Good afternoon, my name is Deena Burnett and I am here on behalf of the American
Federation of Teachers – Kansas. We support and advocate for a federation of 14 local
unions statewide, providing services for the members and the communities to which they
belong. I am currently the director of communications and professional learning for the
United Teachers of Wichita. My current position follows 32 years as a teacher in Kansas
public schools.
Understanding the request made of presenters is to provide this Commission with specific
ideas as they relate to the statutory charge – the AFT- KS proposes these two ideas for
review.
1) Look for efficiencies at the legislative level
2) Quit cutting funding to education
While there is truth in the note offered in the efficiency study that, “inefficient spending
impacts Kansas taxpayers at every level, from the State General Fund to local property
taxes”, it must be equally understood that spending inefficiencies exist at every level of our
state’s budget. Our classrooms and teachers need not be inequitably saddled with the
burden of balancing state budgets.
The Kansas State Highlights from Education Week’s Quality Counts 2014 provides the
following:
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Funding for educational programs that can actually be spent on teachers,
administrators and student support programs has declined by $500 million since
2009.
School funding, when adjusted for inflation has been fairly comparable year-overyear for the last six budget cycles, but still less than 2009.
In actual dollars, school district general funds and special education aid have been
reduced by about $160 million dollars.
Quality Counts reports that Kansas state expenditures in education are just about
average with most districts spending less than the national average for per pupil
expenditure.
The Center for American Progress has also provided commentary on some suggested
measures for our state’s education program. The 2013 publication, Size Matters: A Look at
School-District Consolidation, notes the following.
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Statewide district consolidation efforts have been met with many issues nationwide.
Diseconomies of scale, logistics, and a negative impact on community culture and
home values have all been cited as disadvantages of this often popularized measure.
Moreover the efficiency study initiated by our governor has pointed to recommendations
that will limit impact on teaching and learning.
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Public recommendations regarding inefficiencies pointed to issues with competitive
bidding, decentralized data management, and top-heavy administrative staffing as
avenues to address in reducing costs state-wide.
This river should flow two ways. It is one thing to look at school district expenditures/
efficiencies, however, the AFT-Ks would ask that you also look at state expenditures/
efficiencies. While it may be easy to find efficiencies in certain marquee areas of the budget,
true cost savings are often found in “pet projects” unproven or disconnected relative to
performance gains.
Where is the efficiency of the state legislature as it pertains to K-12 mandates? What
legislation has been passed that requires school districts to be deemed inefficient?
Why does every teacher have to teach the Constitution on September 17? How much
money is spent providing curriculum and oversight of this mandate? Does it truly fit on
September 17th of every year, in every core classroom? Kansas has certainly chosen to
disregard federal dollars in other areas, so why not with this mandate that by all reports has
been left widely unchecked by the federal government?
What about the 2005 mandate when the Kansas Legislature charged the State Board of
Education to develop guidelines for healthful foods and beverages, physical activities and
wellness education? Noble efforts of course, but at what cost and considered efficient?
What other “pet projects” have been mandated by the state legislature? Should we not first
ensure that districts are ready to do the business they were charged to do – educate with the
quality and care our communities expect and our kids deserve?
Please review all K-12 Mandates that may be unproven or disconnected to performance
gains.
Secondly, let’s take into consideration the cuts to public schools during the recession. It
isn’t that public schools didn’t become more efficient. They did - but at what cost to the
students and employees of those public schools? And at what cost to our state?
The Quality Counts Report released in 2014 by Education Week also provides this
information about Kansas.
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The report examines 18 distinct achievement measures and Kansas earns
a “D+” when compared to the rest of the nation on how well we prepare our students
for achieving excellence.
Relative to the nationally recognized NAEP scoring, achievement levels for Kansas
students in math and reading are average at best, and the poverty gap in
achievement is steadily increasing.
Even our best prepared students lack preparation comparatively; Kansas ranks near
the bottom with regard to students achieving high scores on advanced placement
testing for college.
Some explanation for our performance might be found in our states lack of equitable
investment in the teaching and learning process. Kansas fails to offer programs and
incentives that would attract and retain the best that enter the profession.
Differentiated roles in teacher leadership, parity in pay relative to comparable
occupations, state regulated induction and mentoring programs, and investment in
professional development opportunities for teachers are all state-level measures
employed by a plurality of states throughout the nation.
As the commission considers recommendations, it is critical to examine whether such
proposals not only lower costs but improve educational outcomes.
Many of our schools began the 2014-15 school term last week, and it is apparent that with
class sizes ranging from 26 students in Kindergarten, a sixth grade science class with 28
students, a high school Photo 1 class with 32 students, and a Middle School drama class
with 37, the numbers produced by Kansas in the 2015 Quality Counts report will not
improve. Teachers and schools cannot simply become more “effective” with staffing ratios
at these levels.
We all agree that the future of Kansas is the education of its children. And while some may
choose to disagree, the American Federation of Teachers- Ks also believes that public
schools are the backbone of our democracy…a democracy where every voice is heard and
valued. When we talk about Kansas values, quality public schools are the bedrock.
A state’s economy cannot outpace the quality of its public schools and any stifling of
funding is in essence a stifling of state growth. Looking at the Quality Counts and the
Center on Budget and Policy Priorities 1 reports side by side, this certainly bears out.
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Kansas job growth has lagged. The state saw a 2 percent growth in private sector
employment from December 2012 to January 2014. The national total was 2.2
percent.
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The Kansas labor force has shrunk since 2013 by 6,800 people.
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Kansas non-farm earnings and income per capita growth lags compared to national
growth. Kansans earned $4.43 per week less (adjusted for inflation) in December
2013 compared to December 2012. Over the same period, personal income rose by .1
percent (after adjusted for inflation) in Kansas compared to a .2 percent growth
nationally
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Net new business filings for that time period was 3600, less than the previous year.
If Kansas is to lead as a national example for public education, we must first look to secure
the quality of our schools’ inputs and outputs. Let’s determine that the mandates put forth
by the Kansas Legislature as they pertain to K-12 schools are in fact allowing students to
flourish in public schools and stop cutting. The jugular vein of Kansas public schools is
open and bleeding. Please don’t make it worse.
AFT-Kansas/KAPE
1300 SW Topeka Blvd. ∙ Topeka, KS 66612 ∙ 785-235-0262 ∙ Fax 785-235-3920 ∙ Toll Free 1-800-232-5273
ks.aft.org
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http://www.cbpp.org/cms/index.cfm?fa=view&id=4110