VRS Contributions Dominate WJCC Budget Hearing

By Amber Lester Kennedy Wednesday, January 18, 2012

Teachers and concerned parents lined the walls of a packed James City County board room on Tuesday to give opinions on the 2013 budget before the Williamsburg-James City County School Board.

Eight speakers shared concerns about the division’s anticipated $7.5 million shortfall for fiscal year 2013, with some offering suggestions of ways to raise revenues or cut spending. One of the main topics of discussion was the school division’s contributions for its employees to the Virginia Retirement System, which will increase by $4.3 million in the next year.

In his two-year proposed budget released on Dec. 19, Gov. Bob McDonnell called on the General Assembly to legislate the largest-ever employer contribution to the VRS, in an effort to pick up payments that were deferred to balance the budget in 2010. The VRS has separate systems for state employees and for teachers, who are considered local employees; as a result, the burden will be placed on school divisions to pay the increased contribution.

In 1983, the state struck a deal to pay pensions in exchange for instituting a paycut for state employees, including teachers. Last year, McDonnell proposed giving localities the option to require their employees to contribute 5 percent, provided they received 3 percent pay raises. His proposal was defeated by the General Assembly, which instead chose to create two separate retirement plans — Plan 1 for existing employees and Plan 2 for employees hired after July 2010. WJCC’s Plan 2 employees now pay 5 percent into the VRS.

The first speaker on Tuesday was Jay Everson, whose wife receives VRS benefits. He said the board should require employees to contribute to their retirements. “If you choose not to do that, how can you possibly justify the number of employee layoffs that will come from this?” he said.

Later in the meeting, Assistant Superintendent of Finance Scott Burckbuchler explained the school board does not have the option to require its Plan 1 employees to contribute to the VRS, and also cannot alter the contribution percentage, which is recommended by the VRS Board and set by the General Assembly.

Karen Downing, president of the WJCC Education Association, thanked Superintendent Steven Constantino for not including any increased VRS contribution in his budget presentation, shared with the board on Saturday. She said morale among teachers is low, the cost of living is increasing and if asked to make contributions, it would only add to their burdens. “We want to work with the superintendent in finding solutions to this deficit,” she said, adding that she knows they will have to work harder.

Special education teacher Deborah Howard told the board that she came late to the profession, after spending 20 years waiting tables, where she said she made more money than some of her teacher friends. She also said teachers shouldn’t to have to contribute to the VRS without increases in pay. “It seems to me that when people get raises, it’s when their titles change,” she said. “We’re doing just as much work.”

Other speakers worried that some of the suggested cuts would harm at-risk and special needs students. Beth Haw said eliminating math and reading specialists and making cuts to programs like pre-K and AVID would affect “students who are fragile.” She wondered why cuts weren’t seriously being considered to the International Baccalaureate program at James River Elementary. She was immediately followed by Penny Pulley, who advocated to keep the IB program, saying it benefits the school with the division’s highest population of students receiving free and reduced lunch, and has served as a training ground for teachers and administrators.

Teacher Charlotte Bush said many of the items to possibly be cut “go beyond everyone getting what they want...these go to the heart of getting students what they need.” She worried that higher class sizes will take teachers’ focuses away from preparing students for jobs and college and toward babysitting.

As a second-grade teacher, she also was concerned about cuts to pre-K. “When they leave my class, they need to be able to read to learn, not learn to read,” she said. “If they get to kindergarten and aren’t able to read, they are already below grade level. If they leave second grade not able to read to learn, they face a lifelong deficit.”

She also advocated for keeping teacher assistants in elementary schools. She said they’re so busy, she rarely has time to speak with them, adding that they work with small groups of students who need assistance, help instruct class and prepare materials. If class sizes increase, they’ll be needed even more.

At a Saturday budget retreat, Constantino told the school board that “everything is on the table” to potentially have its funding reduced or eliminated. He presented a list of 21 possible cost-saving measures that combined, still did not reach the shortfall of $7.5 million. The possible cuts included several instructional and support staff layoffs, the elimination of programs like Pre-K, AVID and International Baccalaureate, and a reduction in the number of school days, among others. He also suggested instituting a user fee for athletics and cocurricular activities. Read more about his presentation here.

Constantino will present his Superintendent’s Budget by mid-February, when it will be given to the board for adjustments and approval. The board will meet with its funding partners, Williamsburg and James City County, for its annual joint discussion on the budget, performance and capital improvements at 8 a.m. Feb. 28, with a location to be announced.