If you have ever wondered why Amherst public school student cost per child is sooooo much higher than our Sister Republic of Northampton, all you need do is look at the salary comparison School Committee member Steve Rivkin (a data wonk) distributed last night at the Regional School Committee meeting. Yikes!
The Amherst elementary schools spent $15,846 per pupil and the Amherst Regional High School spent $16,909 per pupil in fiscal 2009. Northampton public schools spent $11,699--well below the state average of $13,062 (which Charter Schools also come in at).
Of course Amherst Regional High School Principal Mark Jackson pulls down $131,236 and has two assistants (this does not include the extra bonus $19,419 he was awarded to also oversee the Middle School for seven months), while Hamp's Principal is under $100-K with only one assistant.
And what's this $96,000 payment to Umass for "partnership to support teaching and learning"? Last I looked Umass sends about 60 kids from their tax-exempt housing (including two from Chancellor Holub's fancy house high on a hill) at an annual cost to Amherst taxpayers of almost $1 million, yet we also pay them $96,000?
Some partnership!
Figures don't lie! (click the hotlink)
Townwide salaries
>Dare To Compare!
19 comments:
Crush the roaches!
Crush them!!!
No running down the Amherst schools now.
Run down the police, the Town Manager, the Planning Department (actually, you may back up and run them down a second time, if you like), but this is a criticism-free zone when it comes to public schools.
Enter the zone with criticism and run the risk of personal attack. Those criticizing publicly now will ultimately be forced back underground. It's just a matter of time.
You have got to be kidding???? That horses ass makes that much money AND a bonus to boot? Can you say, "hood winked"?????
The architects and nurturers of the multiple decades plan to attract flighty, naive, medicated greedy upper middle class back stabbing liberal "elites", get them drunk on the fantasy of settling (into) an us against the world "superior's community" of high property values and solid gold leaf public education diplomas then using negative psychological tactics to black-mail them with increasing property taxes (while driving out Amherst's shrinking townie population), all to fund the money train ATM for Amherst insiders has got some here laughing all the way to the god damned bank...
And believe me, they are thanking you all, from the bottom of their vicious, greed grubbing shrunken hearts...
Laughing stock of the commonwealth, all of you... I swear to F-ing god.
Larry,
How do the schools compare to the Town side?
Mr. Rivkin continues to live under the illusion that he works for the taxpayers.
But that's not his role. Once he's elected, he's supposed to cooperate with the administrators and then go out and tell the people that they're full of it, that they just don't understand, that they're asking too much, that the schools can't do anything more, that the voters don't respect teachers enough, that the school system needs every single administrator, that every dollar spent on every administrator is absolutely necessary.
The School Committee member's job has always been to explain to the people of Amherst why their schools are the best in the state, no matter what they (or their children) may be experiencing inside of them.
Mr. Rivkin is simply not adapting well to his role. This is how we've always done it, Mr. Rivkin, that is, until you came along. Straighten up and fly right, soldier.
Anon 9:28 PM
I just floated the PDF from No More Overrides website showing town and school employee salaries so you can compare.
Little weird the Athletic Director in the schools makes more than the DPW chief townside.
And what's this $96,000 annual payment to Umass for "partnership to support teaching and learning"?
Does anyone now not see why the UMass people so badly want Maria G to remain as Supt? This is their slush fund, to pay for all of their favored graduate students and conferences and everything else...
And once you have unencumbered money (i.e. "slush fund") you can then start leveraging that money for grants and such, and before long you are then able to use UMass E&G money (taxpayer money) for things that you otherwise would not be able to use it for.
Case in point: Several million dollars of Grad School money that is supposed to be used for running the grad school is instead being used for black-only scholarships as the "institutional contribution" to a grant.
Maria G has to be hired to keep the gravy train rolling. After all, there are bedmates to put onto the payroll and conferences to attend and someone has to fund this....
Are there more (many MANY more) special needs children in Amherst schools than in other towns?
It sure seems like it.
You have special ed students marrying special ed students and producing special ed students here in Amherst. That's what the problem is.
To anonymous 8:57, What a cruel and useless statement,please crawl back under your bridge, Troll.
As far as Mark Jackson's salary, based on the experience of watching him run two schools at once,(which saved us paying a full salary to someone else) and interacting with him as the principal of my son's school, I think we are very lucky to have him here.
Nick RC
You have special ed students marrying special ed students and producing special ed students here in Amherst. That's what the problem is.
First, I think you will find that the vast majority of SPED students in Amherst are the children of unwed single mothers. Second, not all of the children with disabilities are SPED -- nor are all the SPED students truly disabled. This all goes into the quality of (a) your SPED program and (b) your larger educational program.
Yes, things like ADD/ADHD are inherited but parenting and family homelife has a far greater impact on all of this than people realize. It is more that there isn't a father than who the father is...
Some days this blog is a cesspool.
Only some? I'll take that as a compliment. Or...maybe I'm slipping.
Most days this blog is a cesspool. I read it for its entertainment value...sort of like reading the National Enquirer. Certainly nothing of substance or any import ever appears on this blog.
Yeah and you probably read the National Enquirer while standing in line at the supermarket so you don't have to pay for it.
No. This blog isn't a cesspool, but it does reveal the cesspool minds that feel the need to spread their particular brand of dysfunction.
I know, right? What an eye opener.
I mean, I have learned the only two things that matter in Amherst are egos and assholes.
Thanks for opening my eyes with the entries Larry and keep up the great work!
A) pass out the condoms and start teaching sex ed....
B) get rid of shows like MTV's Teenage MOM
C) get rid of Deval Patrick and his free give aways to all on welfare!
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