. How does anyone with any educational background or even basic, common sense concern for our children truly believe that more tests, watching videos and passive instruction time is more beneficial?! It's madness.

Every child I come in contact with complains about PE at the elementary level. I wouldn't be sad to lose it as the children still have lunch recess and teachers could get them out sometimes.

I completely disagree with reduction and/or fees for bus service. Firstly, I will struggle to get my child to school, secondly I will miss the cut off by .3 of a mile and lastly, the schools can't handle additional cars at drop off, it's bad enough as it is. Additionally, the high number of parents that drive daily answering the transportation questions is very concerning. Of course the bus won't be a concern for them, so they have nothing to lose by rating these to be considered first. It is so frustrating living in an area with such high taxes and have these things be an issue. Building systems and grounds are about maintenance and thinking ahead. Maybe some money should be spent doing 5‐10 year assessments so money can be allocated and projects prioritized to spread the need out. It's also frustrating that our taxes already went up to pay for a fancy school our child will NEVER go to and now there could be a fee to use the bus!

the end time for middle school is too late based on other activities/sports the kids have ‐ maybe start the little ones later


I note that one Administrative Recommendation is to strictly adhere to the class size guidelines. Of all the various options considered, this is the least palatable as 26 students in a classroom adversely impacts those children for each and every hour they are in school. I implore the School Board to remove that recommendation from consideration. Thank you for your time and service.

Changes in schedule requiring more childcare adversely effect the poorest families in Hinsdale. There should be all day kindergarten, not less daylight elementary school coverage. The larger gap between middle school and elementary school coverage means that older siblings can't help watch younger ones, putting kids at risk. I actually think all these things are really important ‐ kids need time to move and play, bus transportation is important, scheduling little kids so early with such a big gap makes childcare hard. Where are our tax dollars going exactly? It seems like people here spend a lot on school to necessitate such big changes. And why aren't administrative cuts on this list? How much overhead are we paying for in all this?

I do not consider options 1, 2 or 3 as viable to keep our district as one of the top in the state. These should not be considered.

Disingenuous that budget cut requirement information was not part of overall HMS financial/approval discussion. Likely vote results would have been far different. Whether or not it's the truth, it appears the cuts were kept under wraps.

I STRONGLY request that you not cut physical education in any form. The children in our community are stressed by the pressures around them to achieve both in and out of school. Most grades do not have multiple recesses every day. In middle school, there are none. Physical education is one of the few opportunities that the children have to move, stretch and use their bodies. I believe it is integral to their academic success.

Taking away PE is absolutely TERRIBLE! These children hardly get a recess!!! No wonder they’re all medicated for ADHD. Absolutely terrible idea. It infuriates me!!!!!!!!!!

Do NOT reduce PE!! Kids needs it so much. With childhood obesity a major problem and stress from their schoolwork.. please keep PE the same!!

wondering why the middle school day hours weren't left alone if it had budget implications? has anyone considered putting the middle school hours back? otherwise i feel like this circle will just continue.

Transportation and school hours can be adjusted and easier for parents to manage. Please keep PE 5days/wk for the kids, they need some fun time to balance out their energies besides studying. Thank you

I think having built in pay raises for teachers and increasing salary the last few years on the job to increase pension benefits is not sustainable and an unfair to the tax payers. we already incur a significant tax burden to support the schools we need to look at decreasing salaries and managing financial waste more efficiently.

Children need PE every single day. They need a time for structured play to release extra energy or any other pent up emotions in physical manner. More recess is not the answer because that’s too easy for teachers to take away in order to get more work done in the classroom. My guess is there are plenty of other ways to deal with the budget. As a parent and tax payer I am offended that this district has not been taking care of these facilities and now they all need major repairs. Interesting how we never heard of this when the HMS referendum was up for voting. It’s starting to feel as though this district is not using it’s (our) money very wisely and treats us as though we’ll just keep paying for things. Do like the rest of us, dive into the budget, figure out what we don’t need & start there. But cutting PE classes is NOT the answer!!!

Why are you not looking at the number of administrative administrators and secretaries that have been hired over the last 4 to 5 years? The administration building is bursting. Instead of looking at aides and teachers and programs (P.E. and Art), please look here. Ask first if all these employees working in administration are necessary.

I am extremely concerned with the potential change of elementary school start and end times. In a district that is way behind similar districts in providing full day Kindergarten, many parents must choose to supplement their child's Kindergarten day. Unless this district can guarantee that every supplemental program will change their hours to accommodate D181, this district would effectively be taking away the ability for parents to supplement the Kindergarten day. Otherwise, anyone wishing to supplement would have to preference AM Kindergarten, as the time change would only allow time for a PM supplementary program, and the district cannot guarantee that many AM Kindergarten slots compared to the number of people who choose enrichment programming for their children. We are taking two huge steps back here. It distresses me immensely that instead of finally talking about adding full day Kindergarten, like so many of the surrounding districts and other comparable districts, we are going to make our children suffer because of a budget shortfall that clearly the board should have seen coming for some time. Secondly, to take away physical education classes from students who so desperately need the difference in their day to help them learn is also hurting our children.


Every single parent I have spoken to is outraged that the board could let this happen and on such short notice. Your choices will not be forgotten at the voting booth.

No way should residents living 1.0‐1.5 miles away have to pay a fee for busses while others do not. Most won't even use the service. Terrible idea.

Every piece of research evidence shows how important it is for elementary age school kids to move, run, play. The body needs movement/exercise in order for the mind to be ready to learn and grow. Cutting PE to 3x/week would be a disservice to our children and to their test scores. I highly advocate for gym 5x/week! Also, there is no need to make the school day begin earlier. Research also shows that students need 8‐11 hours of sleep. Having to start the school day earlier will result in seeing kids with more sleep deprivation‐ thus not being as alert to learn the information being instructed. These are absolutely no brainers to me!

Kids love gym. With childhood obesity on the rise and the academic stresses each child faces‐ do NOT take away gym. Additionally, the idea of removing Spanish from 5th grade curriculum is unacceptable. Lastly: How about keeping teachers based on MERIT and not just how many years some of them have ‘put in’ and hurt too many children’s psyches and love of learning. Their inflated salaries and therefore inflated pensions would save MILLIONS. A 360 degree review process (as done in most companies) would weed out these offenders and benefit ALL.

Physical education is important. I am willing to drive my kids to HMS if needed in order to keep gym 5X a week.

An 8:05 school start for Elementary School is unhealthy and medically ill‐advised, as supported by extensive research and analysis. It should be entirely off the table. The fact that it is being considered is disappointing and indicates either a lack of regard for the health and well‐being of our children or a complete ignorance of medically supported recommendations. Neither convenience to parents or cost savings should trump the needs of our children.

For the transportation question, perhaps surveying parents on how many who are eligible for the bus actually take advantage of it. For example, we do not take the bus in the mornings but do take it in the afternoons. I feel that the bus is a very nice to have but not a need to have.

Cut administrative positions before things that will impact students.

I am so disappointed that eliminating 5th grade Spanish isn’t on this page. It’s the first thing I’d do after going from 5 to 3 PE days a week. Do both. The Spanish curriculum does little to prepare kids for 6th grade Spanish which repeats all the same information anyway. 6th grade Spanish also does almost nothing to prepare for 6th grade French . Taxpayers are paying for a luxury that has no data backing up the assertion that it is benefitting middle school language learning. As for PE, those kids don’t need 5 days of organized PE to get exercise. Open play recess at a fraction of the expense would be equally as valuable. Elementary school students get the lunch hour which they spend half in free play. Or they can go home and increase exercise time even more. Morning and sessions are each fewer than 180 minutes. Children can’t go without recess for 180 minutes? I think that’s ridiculous. Plus you should check the data and see what percentage are also getting more than 3 hours of sport or dance after school in addition to PE. This seems like a complete no brainer to return to a 3 day / week gym schedule.

I am so disappointed that eliminating 5th grade Spanish isn’t on this page. It’s the first thing I’d do after going from 5 to 3 PE days a week. Do both. The Spanish curriculum does little to prepare kids for 6th grade Spanish which repeats all the same information anyway. 5th grade Spanish also does almost nothing to prepare for 6th grade French . Taxpayers are paying for a luxury that has no data backing up the assertion that it is benefitting middle school language learning. As for PE, D181 children don’t need 5 days of organized PE to get exercise. Open play recess at a fraction of the expense would be equally as valuable. Elementary school students get the lunch hour which they spend half in free play. Or they can go home and increase exercise time even more. Morning and afternoon sessions are each fewer than 180 minutes. Children can’t go without exercise for 180 minutes? I think that’s ridiculous. In Middle School Cross Country and other sports are offered after school. Financial support is available for children who can’t afford those sports. Additionally, you should check the data and see what percentage of D181 students are also getting more than 3 hours of sport or dance weekly after school and on weekends in addition to the time they spend in PE. . This seems like a complete no brainer to return to a 3 day / week gym schedule.

The school calendar needs to be aligned with District 86, especially when it comes to making up snow days!!

It is unacceptable to even be proposing budget cuts to physical education to provide more educational time. The students need MORE activity not less. They already don’t get enough movement. In addition it makes no sense for elementary school to start earlier. You just changed the time for middle school to later because research shows that they needed the later start. Elementary school students need the later start as well. I expect more and better of this district. Get up to speed with current research. Stop encouraging parents into the thought process that “more academics” means brighter students. It’s just untrue. Do Better

Please consider salary freezes as a very legitimate and fair option. This is not out of the norm for government employees during challenging budgetary times. Taking services away from the students should be last, especially the measures that effect some families in a very meaningful way. If you did a study to determine the fairness of our District's current salaries and benefits, I suspect they would rank very high overall, and I believe this should be considered.


Reduce local government as well as teacher/administration salaries/pension and healthcare benefits. Why is t this an option for a budget reduction? All of the aforementioned items directly affect our children and there are no options affecting teachers salaries and benefits. Whether you talk about it now or in the future, the system is broken. Continuing to take away from the kids without making admin/staff cuts and reeling in board member spending under union pressure will never be productive. Levying the property taxes to the max will also never solve the problem and will continue to drive up deficits. You need to combine local governments so that parents serving on boards are not pressured by unions and those vested in raising taxes on us to satisfy their own self interests.

The number of PE classes should not be reduced, ever. Physical activity is proven to increase concentration, improve attention span and teach valuable lessons about teamwork.

Students must have PE everyday, especially in this tech age where they get no physical activity, and stress levels are through the roof!!

Why do all the options effect the children instead of the staff? Are the children your priority or the teachers? My first option would be to decrease the teacher's salaries and pentions. Then I would decrease the number of teachers. How about giveing the parents a real survey with a variety of options that effect both the teachers and the kids not just the children and their families.

I am disappointed in the board for allowing us to be in this situation. Please consider eliminating administrator positions. We are very top heavy. I am embarrassed to live in this district given that the board can not effectively allocate ample resources.

Do not cut PE!! Kids need it for stress relief and physical well being!

It’s pretty ridiculous that you guys didn’t plan for these other expenses while pushing for the HMS bind referendum. None of these expenses are surprises. I’m a supporter of a new HMS, I have kids in the district, schools are great... but management (board and admin) have been very disappointing.

Prior to exploring cuts affecting the children, explore all avenues to reduce operational expenses on an administrative level such as rent expense, utilities, maintenance, etc.

Is there going to be before school care for the middle school students who's parents have to be at work by 8 or earlier? It is so inconvenient trying to work these changing schedules out.

Children losing physical education is a disaster. Active children are happy children, to lose that because of a budget shortfall is doing a disservice to our kids. Perhaps budget cuts could be made at the administrative level rather than taking aim at our kids.

Make extra cuts at district level, cut off the teachers that are just helping advanced (teaching middle school math at grade schools) I would rather see music cut than PE in grade school. Freeze salaries. Look at pensions. How about one district for grade schools and high schools.

Do not even consider decreasing physical education. Have you read ANY studies about how important it is to move during the day?? This should not even be on the table.

HOW on earth did this happen and what correlations does this have to the building and managing of a new HMS? Keep the cuts furthest from students and staff.

Please share with the board that we feel that they are mismanaging our money. We pay plenty of taxes, it goes to pensions while the board caters to special interests. Do you job or step aside and let someone who knows what they are doing run the district. There is no way we should ever be close to this position. We are not happy with your performance. D‐!

The first line item will be most disruptive to parent's lives. This is a late return for the kids!

Why aren’t we looking to cut some administrative/Superintendent roles?

Eliminate 5th grade Spanish

Why would you propose changing the start times for school several years ago if it would result in increased spending?

In California, to offset budget cuts for classes such as foreign language, a school would charge a "foreign language fee" when you register for the district (like a book fee). This would cover the cost of that FTE and materials. Consider charging a fee for being on a sports team for the school. Parents pay significantly more for club sports, so paying for a school team would be easily done. Make School Supply Kits include all materials teachers need in the classrooms (spread across each student's package ‐ or an added dollar amount for teacher supplies), not just what the student needs. Make Lunchroom Supervisors a volunteer job. Private schools do this and just have the parents take a course in working with children before they can participate. And if you ask parents to come in a few times a month, they would be very receptive to helping (versus having to come each week on a certain day). You would get a lot more parents to help too.


Hand laptops and chrome books down after 8th grade to 6th grade and extend the use of them by a year (or more if possible). Replace less often. Evaluate HMS construction project to see if there are little things that can be scaled back or modified to cost less. Only do this if it doesn't compromise the quality of the school.

Foreign language in 5th grade is a joke. Unless we offer it k‐5, it’s a waste

I think if you reduce PE days, those missed PE classes need to be replaced with recess times for physical and mental release.

Please do not reduce physical activity for our students. This is the last thing we need. Our kids need activity for physical and mental wellness. they do not need more classroom time. Please please try to make the budget cuts elsewhere.

This survey is FLAWED. If you want input from stakeholders, let's see all of the options on the table besides busing, PE, and transportation. This is infuriating. Please keep the cuts as far from the students and staff as possible. What is the correlation w new HMS?

I would focus budget reduction in administration salaries and benefits along with expanding the scope of eligible service providers to find reduced fees for services provided.

Oh yes I do. P.E. plays a very important role in the lives of all children. For some kids, P.E. gives them the only daily activity they’ll receive. Countless studies show excercise benefits both physical and mental health. With more screen time for all children, I’m sure PE goes a long way in helping instructional time be more productive.

Is healthy to or kids and teacher to have PE 5 times a week .

We shouldn’t be a District that is even discussing cutting PE to 3 days a week! There is a mountain of research of how physical activity during the school day helps kids learn and decompress. When I first heard this was being discussed, I assumed at the very least, this time would be replaced with an extra recess but that doesn't seem the case. I find it extremely hypocritical that every D181 Speaker who is brought in through the Community Speaker Series consistently talk about the overstressed/anxious child! Not only has curriculum and homework amped up considerably in the past few years, you are now considering taking away PE?!? Even if you did substitute an extra recess as a replacement that wouldn’t be an equal trade considering how many times outdoor recess is cancelled due to weather. Teachers also use this time to lesson plan and have team meetings to discuss students. At the last Board meeting, the comment was made that kids in our district have so many after school activities they don’t need gym as much. Personally, I think that argument falls short because it’s the timing of the activity that matters more than the quantity. Looking through the Board Docs, it’s very disheartening to see that many of the staff’s suggestions are not listed in the plan.They are the ones in the trenches and can speak to what spending is valuable and others that are wasteful. For ex., Look at their comments about Teachers on Special Assignment (TOSA’s). They are supposed to help teachers integrate curriculum/utilize technology but teachers repeatedly comment that they aren’t being used. There are 4 full‐time TOSA’s and they cost the District $280k a year. The Board is proposing to cut just one position. What if you compromised w/cutting two and replacing with two teachers who could job‐share, teaching half day and providing TOSA support the other half. They could take the place of two retiring teachers an District and that could save $200k. Also, have heard from other school that there will be 6 PE teachers retiring in the next four years. Their combined salaries are $645k! If they were replaced with new hires which would cost about $275k, that would give a savings of $370k. Also, I don't see almost any suggested cuts on the administrative side. The admin building used to be housed in Oak but now pays rent at your new location. Is it possible there are administrative positions that can be merged, or could the new Communications Director work from home? Again, feel like there are many more options on the table the Board should be looking at rather than zeroing in on gym, start times and adhering stictly to classroom number guidelines, which will have a profound impact on kids, teachers and families. The proposed cuts are very short sighted and do not reflect the ideals of a strong District such as ours. If I was a new parent looking for a community to settle down in, I honestly don't think I would consider D181 and that makes me so sad to say. Our kids and teachers deserve much better!

Retaining talented teachers and keeping class sizes small should be the top priorities of any budget decisions. Research clearly links a stable staff of experienced teachers and small class sizes to high student achievement

Preferred option: freeze salaries!!!

I ONLY support reducing PE from 5 days to 4 days IF the 5th day is replaced with a period of time like a recess for all grades that gives the children a time for mental and physical release.

My thoughts are keeping PE classes 5 days a week is strongly recommend. The children need to burn off energy during the day.


There has been talk of reduction of teacher staff in areas like art, music, PE, etc That is unexceptable. Programs like Physical Education, Art, etc should not even be on the table. We need to look at administrative costs and cuts before we consider any cuts that impact classroom size, teacher qualification of new hires or anything impacting the quality of programming for students in the classroom.

Please DO NOT cut back on our art programs by reducing the number of art teachers. Having ample prep time in the classroom allows them to do the great art projects that we all love seeing lining the walls. I am a volunteer in the art room and the amount of time it takes to prep for, and then clean up after, the big projects like painting and clay is extensive. Not giving the art teachers enough time to do this work will force them into low creativity, worksheet‐like art that ruins the purpose of the art class in general. Research clearly shows how much art improves motor skills, creativity, and learning in general. While it may be technically feasible to increase the number of classes an art teacher teaches, it is a very bad idea if we are interested in quality. I didn't move to this district to have this level of commitment for the arts!

I will personally consider moving out of this district if you cut PE days. Why in the world do we need MORE time focused on academics when our kids are pushed way beyond a healthy level already. Think of the children and figure it out!

This is a tough time for our district and yhw community at large. You are faced with making a lot of hard decisions. However I think so far it has been fair and you've made selections with the well being of the students in mind while maintaining a balance for the longevity and health of our district.

Why property tax increases every year, but school budget is proposed to be cut? School District needs more efficient management strategies and methods.

Taking away PE from our children is not the answer for budget cuts. Not only do children need a healthy lifestyle including physical activity, they need to burn their energy during the day to be able to sit in a classroom setting the rest of the day and learn. Our country worries so much about child obesity, learning disabilities including ADHD and more. Children love PE and look forward to it every day. PE is needed on a daily basis. Period. In regards to the bus situation. Families who live on the North side of Ogden Ave need their children to be bused. Cross walk or no crosswalk at Ogden & Madison — is not safe for young children to cross on a regular basis. Do not make a budget cut and put our children in danger of getting hit by cars.

Changing transportation eligibility would have a very negative impact on working parents who rely on bus transportation.

All bus riders should pay a fee that should cover the bus costs. Cut tosa by 2; eliminate 4th grade orchestra; eliminate canvas & use google; delay ipad use till 4th grade; decrease meeting time ‐ these usually are not productive; I would like to see a reduction in the Admin group &/or reduction in salaries; re‐use furniture from other schools to furnish HMS; utilize your school's pto to help with secretarial work & MRC; decrease ftes in Technology dept.; eliminiate the director of communications; Seriously ‐ Manage the budget better. It's so much easier to spend someone else's money. (taxpayers). The Board needs to better job on contract negotiations & ending contracts prematurely. How much money did we lose by ending the contract with

Retaining talented instructors and maintaining small class sizes should always be the top priorities when considering budgets

Lengthening the school day would interfere with students who have extracurricular sports and activities. Homework completion and study time would be more challenging. Consider giving student athletes a study period in lieu of PE class.

Reducing PE is a horrible idea

We are hopeful this wake up call will be remembered when the current contract comes to expiry in 2019

Given that middle school time was JUST changed, not sure this is the best solution. And getting out at 330 poses a problem getting to after school activities.

As a parent and a taxpayer supporting the district, the current situation really saddens me. How can you assure me that it does not impact the children's educational activities and initiatives, providing a healthy and supportive learning environment ? I am disappointed that we did not plan better and plan ahead, and no one is accountable? maybe this does matter at this time but matters a lot to me as a parent for being taken for granted and honestly , I resent the fact.

These can not be the only options available! Do NOT cut PE time! How about stoo Changing curriculum so often, sending teachers to so much training and therefore decrease the amount spent in subs. Move district offices in to a school. Stop trying to have the latest and greatest in technology. Hire less seasoned teachers to decrease salary spent. Get rid of TOSA positions in elementary schools. They are not using them either way!

We've lived in the Monroe district for 17 years and I don't think it's fair to implement a bus fee for the children in our school neighborhood who attend CHMS. This was the districts choice to send Monroe students to CHMS. If the board implements any transportation fees, the redistrict Monroe students to HMS‐ we do live in Hinsdale.


Later start and end times will force parents to pull students out early which means less instruction. The disparity between middle school tones and high school is already ridiculous The school district should make sure our children are active and getting PE EVERY day!

Personally raise the taxes rather than do any of this .. but sure that is not the popular option

Please, please don’t reduce PE!! It’s so great for the kids and such a healthy outlet during a long day!!!! Also, I think the current school hours are great for most families.

Renegotiate the contract with new teachers to provide no pension, and instead transition to a 401K program which the rest the workforce relies on for retirement savings. You will eventually have to address this issue. Why not start now?

Changing the bus transportation should be a given ‐ follow state mandates. I would also be in favor of a fee for the 1 to 1.5 mile as long as that fee fully covers the increased cost.

Salaries and benefits make up most of the budget, district should be able to find some answers there. Working on just 10% of the budget is not going to work

Thank you for your outreach and for trying to protect as best as possible what makes this a great school district! Appreciate the careful thought going into this process.

YOU CAN NOT TAKE AWAY PE FROM OUR KIDS! WITH A SON WITH ADHD THIS PROPOSAL IS HORRIBLE! THE KIDS NEED PE TO STAY ACTIVE AND FOCUSED THRU OUT THE DAY. I CAN'T BELIEVE THIS IS EVEN A CONSIDERATION. DO NOT DO THIS!!!!!

Expecting young children to be AT SCHOOL at 8:05 ready to learn is just about the stupidest thing that you all have proposed in the 31 years that I (a former student of this district) have lived here. I can send you reams of research on the dangers of sleep deficits and brain development and functioning in young children. But you already know all this, I'm sure. The second dumbest thing that I've seen you all propose is reducing gym time for students. Again, reams of research is available to show that physical activity is needed in order for children to be successful learners, particularly boys‐‐ whom school is already designed to put at at disadvantage at this age. You've let this spiral out of control for years, including the construction of a new school that just appears to be costing ever more to create. Our children should be the VERY LAST PEOPLE to feel these cuts. Start eliminating redundant or overpaid staff, particularly at the administrative building.

how did we get so far off budget in 1 yr? I'd like to see more creative budget cuts.. can we use any of our resources/ assets/ property and lease/rent them out for other uses, when we are not using them... other districts in the nation have done this and been successful.

Changing start times has large impact on the preschool logistics for families with younger children attending preschools

Keep calendar of hms and hchs the same as each other

Physical fitness is so incredibly important for the health and wellness of our children. Please do not cut this at all!!

First of all, the news of the proposed budget cuts came as a huge shock to our family. We moved into Clarendon Hills specifically for the D181 school and you now have us questioning our decision and actively looking at homes in Oak Brook. After reviewing the Board Meeting Summary, I am encouraged to see only some of the proposed cuts listed on this survey. I would strongly encourage you to do everything you can to avoid impacting the current quality of education that the students receive in this district or more and more families will leave. As it is, we have a high performing grader and have been underwhelmed with the differentiation and opportunities for advancement that he has been given in K, 1st, and 2nd. Cutting the D.S. would be devastating and enough to pursue another district. The D.S. was my s primary source of education in K and 1st grade, albeit only for 15 minutes 3 times per week which speaks to the quality of differentiation available IN the classroom. My current priorities amongst your list of cuts would be to preserve the differentiation specialist, Spanish, and keeping class sizes small (which surprisingly was not mentioned in the summary). The time of day that we begin and transportation are much less of a priority for us, as our number one priority is the quality of education. P.E. is important, but most children have after school sports, so I would be okay cutting to 4 days per week, however 3 days is too few. I also do not know what to make of your proposed "change in hiring practices". If this will mean less experienced and less educated teachers being in the classroom, I would also strongly oppose this change. Again, it is shocking and disappointing that the anticipation of building maintenance was not addressed earlier and slowly rather than dropping a 2 million dollar, what sounds like permanent annual budget cut, to the district. ‐

Please do not reduce the 5 day gym schedule for our children.Children today more than ever need movement and excercise in their school day. Especially the boys, who learn so differently than girls. So much is expected of them at such a young age academically coupled with the complexities socially, emotionally and digitally. Families in this community have the means and/or no problem dropping off/picking up their kids (you can see by the line of cars). I know many families who’s child rides the bus half the time because mom enjoys driving. Please first consider the bus as a means of budget cuts. Thank you for your consideration.


It seems that there are an abundance of aides at some schools; certain schools have students with multiple aides. Perhaps the District tries to make staff funds “equitable” despite disparities in enrollment? Or is it parents’ litigiousness that is the root cause? Gym, Art and Music should NOT be cut, but special services should be streamlined.

If 80% of the budget is people, seems like this would need to be addressed before transportation.

PE and academics should not be compromised. What about reducing service contracts like waste management services ‐ when was the last time you negotiated or sought competitive rates for those services?

If you push the middle school end time to 330pm that is going to effect after school activities(tutors or sports). The 315pm is already effecting things so later will make it worse.

Do not cut gym and art for our kids!

I am strongly opposed to seeing ANY reduction in PE. Please consider any other alternatives first!

If the middle school ever started at 8:40am, that would be a HUGE hardship for working parents. The doors would need to open more than 45 min in advance.

We are 1.1 miles from Monroe school but our children would have to cross Ogden. Completely unsafe for young grade school kids to cross Ogden Avenue. It seems silly to consider eliminating bus service and our situation

DO NOT INCREASE CLASS SIZES OR ALLOW CLASS SIZE INCREASES IN THE FUTURE

Please do not discount the testimonials made at the last Board meeting by both staff & parents in support of PE remaining as a daily class. The research is out there proving that PE does support learning in the classroom & the whole child benefits from it being offered daily. The PE instructors are experts in their field. With training, education & experience behind them. Additionally, in our climate where recess can be limited to in the classroom time due to weather conditions, PE provides children a much needed daily opportunity for movement allowing them to be more attentive during instructional time. Busing as well as start/end times are where you should look to trim the fat.

All of Fullersburg Woods is more than a mile but less than 1.5 from Monroe but it’s not like our kids could walk to school since they have to cross Ogden. That would make absolutely no sense and would do nothing but significantly increase the amount of car traffic in front of the school making it more unsafe

I honestly don’t like any of the options. How can we be in this position where our property taxes go up significantly every single year and we are in this position.

How did we even get here!!?? Property taxes continue to sky rocket and we may need to cut necessary components to our curriculum? Do away w/ tenured teachers and bring in younger, hungrier, BETTER instruction!

do not cut academic or extra curricular programs.

Expecting young children to be AT SCHOOL at 8:05 ready to learn is just about the stupidest thing that you all have proposed in the 31 years that I (a former student of this district) have lived here. I can send you reams of research on the dangers of sleep deficits and brain development and functioning in young children. But you already know all this, I'm sure. The second dumbest thing that I've seen you all propose is reducing gym time for students. Again, reams of research is available to show that physical activity is needed in order for children to be successful learners, particularly boys‐‐ whom school is already designed to put at at disadvantage at this age. You've let this spiral out of control for years, including the construction of a new school that just appears to be costing ever more to create. Our children should be the VERY LAST PEOPLE to feel these cuts. Start eliminating redundant or overpaid staff, particularly at the administrative building.

Many school districts do not have buses. Bus service is a luxury, not a right. If you want your child to ride the bus it is only fair to have those pay. I pay for my own kids lunches at school, I don’t ask taxpayers to subsidize it. Regarding PE: I do not understand why IL is the last state in the country that still has a silly mandate for PE in school. It’s ridiculous. Childhood obesity is a parent’s problem, not a school problem. The teacher who retired from was earning $120,000 a year. Silly.

Admin offices houses in new HMS

I honestly don’t like any of the options. How can we be in this position where our property taxes go up significantly every single year and we are in this position.

Why not considering‐‐Class size limits should be strictly enforced. Do not split below the maximum. Additionally: This should not have been a surprise and dealt with during the last teacher negotiations. Maybe the teachers don't get everything they always ask for. The community is taxed out.

I hope there are other places to cut besides the ones I just ranked. Buses, PE and start times are items that should be considered untouchable in my opinion. Most buses are not full..how do you address that?

Students who live north of Ogden Ave should have bus transportation provided regardless of distance. It’s a safety that child NOT cross Ogden at any age.


Doesn’t illinois require PE every day?

We live in Fullersburg Woods and bus service is absolutely critical for the safety of our children attending Monroe. Crossing ogden on foot or bike is absolutely too dangerous.

Please do NOT make changes to the PE program. These are important to the development of our kids and are as important as any academic programs.

(1) I don't believe that every child deserves an IEP that drains resources by adding personal assistants among other items. (2) Switch to a defined contribution plan from a defined benefit plan for faculty.

This is not a valid survey because I would never consider reducing PE at the elementary or middle school levels!! Kids sit for too long, cannot focus and need to move around to increase learning. Look at the money we are spending on flexible furniture for goodness sakes! One of the biggest adjustments for students going from elementary to middle school is the lack of recess. Taking away PE would be damaging to student success and health. I can predict in elementary, if PE were reduced, teachers would simply add more recess. That's not what they are being paid to do. Other options that were not included but should be reduced ahead of PE are: 4th grade orchestra and 5th grade Spanish. There is no need to start orchestra a year ahead of band. Many students try it because it is offered in 4th grade, only to switch to band in 5th grade or drop it all together. Orchestra should be started in 5th grade at which time students can make an informed decision across all instruments in band and orchestra. The middle school music programs are making incredible strides and experiencing growth. This would not be affected by starting both band and orchestra in 5th grade. Also, if start times are changed (which they should be) and elementary starts earlier, band and orchestra can be offered after school instead of before. With respect to 5th grade Spanish, there is not enough taught in 5th grade that warrants starting it then. To have a real foreign language program at the elementary level, it should be started much earlier. This part‐time program in 5th grade can be eliminated and incorporated into 6th grade. At this point, students are spending four years in grades 5‐8 to finish one credit level of Spanish instruction or one years' worth of learning. The vast majority of students continuing with Spanish in high school move into Spanish 2 or 2H. Some even take Spanish 1 which is a joke considering they have spent 3‐4 years studying Spanish already. Others choose to start a new language such as French or German. Eliminating Spanish in 5th grade and starting it in 6th would put students at the exact same level entering high school as they are now. The 5th grade Spanish program is more of a "fun" program, not necessarily more instruction. I am a native Spanish speaker and have experienced it with 3 children in this district. Foreign language should truly be started in kindergarten, 1st grade or one of the lower elementary grades to be effective. My only fear is that if 5th grade Spanish is eliminated, this district will never truly take a look at incorporating a real foreign language program into the elementary schools ‐ which it should. Moreover, the time that is being spent on Spanish can be used for STEAM lab learning or incorporating that into the 5th grade curriculum. Or maybe some of the middle school skills such as note taking, etc could be taught in 5th grade to prepare these students for the onslaught of middle school. The change from 5th grade to 6th is dramatic. Additionally, as we heard over and over last year when school start times were being discussed, younger children get up earlier. Older children are more involved with after school activities, have more homework and their bodies naturally shift to a later sleep cycle. It only makes sense to move the elementary start time earlier before the middle school start time. The high school already has a late start day on Mondays at 8:50am and I would not be surprised if later start times are discussed there in the future. Middle schoolers do not need to spend 3 years starting school early to "prepare" for high school. They need to get more quality sleep and be in a better condition to learn effectively in their middle school years to prepare themselves for high school. I fully support the change in start times to reduce the very high transportation costs currently being incurred. Finally, reading through all of the teacher and staff recommendations, it is loud and clear that the TOSA positions are not valued or needed. These teachers should be put back in the classroom. Also, we need to stop making curriculum changes and costly changes to materials in such short spans of time. Teachers need to stop getting pulled out of classrooms for meetings and writing assessments. That is ridiculous to waste so much money on subs! Teachers should be with their students teaching. There are many areas where costs can be cut that do not affect class sizes, PE, or art.These are important components of our children's educations!

We strongly oppose reducing the amount of PE class times the children receive. They need this outlet each and everyday to allow them to be healthy children and also help them focus during class time. Thank you

Leverage the elementary school facilities for paid after school activities to increase revenue.

Please try to keep the impact on students to a minimum. Multiple studies have shown that students do better with PE and we should be giving them more time, not less.

Cut administration and District staff. Don’t cut things that affect the children directly.

Decrease the amount of time and money spent on technology, especially with younger kids. I strongly oppose the amount of screen exposure my child experiences in school. I disagree with a 1:1 device so young.

this is absolutely infuriating. As a parent who pays high taxes to benefit from this school district, I find the inability to fund PE ridiculous. This is suspiciously coincidental with the new HMs construction. Why don't you cut something from that new construction? (which I believe to be 65 million absurd‐‐‐why not renovate instead? I never saw a proposal about a reno vs new


contrstruction). I am absolutely enraged by this. Also, if you want to add more school time (with an earlier start time), where is money going to come from to pay the teachers extra for that service? I think that there is way too much money spent on technology that is unnecessary, why not cut some of that? too many ipads, tech stuff. Physical activity is very important for kids' health and minds to get a little "break" during curriculum, and it helps immensely in social development. I have had so much faith in the administrative people at 181, but this blows it. No more ridiculousness. Make the budget work. Maybe there needs to less administrative personnel at d 181? That will help work to reduce costs. This doesn't need to be anomymous... call me if you want to hear more of my and my s opinions.

1. When we moved to D181 three years ago, we were told that gifted programs were removed because of budget constraint. My daughter was already selected to a gift & talent program in Virginia and we were certainly disappointed with this news but accepted the reality. But recently I just learnt that those teachers were re‐labeled Differentiation Specialists and stayed on. This is disturbing. Does this mean that there was no meaningful reduction in cost, teachers kept their salary without teaching what they were supposed to teach, and only students were sacrificed? If so, D181 needs to review and either let these teachers go and reestablish the gift program permanently. 2. I don't see strong reasons AGAINST making PE & academic classes bigger to accommodate more students per instructor. I understand this would be open to debate. My personal experience was that we 84 students were in one big room during our high school years. Nobody ever attributed academic falling‐behind to the size of class. 3. D181 definitely needs to emphasize math, language, science to make students competitive. The math skills of many Americans are ridiculous, in comparison with students in China, India, and Russia. For instance, a college student once asked me whether he could use a calculator to figure 1/4+3/4. Is this funny if our kids someday make the same request?

PE should NOT be eliminated at all.

PE shouldn't be reduced or eliminated at ALL

Use the school fundraising money to cover budget deficiencies.

Please do not sacrifice our students but cutting or overloading programs such as Art and Pe. These are important pieces of our children’s education and they should not be touched. Our art teachers not only teach art, but they push in and support many students in the classroom throughout the day. Sacrificing one teacher to overload others will cause a ripple effect of services and our children will suffer.

Our children need to move and use up excess energy. PE is an essential part of their daily life. Can you as an adult, sit and concentrate on something for more than 30 minutes at a time? What we are demanding of our children in the classroom are not developmentally appropriate for our kids. I wish administrators would take a day to teach in the classroom and see why PE is crucial for evert day.

PE is a proven benefit for cognitive development... Classes should remain and focus on high energy activities to get the kids heart rates elevated for the duration of the class... Less talk, more active play! Please stop the field trips!!! A day away from school is a lost teaching moment.

Physical education is critically important to our children keeping fit and active. All the other changes are easier to implement and don't impact the health and fitness of the students.

PE should NOT be taken away from student’s instructional day!!!!! Take away Ipads....which is only practice of mastered skills...or game playing fir that matter....but children NEED physical education as part of their DAILY instruction to improve attention, concentration & memory!!!

All the ideas proposed here are bad, stop waste and corruption

Cut out some of the "wanted" but not "needed" items from the new multi‐million dollar HMS.

I have serious concerns about reducing the number of physical education classes. Children this age NEED a physical break and they NEED to let out energy in order to be able to focus and do their best in school. Reducing PE will lead to lower test scores and more disruptions in class. With childhood obesity on the rise and physical activity on the decline we need to place a higher value on physical activity and healthy lifestyles.

This survey is a joke. Why is it so short. This should be expanded and more detailed. Why isn’t there any proposed administrative cuts up for budget reductions ???? Don’t waste my time asking to take away our kids transportation and physical health first.

Kids in elementary school won't be successful if the district changes th start time to 8:05am and if the district reduces the PE classes less than 5 times a week

Limit impact, if any, to teachers who work closest with our kids. Can any of the monies in the bank be used? Especially since our school district has paid out a really high amount of severance packages to superintendent/administrative changes upon new school boards over the last decade. Money that is “needed” for HMS ($500,000) should have to be figured out within the budgeted $53 million. Something else within that project should have to go based on our current budget situation.


Actually my comments center solely around the fact that this is not a good list of potential budget cuts and it doesn’t reflect the very real conversation that has to happen if we are to move forward and embrace fiscal responsibility. I believe the first priority before any of these is to discuss salary freezes; reduce pay structure; and make changes to our teacher contracts. Every industry in America like it or not faces these punches. There is no reason for us to have ridiculously over arching competitive salaries when benchmarked to our peers. We need to take a look at our hiring practices; initial pay structure and we need to eliminate fluff. We don’t need a Communications Director. We do not need four TOSA positions. We need to be realistic here.

With all that we know about childhood obesity, diabetes, hypertension, and heart disease, I can not believe that you are considering dropping down the number of days kids take physical education. These gym periods may be the only time that some children have any physical activity.

I did believe D181 should remove language in grade 5 as it is available for three years in middle school and only counts as one year.

Why is there no suggestion of salary cuts and freezes for both administration and teachers? This should be an option. I would rank that as NUMBER ONE. I can’t really make this ranking without info on how we can cut salaries. Disappointing. You are focusing on cuts that affect students but what about freezing teacher salaries? Every job in America is affected by salary freezes and job cuts. Surrounding districts have frozen salaries. We need to look at this as a viable option. FIRST.

Starting the middle school day even later interferes with after school activities, which may have already have been adjusted with the change in start time this school year already.

I think that the reading programs and programs for struggling academic programs should NOT be cut in any way. How about reducing secretarial hours, using more voicemail, using remote secretaries for cost savings

I believe we need to FIRST look at our overall salary and compensation and benefits. Recruiting for talent is one thing; simply throwing money at applicants is another. Why do we need to pay significantly more than our Oak Brook or Wedtern Springs teachers? Is the caliber of our staff so significantly better? We can remain competitive but still freeze salaries and cut salaries both at administration and with our teachers. It is not like they will go elsewhere and find more pay. So many other people have gone through this in their neighboring districts.

I strongly disagree with reducing Physical Education classes! It has been proven over and over that children learn and focus better when they have physical activity as a daily outlet. It also exposes children to new physical activities they might not have tried before and helps develop gross motor skills. Not to mention the current issue of childhood obesity in the U.S.

It is disappointing in a time of real budget constraints that our District once again fails at transparency and an exploration of the very real options that are necessary to balance our budget. MY FIRST CONSIDERATION AND VOTE would be for a harsh look at our salaries and compensation. While great teachers should always be recognized and teaching should be respected as a whole, the bottom line is there is no need for our District to be a lighthouse in salary and benefits when compared to all other neighboring competitive districts. We consistently look to compare ourselves and pat ourselves on the back that are test scores are so amazing. But what of comparing ourselves to other districts for benefits? special education? etc? The reality is‐our test scores are not so much greater than other districts to warrant such a HUGE step in salary and beenfits. I propose first a salary freeze for 3 years; 2nd I propose that we eliminate the position of Director of Communications (no real effective pertinent news comes from this position that can't be disseminated from each individual department); and lastly, I propose that Adminstrative salaries be cut as well. Then you can rank these "options" as secondary.

Please do not reduce PE classes

First, I find it disturbing that we are at a point where we have to make these choices to balance the budget. That said, the earlier start for the elementary students and the later start for the middle school students makes a lot of sense for the emotional and physical health for both age groups ‐ and is long overdue. Second, as a parent in a two‐parent working family, the lack of before and after‐school care in District 181 is, simply, egregious. We can do better. The earlier start to the school day for the elementary school‐age children at least partially addresses this issue. Finally, I find it outrageous that the District Administration would even consider suggesting that families pay a fee for bus transportation in addition to all the other fees families already pay. Even though this fee would not affect me personally, I am offended that anyone would even suggest it.

I strongly request you do NOT reduce the number of PE classes. This is an extremely important element of our children’s day and they need these activity breaks for both health benefits and to help them better learn during class time.

Cut administration and non‐teachers

Please don't change anything regarding phys ed. Based on budget needs, savings have already been achieved without the need for PE reduction. PE is critical for well balanced development. As well, please add back 4th grade orchestra...there was a $0


budget impact anyway, so why was this eliminated? Lastly, add back 5th grade Spanish. This is critical for students in a culturally diverse America/world. Thanks for your hard work to date, let's get this right!

Please consider cutting the TOSA’s or explaining to parents why they are important.

Don’t reduce PE at all. This is critical for youth today! Or make 5th day a “nutrition day” for education and body knowledge advancement.

I think you have a great elementary P.E. program in District 181, and the kids benefit from it daily. Please do not reduce it. Other cost reduction ideas: 1. Eliminate Spanish in grade 5. (It's only three days a week for that one year, and some kids may choose a different language in middle school, anyway. Also, there is a private company that has offered lunchtime instruction in the elementary schools.) 2. There are LED lighting installations planned over the next few years. Perhaps these can be postponed? 3. The middle schools seem to offer a great variety of courses and an impressive three levels of math. For students who wish to take math classes above and beyond the available tiers (e.g., pre‐calculus), then parents should pay the full teacher and transportation costs. 4. Ensure that WeCreate Labs aren't adding unnecessary costs. 5. Revisit plan for 1:1 ipads in elementary school. 6. Per staff survey, eliminate Canvas and use Google Docs instead.

With the amount of taxes that our city pays it is absolutely appalling that we are in need of reducing services!

Consider a reduction in salaries across the entire district

Busing should not be the reason for changing school schedules, particularly when kids who live fairly close to school avail themselves to busing. Why not charge EVERYONE who uses the bus at least a portion of what it costs? Many of us have kids who don’t use the bus. Why should we be subsidizing others, particularly when the cost is less PE, etc.?

There are very few options here, are these the only one up for consideration? I believe children need PE every day as a release from the formalized classroom environment and to allow them to maintain focus through the day.

have the schedules of all "specials" teachers (art, PE, music..) more efficient‐ if there is extra time beyond allotted planning periods then that time should be utilized to provide academic support

What about administrative staff reorg? Decrease in purchased services spend?

I’m not having my young children attend elementary school at 8:05 !! Period!!! Middle school starting later is great for that age group...no prob with that.

Need to focus the problem which is on pension and benefit reform.

The vast majority of the people in our geographic area can get their kids to and from school, and particularly for middle school bikes are an option. Right now my elementary school son rides his bike over a mile to school.

It’s ridiculous the bus cuts made this year. I bet a kid walking home now into the woodlands from Oak school and down those hills gets hit by a car any day now. Hope you have money in your budget for that lawsuit.

Cutting the extra layer of admin such as the PSA would go even further. PSA’s are merely a scribe in a meeting as they don’t even know the kids they’re talking about in the IEP meeting and only cause contention. There is your budget savings but God forbid clean up the administrative excess. Take it out of the kids hides. Way to go 181. 1.5 miles in neighborhood schools for the bus program? Are you kidding? 5th grade lost recess and now you want to limit gym. MORE activity, not less.

Cut administrative costs and reduce non‐classroom costs, i.e., retirement benefits

I think cutting PE is a stupid choice. Kids need that much valued brain break during the school day; the exercise has proven to be good for focus and attention issues; and the fact remains all kids need exercise and an opportunity to play. With teachers refusing to go out if it is too cold or older kids missing recess, kids need to have options for physical movement. Cutting PE is not something that I am in favor of at all. Instead, I want to see a hard look at administration staff in positions that could be edited; salary adjustments for management staff/administration and overall teacher salaries; and I would like us to consider eliminating some jobs like Director of Communications by either completely getting rid of it or downgrading it to a "liaison" position.

Obviously this is a very difficult situation for the school board. Would it be possible for every family to pay a small transportation fee?

Take a closer look at administrator level positions, there seem to be so many positions at the admin. office for a smaller district that is not k‐12. Keep the cuts away from the children. There needs to be a closer look at this before making final decisions.


I think it would be a disservice to reduce the number of physical education classes. All the studies show how important it is to have an element of physical movement as part of a student's day. For some kids, this is the only exercise they get especially in winter months. As far as changing the time for middle school, I think this would create a difficult transition to the the high school start times. You also just changed this and families had to adapt their schedules. Further, the later the middle school kids are in school, the later they have to be out for after school activities. As far as eligibility of student bus transportation, that's tough because we do live in illinois and during the winter, I don't think it is safe to expect kids to have to walk 1 mile to school. I would say it was fair to charge families in the 1.0‐1.5 range but it would also depend on what the amount is. I would imagine that might cause a hardship for some families.

TOSA should be reduced first and foremost. The staff survived for years without the before and from my understanding they are completely under utilized. This reduction would not effect the students directly which is the most important factor. Also, consider replacing PE teachers that are retiring with younger professionals at the beginning of their careers. Not only will they have potential to stay in d181 for many more years, but they will bring fresh, contemporary ideas to the PE program.

I'm sorry. I've read the emails coming from the district 181, however there are so many emails its hard to keep track. Why is there a budget deficit? My property taxes keep going up so I'm assuming it can't be due to less revenue.

I do not want PE cut down at all. Daily PE has too many benefits to the students to be reduced by one or two days a week. Numerous studies have shown that daily PE helps students learn better and retain more information than sitting in a classroom for hours on end. The students need PE everyday to help their brain grow and to teach them how to lead a healthy and happy lifestyle. Not only does PE help students learn better in the classroom, it teaches the students valuable lessons such as helping students learn how to work well with others, how to problem solve, and how to cooperate with others. Cutting PE from 5 days a week to any less would not benefit the students in any way. If daily PE is cut, the middle school students will need some where to go during the time they would normally be at PE. This would require hiring more teachers to have the students go to another class which would mean they would be spending money on new teachers and the district would not be saving money on cutting PE from 5 days a week to 3 days or 4 days a week. Possibly hold a yearly district fundraiser so that the funds can be raised without impacting each students education and avoid having to face budget reductions like this in the future.

It is ridiculous that any of this is even being considered. I am floored that this district is having trouble meeting the budget without having to affect or disturb our children’s schooling.

Working on these solutions seem like working on the fringes. Almost 87% of the budget is salaries and benefits. District has to consider that. Everything should be on the table

I am strong opposed to any changes in school timings. Please ensure that all other avenues are considered before considering changes. The changes impact parents and kids alike. I hope you consider that before making any changes to the current structure. Thanks.

This should never have happened. The board was negligent in not taxing at the max to provide reserves for infrastructure and repairs. To the extent the administratiion did not analyze or communicate future needs to the board adequately, they share the blame.

* The bus situation is a no brainer ‐ whatever way you need to reduce costs here, you should. Evaluate whether this be extending the geography or assessing a fee for folks outside of the 1 mile radius. * PE ‐ we DO NOT live in a district where PE days should be sacrificed * Moving orchestra to 5th grade is a great idea, if it saves money ‐ but, appears as a $0 budget item? * Consider fee for 5th grade Spanish ‐ most people would pay it

I strongly disagree with considering a decrease the # of PE days per week at all. This survey also has people ranking only 5 choices when there are many more options out there to consider. It's not an accurate way to get opinions. Just because someone ranks something listed here as a "5/last to be considered" it doesn't mean they wouldn't have chosen one not listed with flying colors over it. It will present you with skewed data & gives a false sense of what the community "wants."

I don’t like hearing that budgets cuts need to be made but the district continues to spend money on items like canvas. I saw that the contract was at once over 100,000. We need to focus on removing items over people. Please reduce contracts like that and phase them out. The teachers can educate the children with resources that do the same that are free or cheaper.

I think parents would be more willing to the new elementary school times if the district or individual schools were to provide after school clubs for the children. These time changes offer the least flexibility for working parents. The schools can charge a nominal fee for the service. Another alternative worth considering is to bus students in Elementary school with their siblings in middle school. Thus saving money and possibly making the earlier elementary school timings more favorable to parents with children in both schools.

I am extremely disappointed with D181's proposals. The idea that, with the taxes we pay, that you are unable to function is unbelievable. You went OVER THE TOP on the HMS school and instead of creating a cost‐effective solution for a MIDDLE SCHOOL that is not even the high school, is blowing my mind. You were greedy, unrealistic and are now trying to put us in this situation.


Go back to your proposals, look at your reserves, and figure this out b/c the ideas that you are creating are unacceptable and raising our taxes, fees or any other monetary adjustment coming from the community is ridiculous. PE and movement is important for young minds. RESEARCH SHOWS it is not healthy to wake up and go to school as early as kids do, you changed that and now you want to go back b/c you spent too much on HMS...stop harming the kids b/c you want to have a ridiculous middle school.

Administration reduction and hold on salary

Administration reduction and hold on salary

I have a son in PreK who will need physical activity daily to effectively focus. Please do NOT reduce PE!

Why are these the only budget cuts you want public input on? Make the TOSA employees work for their pay. What other positions are not adding value allowing people to do little and take home a paycheck? Staff salaries and benefits make up the largest expenditures. That is fine if staff are being productive. Many companies today are operating with fewer staff doing more work. Are we using the staff (this includes everyone including administration) to their maximum potential? Are they receiving appropriate performance reviews? Are health insurance benefits being reviewed? Is the health plan selection competitive in terms of pricing and employee contribution, what about pharmacy benefits? Let people in the community volunteer to be MRC aides. What I find most disturbing is seeing in the board docs personnel sections staff who have been on leave for 8/9 months retiring. Ho ware these people staying on the payroll for this length of time. This is not acceptable any longer. Or someone is on leave, they come back for a week then they are back on leave the rest of the year. We are spending too much money on subs for these situations. Do the staff still have sick days? Eliminate sick days and provide staff with PTO‐ we'll probably see a big decrease in staff calling in sick.

It’s unfair to penalize people that live farther from school to pay a fee for bus service. If these students aren’t bussed think about the large increase in cars at drop off and pick up since every one of them will be driven. Middle schoolers can’t get out any later than 3:15 and make it to after school activities at 4. Did you not have enough foresight to figure this out LAST year when there were a million “studies” and surveys of what was best? Two changes in start times in 2 years is really irresponsible on the part of the board.

Busing change should have been done YEARS ago!

What is going on with the district ranking ? It moves from 10 to 9 ?

Do a fund raiser and request parents to volunteer

I think there should be a fee for any elementary bus service, no one lives far enough to actually need bus service

Daily excersise is so very crucial for children

Third graders don’t need iPads in the classroom the way they have them this year. That would be a great place to save money, and I doubt even 4th graders need personal iPads. Having volunteered in the school in the first part of this year‐ they are a nuisance, kids aren’t following directions, doing things they aren’t supposed to be doing on their iPads, and missing key instructional points because they are distracted. Not only that, teachers are unable to monitor what kids are doing on their iPad. The kids only need access to them in the room, but shouldn’t own them and no reason why they can’t be shared amongst classrooms through the use of cloud file storage. We do not have the appropriate abilities to monitor what kids are doing online and have numerous letters about kids using them inappropriately. In our building alone, we have at least 7 teachers that are making over $105,000 a year. Offer a early retirement cash payout and lets bring in hungry younger teachers that are eager to teach. Our contracts need to realigned to not allow the last couple of years salary bumps to increase their pension payouts. I can think of no other job where this is allowed, nor where indidivuals are guaranteed positions with tenure and continue to increase their salaries when they are doing the SAME job as younger teachers making far less.

The taxpayers are tired of the schools always asking for more money..you just spent a ton on a new school..the main problem is the number of teachers and staff and the above market salaries, benefits and pensions they make. The district must take control away from the teachers unions who are running the show..it is embarrassing that you are asking for more a year after you got a big tax increase for the new school..it doesn’t look like you will ever stop spending money or want to as you think you can bully the taxpayers into coughing up more money

Reduction of teachers/ staff/ teacher salaries would be my very last consideration. I think that parents in this district would be willing to sacrifice many other things in the interest of not affecting the quality of the (outstanding) teachers that we attract. Thank you.

All current research indicates how important physical education is for kids' well‐being and for learning. Please do not cut physical education classes.


PE is a vital part of a student's day. There is so much research that proves this activity directly impacts a student's learning. Why would we diminish a core part of a student's day when we know that it will directly impact their learning?

Please control better the HMS construction spending ‐ this is a building for a school ‐ nothing more! The kids opportunities to learn is more important than a pretty building.

Why are we considering changing start times when this was just done for this school year? Let’s make the right decision the first time! Does research support the idea that children do not need physical activity breaks during the school day? If we are considering eliminating PE some days please provide research that supports this approach.

Are public schools limited in increasing their registration fees? Is there an opportunity for additional revenue from families through fees (some families could be subsidized based on need)? Why would PE time have to be replaced with additional instructional time? Why couldn't the kids have physical activity like recess to replace PE time?

If you are going to make changes to school start and end times please consider that many families have kids in both schools. The new times you listed have huge gaps between the both schools times. It would be really inefficient for parents dropping kids off at both schools

I strongly oppose the suggestion to move the elementary school time earlier since small kids needs more sleep. And research suggested that more sleep and later school time corelate with better student performance. I dont understand either why move elementary school time earlier and middle school time later saves budget. Anyway, a lot of elementary schools don’t even have school bus.

Srongly oppose to move elementary school time earlier

cut administrator salary?

Raise taxes, it’s silly to cut services in this district. $52 per household per year is absolutely zero hardship.

Changing the drop off pick up times would really impact working families... the town is not 100% stay at home moms... please don’t forget this.

I have read through the proposed reductions and the staff input on these proposals. I am STRONGLY against cutting back on PE, Art & 5th Grade Spanish. These are all vital components of the students' education. Reducing/eliminating any of these programs and related teachers would be a monumental disservice to the students, not to mention reducing Hinsdale's competitiveness vis‐a‐vis other school districts thereby leaving our children inadequately prepared for high school and beyond. They need well‐rounded educations. This is what we all move to Hinsdale for. The first place you should look for reductions is in the Administration. Having worked in corporate America for 25+ years, I know there is always room to cut in the overhead, as hard and unpleasant as it may be. The goal should be to minimize impact on children first and teachers second. Many of the staff comments noted that Tech TOSAS and PSAs could easily be eliminated. There are a lot of people in the Administration with big titles and commensurately big salaries; if they are well qualified, they should be more than capable of taking on additional workload so as to meet the end goal of providing the children in our district with the best possible education. You'd be amazed at the level people will rise to when faced with more work or losing a job. The District's legal counsel should also be taking a firmer approach when negotiating employment contracts and severance packages. We have had so much money thrown away because of the unfavorable (for us) terms in these agreements. This should be a desirable school district to work in, we shouldn't need to bend so much. Finally, many of the staff recommendations noted that Canvas should be eliminated ‐ if the teachers are using Google classroom, and it's free, there shouldn't be any question but to move ahead on that. The bottom line is that any budget reductions need to be made with the primary goal of minimal‐to‐no impact on students and teachers. They are your clients, and it's your duty to serve them above all else.

I believe the following potential budget cuts should be strongly considered: Eliminate the Director of Communications, Reduction or elimination of TOSAs, and temporary suspension of PD for teachers. I do not support the potential increase in class sizes.

Could costs be lowered by having teacher meetings at lunchtime or before or after school to significantly reduce the costs incurred for subs in the classroom?? There are entirely too many hours of subs in the class ‐ the teachers should be teaching during the school day and attending meetings outside of the school day.

Since we’re the highest paid district, id like to see if the teachers could take a pay freeze. Id also like to see what administration cuts we could make to still achieve our district needs. I absolutely do NOT want to see any changes in the sound I’d support staff for our schools. We attend suburban schools for the support our children are able to get, if and when it is needed. Considering PE cuts seem against against best practice. This is something I’d seen/have seen in the city. Why am I feeling like we left the city schools to come into a district that’s turning more and more into CPS???


Differentiate Education is most important. Now it's not fair to real gifted students. They don't have room to grow.

Bring in lower cost teachers. Reduce administrative staff by30% Ask more of existing employees Close oak school and liquidate Land site ‐ morph kids into elm and Madison Close one of the CH schools and liquidate land and morph into Monroe and other Ch school Use teachers more often at multiple schools to reduce future pension liabilities.

This is obscene. We live in a wealthy district supported by some of the highest property taxes in America. We don't even have full‐day kindergarten, and now you want to make supplemental kindergarten impossible by starting the school day at 8:05 and ending at 2:40? Absurd. The board needs to learn how to set and achieve a budget. In a real organization of any kind you would be fired for this level of incompetence and malfeasance. Quit taking obscene pensions for yourselves; quit fluffing your budgets; quit bowing down to the union. Do you jobs.

Physical education is an important part of children's education. Child obesity is a problem in America and the sedentary nature of school absent gym class will detract from students' ability to focus and challenge stress management. I support an earlier elementary school start time, as the present one is not supportive of a dual income household, given the late start challenges to get to work at a respectable time after sending the elementary kids to school. Securing affordable childcare at the before school is a major challenge in the area. An earlier start time would allow parents to secure after school care and be relieved of before school care as it would allow parents who commute to the city to easily catch the 8:25 train.

I feel it is a waste of money to use a search service for a new superintendent. Why can’t we make these decisions without a third party?

I wish there was an option to not use as much tech. We do not need our 3rd graders on ipads. There is a tech in their lives as is. k‐2 shouldn't be on the ipads at all. Please take some money out of the one to one program. Who wanted this for our kids anyway??

Concerning the change in school start times‐ My concern with the new start time is that the district, which is way behind the curve compared to similar districts in IL and other states by failing to provide all day kindergarten, are effectively taking away the opportunity for us to supplement our kindergartners day with an enrichment program. A morning program would not be over in time for afternoon kindergarten. Anyone wanting supplementation would have to have AM kindergarten for a PM 5s program and they cannot provide that to everyone. Big problem. Without full day kindergarten and enrichment programs, kindergarten students will most likely be lacking the skills needed to be ready for first grade. After teaching full day kindergarten in multiple states, our kindergarten program does not compare to what the children are being exposed to who have full day programs. Also concerning class sizes‐ using the limits of 26 students per class especially without having a full time or even part time aide is a major setback. One of the greatest factors in student success is class size. 26 students per class, especially in K‐2, will only create more issues such as students slipping through the cracks, students not being on grade level, teachers not being able to meet all students' needs, the rigor of the curriculum decreasing due to not being able to differentiate with that many students etc. I've taught in districts where class size was increased due to budget cuts and in a few years many problems due to that decision become evident. To increase class size when a majority of states and districts are doing whatever they can to decrease class sizes makes no sense. Smaller more effective class sizes are an important reason why this district is successful and has such a strong reputation. Furthermore the more students teachers are responsible for and when standards continue to become more stringent, we're asking for our effective quality teachers to look elsewhere for employment to districts who value the great positives that stem from smaller classes. I hope the board can truly anazlye why our district is successful and prevent any cuts that will greatly harm our students and reputation of our schools.

I would prefer a special assessment to pay for the needed repair work instead of making any cuts

These seem like silly changes, can they really make up a $1.4 million deficit, have other options been suggested and considered? I think we really need to stop messing with the school day time changes, we just changed the middle school time this year.

After reading...do away with Hinsdale border zone and send additional students to South.

The bus situation seems the most obvious place to get the biggest financial impact and still impact the fewest number of students.

Please reconsider cutting programs and instructional staff which will directly impact services to the students, including the arts, music, physical education and counseling services. We also strongly support maintaining smaller class sizes and not increasing them to the district high of 26 in all situations at all schools. We strongly encourage considering further cutting administrative costs for non instructional administration costs.

There should be a surcharge for anyone taking the bus. Bus service is not available to all students and should not be covered by the District. There are many times when the bus is not utilized by those who are to be riding the bus.


Please reconsider cutting programs and instructional staff which will impact direct services to the students including the arts, music, physical education and counseling services. We strongly support maintaining smaller class sizes and not always increasing to the district high cap of 26.

My third grader needs the time in the morning to sleep, as she is a fast growing girl, and is not an early riser. She is tired already in the morning with school starting at 8:35, and starting at 8:00, we fell, would be unhealthy for her. The earlier time would also require more time in after‐school care, which would cost us a lot more money. Also, because the elementary children are growing and need physical activity to develop their bodies and minds, PE should remain at five days per week. If you establish a fee for bus service, more parents will drive their kids to school, resulting in more congestion at drop‐off and pick‐up, and again, less money to pay for the bus service, if you keep two circuits.

Reduce Spanish from grade school before reducing PE.

Sleeping time is proved scientifically to be a key factor for kids well behavior at school. No early school, please!



The choices presented are very disappointing. Parents should be given the same choices to give feedback on as those being considered by the board. Please stop spending our tax dollars on technology if there is a shortage of money. There is enough technology without the need to implement a 1:1 program. Our kids have access to better computers at home and can access google classroom easily. The amount of turnover and tax dollars spent on attorney fees, search firms and costs associated with hiring new personnel is also a waste of money. There seem to be teachers that are on special assignments for integrating technology into the classrooms. This is a complete waste of money. Please put teachers back in the classrooms so that we have better quality teaching versus using technology. The quality of substitute teachers is quite bad. Please stop pulling teachers out of the classrooms during the school day and save more money! Having been in this area for a number of years it is quite surprising to hear of the sudden need for such drastic measures to cut the budget and impact programs that are essential to our children. Languages, art, PE, differentiation specialists, advanced classes, special labs etc. are important in a community like ours. There is work being done at the schools every summer. Why does all this facility work need to be done right away? Something doesn't seem right. Please delay some of this work so that our district isn't turned upside down. Our taxes continue to increase and it makes no sense to be going through these many cuts.

Increase class size by 3 students would help save money

Busing impacts fewer students. Very cost effective

Bus is the only logical solution b/c it impacts the fewest students.

Kids need physical education, especially at the elementary school level. And charging people who currently live in the busing range does not make sense. Aren't taxes going up enough? Are kids going to walk 1 mile to school? Highly doubt it. so what is difference between 1 mile and 1.5 miles? why should some pay and others don't. Plus the logic is counter‐intuitive...if anything, people who live further should pay more. It costs more the further we live out, and they would typically pay less in property taxes because not by a school. I really hope this budgeting process is looked at more thoroughly next year from top to bottom, vs. just selecting 5 items we need to rank that directly affect our kids/families/day‐to‐day life.

It is disappointing to be in this situation. The fact that we put ourselves in this situation financially over years but don’t address proactively but wait until the last minute is unacceptable especially after passing a ridiculous budget for the HMS.

Get rid of buffer zone.

Please adjust calendar to match the high school

Eliminate 5th grade Spanish

I think we should take the time to review the items under consideration for cutbacks and take some suggestions from the teacher input for additional cost savings before making final decision.

I would like to see recommendations on the list for restructuring or elimination of positions at the District office. The only one mentioned was eliminating a receptionist role and that hardly seems like where the big $ is spent. Considering restructuring departments, reducing inefficiencies, etc. Long range cost reduction plans should consider reorganizing district structure. Many other Illinois districts operate as a K‐12 district which would eliminate duplication of key/costly roles.

Please consider other opportunities for budget reductions. For example, what is the cost to purchase, maintain, and replace the Ipads that are given to each student? In my opinion, and the opinion of other parents I know, these could be done away with. It seems that the devices are used primarily as a babysitting tool. While i can appreciate the district's focus on technology, I don't think that we are getting a very good bang for the buck from these devices. Additionally, any reduction in physical education should be off the table. Kids need to be kids. They need to move and burn energy so that they can focus when in the classroom.


My child already struggles to contain themself in class even with multiple opportunities for activity per day. Reducing the number of chances for physical activity is not the right answer.

We can have a fundraising event. Lots of wealthy and nice people live in Hinsdale.

All the research has pointed to academic learning being strengthened by movement and activity. Reducing PE is NOT an option for D181. Too many children already suffer from anxiety and depression from the stress of too many hours sitting in class and then sitting again for homework. Do NOT remove the only physical activity they get.

Changing the elementary school start time will be an astronomical mistake. Most children are not fully awake and functional before mid‐morning. It already is difficult some mornings to get kids to school for a 8:40am start. I cannot imagine the challenge of getting them there 35 minutes earlier. I fully appreciate the need to cut expenses but this specific action will result in a significantly deteriorated educational experience for everyone involved ‐‐‐ the children, parents, staff and families. Please do not make this change.

Why weren’t parents asked earlier or asked about all the recommendations like staff?

This is a very limited option set. We need to be more creative and thoughtful with cost cutting initiatives, lest community members think these are the only options available to us. Also, why did we just approve a $40 million school and now we are dealing with budget cuts? Finally, we should first on‐board the new superintendent and let him or her address this issue. This isn't something that the outgoing superintendent should deal with as he walks out the door in a couple of months.

Whoever let this foreseeable issue spring up like this (the CFO?) should be fired. Somebody was asleep at the wheel. Instructional time and curriculum should not be affected. There will be outrage if it does. Furthermore, P.E. isn't "just P.E." It's critically important for learning, especially for boys, to have a chance to be active, and 10‐15 minutes of recess, does not cut it. If P.E. is cut, their ability to sit in a classroom and learn is negatively impacted. Finally, I'm all for a new roof for school buildings, but Monroe's parking lot didn't truly need repaving last summer, and Oak's parking lot can also wait. Come on, guys.

Changing the bus radius to 1.5 miles basically eliminates the entire district, does it not? Or put another way, how many students would be left in district with the increased radius. Going for this option will have unintended consequences of traffic, pollution and delays when you're trying to deal with massive upticks in car drop off volumes.

Most kids in elementary school in particular have limited opportunities to get the minimal amount of exercise that is required‐ especially during winter months when sports opportunities are not as prevalent for this age group. In addition, studies have shown that regular PE during the school day leads to more student focus and better behavior in the class room. Asking elementary school students to sit through a full day of school without the physical activity that PE provides can only hurt the overall learning environment‐ it is not beneficial to the students and not beneficial to the teachers who will have to spend more time getting kids to focus.

This should be necessary. We pay a LOT in property taxes ‐‐ among the highest in America ‐‐ and it is not our fault that you award yourselves fat pensions and can't set a budget. Fix this without screwing up our schools. We don't even have full‐day kindergarten, and now you want to take away supplemental after‐school options and gym classes? Get real.

This should not be necessary. There is plenty of money but a lack of responsible adults to set a budget. Have some pride in your jobs and get this fixed without taking things away from our kids.

Most kids in elementary school in particular have limited opportunities to get the minimal amount of exercise that is required‐ especially during winter months when sports opportunities are not as prevalent for this age group. In addition, studies have shown that regular PE during the school day leads to more student focus and better behavior in the class room. Asking elementary school students to sit through a full day of school without the physical activity that PE provides can only hurt the overall learning environment‐ it is not beneficial to the students and not beneficial to the teachers who will have to spend more time getting kids to focus. Also, I am hoping I misread the budget and that increasing class sizes is NOT an option being considered. Larger class sizes is a known factor as it relates to a decrease in quality of education and a key factor in ratings of schools. Things such as reducing TOSA should be considered before PE reduction and/or increased class sizes.

How is this possible? You have some of the highest taxes in the U.S. and you can't set a budget? Somebody needs to look at your pensions and unions. I've seen lemonade stands that are run with better budgets than D181. The school day stays the same and the gym days don't get cut. Period.

We are very surprised that these budget cuts are necessary given how high the taxes are that we are paying to live in this district. Budget cuts should be made in areas that impact the students the least. With 82% of our budget going towards salaries/benefits, I would prefer to see hiring based on quality of teaching, rather than tenure. New graduate teachers often are more enthusiastic to work with students over veteran teachers. Also, changing the school start time affects a lot of working parents in a negative way. The schools do not offer after‐school care, and having an earlier end time for elementary‐age students requires more families to invest in other childcare programs. Please keep these things in mind.


This situation is just mismanagement of the resources. There is no reason, given the property taxes and absolute dollars being funneled into D181, that we should be facing these sort of "surprise" budget cuts. Also, since people costs are 82% of the budget, should we not be looking harder? E.g., what is the average salary of our teachers relative to the benchmark?

I feel that the physical education for our children is so crucial, especially since they have so little recess time. They need to keep moving their bodies or it will affect their learning and health overall. Changing the school day times will be a big hardship for families with children in both elementary and middle schools. Preschool start times are all set by the school start/end time as well, and this would make this a challenge as well for families with preschoolers.

Eliminate TOSA positions. These positions are not a necessity and from what I understand, there is a lot of wasted time with them sitting around looking for something to do. District may be able to implement them back in once the budget crisis is taken care of and they have leadership to direct the position. Freeze admin Salaries is a definite. The concerns is admin turnover.....seriously? We can't really get much more turnover and if they do leave it may be for the best bring in employees maybe with less experience, but with more motivation to strive to make a difference at a much lower salary. I am a parent of a sped student.....Keep special Ed team leaders and maybe even add some. These employees make a difference. They understand each individual schools families and how adjust to work with them. With that being said, Eliminate all PSA positions. PSA's cause turmoil in the buildings with parents/staff/students because they do not know the families or work with the students/team on a daily basis. They are not collaborative employees and generally use their title to bully parents/staff into what "they" believe is best for your child. I understand there may be some situations the sped team leader can't handle and for those that require admin involvement bring in the director of special ed ( this should be the directors job instead of micromanaging other disciplines). This would save over $500,00 in salaries and eliminate the excessive overlapping between sped teachers and PSA. In reviewing the proposed cuts, it is disgraceful that admin is not willing to give anything other that a secretary. I thought we were trying to propose cuts that didn't touch the students . Families will adjust to the change in start time, but keep our Blue Ribbon PE 5 days a week, keep the MRC IA's remove the admin fluff.

Special ed services and academic supports for kids in any setting should not be considered in cuts

I am strongly opposed to cutting back our PE offering. As is well known, our PE curriculum is top‐notch; our PE instructors outstanding, as evidenced by our schools' PE programs' Blue Ribbon Awards. It would be a real tragedy to dismantle this successful and important aspect of our children's education. Our students NEED daily PE to relieve stress and balance their need to move with the highly challenging demands placed on them in the classrooms. With no recesses in the upper levels (4th and 5th grade) aside from lunchtime recess, PE is crucial for our children to be able to sustain focus on the demanding educational tasks expected of them throughout the rest of the school day. I am somewhat concerned about changing the middle school start time to 8:40, which is a significant difference from the high school start time of 8:00. It would seem to set up a very difficult transition to high school from 8th grade, whereas the current 8:25am start time seems a reasonable transitional start time for our middle schoolers.

DO NOT CUT PHYSICAL EDUCATION

I think there are several other options. How about reduce the amount of aids at the schools? How about a fee based full day kindergarten? Create a fee for both orchestra and band? Create fees for art classes? Why don't the administrators take a 10% pay reduction?

I am very disappointed in the choices and limited time you have given the taxpayers to digest this information. It really all seems rushed and therefore we may not have the best options at the moment. I urge you as a tax payer to use money from the reserve fund for this year to take care of the immediate needs and then give the board and the new superintendent more time to find places to make cuts that won't directly impact the children. Perhaps the board should hire an outside consultant that can evaluate our district and locate the best places we could save money. Our children will be the ones still here next year having to deal with the fallout from decisions you make in haste. Please think of them.

Please do not reduce the number of days of PE for our children!

Bus for students 1 to 1.5 miles must be budget neutral

Consider Kindles or similar rather than iPads. Please make every effort to make cost savings in administrative / non‐instructional areas before affecting instruction.

Our district is becoming worse and worse. I am sad about this proposal.

Since middle school start times were moved later just this school year based on studies showing the importance of adequate sleep for children, I feel strongly that savings should not be achieved through earlier start times for younger elementary school children.


I don't see any cuts for the administration office in the proposed budget cuts document. Why aren't any budget cuts being considered for administration? I feel the board need to consider looking into where money can be saved in the administration office as well as in the schools.

I'd love to swap the school times so the middle school more reflects the high school schedule. I realize all the benefits with the late start time but if the high school does not change makes it very tough on the parent population. You have more parents with kids in middle/high school versus elementary/high school.

Class size is a concern especially for lower elementary grade levels. Also Differentiated Specialists do a lot to support teachers and students, and often provides parents with the peace of mind that their kids are getting support when the classroom teachers are already doing a lot. Freeze administrative salaries before you remove or cut down these people who support our kids and teachers so much. Please do not go down to 3 days a week with PE. DLE could also be changed first.

We are STRONGLY opposed to cutting PE time at all. This should be taken off the options list completely. Research shows INCREASING opportunities for students to move (via recess and PE) actually INCREASES productivity and learning in the classroom

There should be a fee for all children who ride the bus. Consider adding an additional fee for school art supplies. Consider adding even a $5.00 per student fee for any after school class taken by an Elm student from an outside vendor. E.G. If 20 students takes Young Rembrandts then the school receives $100. This is only fair since the vendor has no overhead costs and is using Elm School to make money.

If you take something away, what are you giving back? I feel if you take gym away, you should make that time benefit the students with more instruction.

The bus seems the most logical but since many middle schoolers have to cross the tracks that might only make sense for people that don't have to cross the tracks or maybe put crossing guards at the tracks.

The district is in a difficult position. I hate seeing cuts to student programming (i.e. don't like seeing cutting back on gym/spanish). I would like to see more administration cuts to reduce the amount of student programming cuts required. Ideas: Eliminate more TOSA positions‐‐ I have head teachers say that these positions are not that helpful to them. Reduce administrator positions. Cut the number of pupil service administrators (I know some may be needed, but again‐‐ with intent of reducing cuts that directly impact the classroom‐‐ or eliminate them completely if the job can be done at the building level with some coordination with the district). Administrator & Teacher salary freezes (temporary). Move administration back to Elm school to eliminate rent costs. Reduce administrative costs to get closer to Kenilworth costs. Do not replace instead add those duties to someone else and give a 20k salary boost. I agree with bringing balance to teacher experience levels (ie hiring new teachers), but it is important to have a breadth of levels of experience (new teachers can bring new ideas, those in the middle of their career are often in "the sweet spot", and those towards the tail end of their career provide mentoring for younger teachers). Also, if PE must be cut, create a budget that will allow it to be brought back to 5 days once budget is balanced down the road.

‐ Increasing transportation eligibility to 1.5 miles from 1.0 miles ‐ I am in strong opposition to this. It would place undue burden on single head of household families or dual working families who are unable to drive their children to school and still get to work on time. 1.5 miles is too long of a distance for the children to get themselves on their own to school. It would be e around a 25 minute walk way. Riding bikes may be an option, but not during the winter. ‐ I'm also opposed to changing the middle school day to an even later start time. Our children get so much homework already and participate in so many activities, to push off their ability to get home even later, after potentially walking home 1.5 miles for 25 minutes in the winter snow, they may not even be able to participate in some activities and would be getting to bed even later than they already are. ‐ I commend the Board in considering freezing administrative and certified staff salaries. ‐ Considering that salaries and benefits comprise 82% of the District's operating budget, a more prudent and fiscally responsible decision would be to freeze all salaries. In the private sector, automatic salary increases are not given, when a company does not operate profitably. I realize that this would not be a popular decision, but I believe it is one that warrants serious consideration and discussion. It is the one avenue that would benefit our students the most, rather than them enduring PE, orchestra, Spanish cuts, etc. Let's not forget that our district teachers are highly paid compared to others in the state.

How come the option to freeze administrative salaries is not being included in this survey? Is the board even contemplating freezing teacher's salaries, that make up 82% of the budget expenses, rather than taking away from our children??

Actually everyone who wants a school bus should pay a fee regardless of mileage, either they can walk or a parent can drive.


All of these options effect the students and not one shows reduction by district office. Your technology staff is very large relative to other districts, why not cut a few jobs there? I would say that my student finds the MRC assistants to be very helpful, invaluable in her opinion because the MRC director is always so busy. Also, we really need to keep 3 social workers (one per grade) to help nip issues in the bud before they become bigger issues. I have multiple stories from my 7th grader about how incredibly necessary they are in halting bullying, helping a student who is hurting herself, etc.

PE reductions shouldn’t even be on the table. Current research supports increases physical activity to increase student test scores and productivity. What NEEDS to be considered in budget reductions is the necessity of individual iPads at the elementary level. From curren experience, tebipads are NOT being utilized appropriately. Students are reading less during the school day, iPads are babysitting at every opportunity and there is NO use at home. There is no reason for third (and possibly 4th and 5th) graders to have their own iPads.

I strongly support having PE and Art as part of my children’s education. Kids need exercise! They need to free their minds and explore areas other than math, reading, etc.

This survey is misleading .... it leads parents to believe students will get extra curriculum IF students get less PE. When in actuality will it just be another recess? I do not believe PE should be touched ‐ our pE teachers have done a fabulous job building their curriculum and multiple schools have been awarded blue ribbon status. Students need to be active it keeps them sharp and clear headed. Why hasn’t administration been looked at to help with the budget. The PSA’s are an extra layer of unnecessary administration. Parents do not feel a connection to them and they cause friction in meetings with staff and parents. The sped team leaders have gone to school and are educated to run these meetings. Sped teachers/leaders work in the buildings with students, staff and families. They are the best equipped to run meetings and be team leaders. The psa’s come in to run meetings and they have had the least amount of time/exposure with sped student/staff/family. In a time that everyone needs to do more WHY would the district have multiple people (sped teacher/team leader and PSA’s) doing a lot of the same work? Seems wasteful to pay PSA’s when sped teachers can do a better job Representing student needs. If there is a tough case that’s when the director of sped steps in. As far as the busing ..... parents/students will adjust to the time change. The earlier start time will not affect the children’s Learning experience. And how about admin raise freeze? How about admin splits up and houses in schools? I hate to attack admin but it is disheartening that admin didn’t look at admin to help with budget concerns . Big ticket items get rid of PSA and TOSA positions. Keep classroom sizes smaller, keep PE, keep MRC IA’s and secretaries

I vote to keep the orchestra program intact for 4th graders. The budget makes a note that this is a $0 debt reduction? I don't understand at all how we got in the position where things have to be taken away for the student experience. We pay more than enough taxes. Why did we not hear about this debt when decisions were being made about HMS? Very disappointing!!

These young kids need more sleep. 8:05 would be too early to start and 2:40 too early to be excused. For a parent with kids in elementary and Hms, close start and finish times are convenient for drop off and pickup. What about scaling back on the specialized teachers that only help one or two students and don’t benefit all of the kids?? We should concentrate on the decisions that benefit the most.

No reductions in physical education! The kids already don't get enough movement time and are negatively impacted by any reductions.

Children need daily PE; there may be an increase of childhood obesity with reduced PE. Reducing bus service will cause greater congestion around the school as more parents will have to drive children to school. I would consider adjusting the school day (earlier) for elementary students only if you eliminate homework so children can go to bed earlier. Not all children wake up at the crack of dawn ‐ my child needs her sleep. Thank you.

d181 parent & key communicator fy18 budget reduction survey · we have great teachers but that...

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