There is ample evidence that a good place to look for budget cuts is the bloated Central Bureaucracy at the DOE at a time when the Mayor and his poodle, the Chancellor has threatened to lay off 4,666 teachers. Even in this time of a dire need to cut the budget, Tweed has proposed to increase the Central Bureaucracy by 10% and increase consultant and computer costs by substantial amounts. While that is incredible, the most unbelievable aspect of the DOE Administrative Bloat is a lack of an investigation by the mass media on why so much money is being spent that have no direct impact on the classroom?
It is not that the politicians don't know it. One of the most asked questioned by the New York City Council hearing about the budget was why Tweed and the City was not reducing Administrative headcount and costs while threatening to layoff 4,666 teachers? It looks to me that our media outlets have chosen not to spotlight the DOE Administrative bloat for political reasons. Even the Mayor's poodle, the Chancellor has ignored the increase in Administrative costs in his testimony in front of the City Council. Instead he tells people the teacher layoffs are inevitable and we must end "last in' first out" or LIFO. However, he is very quiet when it comes to the Administrative bloat at the DOE.
Let's look at some of the numbers at Tweed.
- An increase of 218 employees in the Central Bureaucracy and a failure to cut the headcount previously as they promised to do.
- An increase of $40 million in outside consultant services.
- An increase of $36 million in computer consultants.
- $5 million for "Teach For America" when there is a job freeze for teachers.
- $20 million for the "Teaching Fellows" program despite a job freeze.
- A 22.1% increase in non-educators for the next school year.
- Demanding carefully saved funds from the schools be returned to Tweed.
Update: To prove my point the New York Post Editorial Board spoke with Dennis Walcott and never brought up the Administrative bloat at the DOE as an issue. You can read a summary here.
6 comments:
When you adopt anti-teacher and anti-worker policies, naturally you will first need more admins to watch, suppress, and discipline many unhappy workers, you will also need to reward your troop of "brown shirts" to play your dirty games.
I wish I was a teacher and didn't have to go back to work until April 28th!
Enjoy your 30th vacation day of the year.
Well...why don't you become a teacher? Are teachers ALSO to blame for eberyone's career ecisions?
Hell, OK...we're to blame for everything else that's wrong...I guess you can blame teachers for YOUR career choice to the list...what the hell...
Here is a reason, the editors of the papers are in the mayors pocket and believe in his reform. It is a self fulfilling prophecy. If you want this to get into the public then you must figure out a source that has the clout and ability to get the truth out to the masses. Unfortunately, the masses are asses and even the facts will not make too much of a difference. Think of all the families that have been adversely effected by Bloombergs education policies. Where are they when it counts? Try the National Rifle Association, perhaps you can get them to go after Bloomberg(politically not with a gun). They must hate the SOB.
No doubt, this is "an inside job" promulgated by the cooperation of the mainstream media. We need MAJOR media help...I DO believe the Chicago teachers overthrew their staid union because they had some type of cable TV or radio station? Is this true?
Anon 7:48
My understanding is that the union giving in to a ATR time limit that led to many a fired teacher allowed the dissidents in the to win the election.
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