April 3, 2014 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Waiting 10-12 Years to Buy New Textbooks Is Inexcusable, State Legislator Contends OKLAHOMA CITY – The Legislature’s appropriations to Oklahoma’s public schools have not recovered from the peak level five years ago, and the reduction in state aid is blatantly obvious in at least two areas: classroom textbooks and class sizes. In Heavener public schools, for example, some students are using textbooks that are 10 years old and in tatters. State Rep. James Lockhart has copies of seventh-grade math and science books copyrighted in 2004 that are still used in the LeFlore County school district. The science book has no back; it’s been missing for some time. After a decade of use, passed down from one student to another, many of the pages in both books are torn. Lockhart’s 13-year-old daughter, Hope, uses a mathematics text that is held together with duct tape along the spine. Heavener isn’t the only school district coping with this problem, either. Many Oklahoma schools have only “classroom sets” of textbooks. Those books are for use exclusively in the classroom; students cannot take them home – so no homework can be assigned in those classes. Tulsa Teachers Buying Books With Own $$ Elementary school teachers in the Union public school district are digging into their own pockets to pay for reading materials for their young students, according to educators Jill Gwartney, Stacey Brocksmith, Belinda Wellner, Julie Godfrey, Brittany Gray, Kelly Boudreau, Brooke Kasbaum, Beth Grounds and Lisa VanLandingham. The nine teachers said that because their pupils are young, they require at least five thin books per student per week in the classroom. “The students check out new books every week, which helps keep them engaged and holds their reading interest,” the teachers explained. Unfortunately, the teachers have to provide these books “from our own pockets” because the school district is “not funded to buy enough books to keep the students interested or to teach their reading levels.” In addition, Union schools cannot buy these books with bond-issue proceeds “because they are not hardback textbooks.” These “reader” books are sent home with the pupils so they can practice their reading and reinforce their reading skills. Consequently, like some of the textbooks in use in Heavener schools, “Because the books are ‘traveling’,” they are subjected to “much wear and tear,” the Union teachers reported. Class Sizes Grow Another consequence of state budget cuts is class sizes: they’ve increased significantly. House Bill 1017, the comprehensive education reform measure enacted in 1990, limited daily teacher class loads to 140 students effective with the 1993-94 school year; however, that cap was lifted after the global economic collapse in 2008. Today, some Oklahoma educators reportedly teach up to six sections with as many as 30 students in each class, or 180 students per day. Legislative appropriations to schools climbed to a record $2.531 billion in Fiscal Year 2009-10, then plunged to $2.278 billion in FY 2012, ledgers reflect – a drop of $253 million. The appropriation for the current school year, $2.407 billion, is $124 million lower than the appropriation five years ago, without factoring in inflation, Lockhart noted. In addition, Oklahoma has 1,500 fewer teachers while the student population has soared by more than 40,000 over the past six years, to 678,000 students this year. Enrollment in Heavener Public Schools usually ranges from 1,070 to 1,100 students in pre-kindergarten through 12th grade, according to Supt. Ed Wilson. In a typical year, the Heavener school district would spend approximately $80,000 to buy new classroom textbooks, Wilson said. The state textbook allocation formula is $55 multiplied by a school district’s end-of-year average daily attendance. The state allocation to Heavener Public Schools for textbooks typically is about $58,000 to $65,000, and district patrons would finance the balance through their property taxes, Wilson said. Textbook Funds Diverted In 2010, because of the economic downturn, the Oklahoma Legislature approved a waiver that allowed public schools to divert their textbook allocations, teacher/administrator professional development funds, and library media program funds to operational expenses; the FY 2014 appropriation for textbooks and other instructional material was $33 million. In addition, the State Textbook Committee was instructed in 2010 to extend the six-year school textbook adoption period for an additional two years. Wilson said the textbook waivers have been “very helpful.” Heavener schools’ operational expenses “have really escalated over the last 10 years,” he said. Those expenses have included fuel bills for school buses; property and casualty insurance premiums; and providing meals for students (Heavener schools serve breakfast as well as lunch, and approximately 58 percent of the students qualify for free or reduced-cost meals, the superintendent said). Another major operational expense is utility bills (water, sewer, electricity and natural-gas); Wilson said some surrounding schools use propane, and their utility bills “went sky high” last winter. When summer arrives, school personnel will perform routine annual maintenance on school facilities, which “took a beating” from the harsh winter weather, Wilson added. Meanwhile, across the state, textbooks are being used in schools for longer periods than was ever intended. Waiver Extension Proposed Senate Bill 1469 would relieve public schools of their obligation to “adopt textbooks … or expend money on the purchase of textbooks” for the next two school years, as well. Instead, the bill provides, any funds allocated to a school district for the purchase of textbooks in 2015 and 2016 could be spent “for any purposes related to the support and maintenance of the school district as determined by” the local school board. SB 1469 passed the state Senate and was endorsed unanimously Monday by the House Committee on Common Education. House Bill 2500 would similarly excuse school districts from buying new textbooks in 2015 and 2016, and instead devote that allocation to “support and maintenance” needs. That bill passed the House on March 4 and was double-assigned to the Senate committees on Rules and Appropriations. “This is outrageous,” said Lockhart, a Heavener Democrat who earned a bachelor’s degree in business management. “In a state budget exceeding $2 billion, surely we could find enough money to provide our kids with up-to-date textbooks. There is no excuse for making school students use the same textbooks for 10 or 12 years.” -30-
Posted on: Tue, 01 Apr 2014 17:49:06 +0000
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