State legislators tour Fort Plain Schools and talk education issues

State Sen. Hugh T. Farley and Assemblyman George Amedore toured Fort Plain CSD’s buildings on Monday, Nov. 14, and talked about education issues such as equitable state aid distribution with Superintendent Douglas C. Burton.

The group – which also included Board of Education member Jeff Jones and Hoag Elementary Principal Cathy Brucker – toured both schools and the bus garage to see the improvements made during the recent $17 million capital project.

Mr. Burton also gave each legislator a sheet detailing the district’s financial situation.

“We first wanted to thank them and recognize the hard work they’ve done for maintaining capital project building aid which enabled us to upgrade, modernize, and provide additional opportunities to our students at no cost to the taxpayers,” Mr. Burton said.

“If we are going to prepare our students during the 21st century, we need to maintain those efforts and preserve our state aid. I think they understand our plight and they are willing to fight for us. And that’s what we need.”

The sheet Mr. Burton gave the legislators stated that the “ugly truth is that our district may not be able to continue to exist in four years.” With increase in health benefits averaging 10 to 15 percent each year, retirement system contributions also rising, and with a tax levy cap, it is easier to project revenue, he stated. However, with state aid frozen since 2007, the district is forced to tap into its savings in order to make ends meet.

The district divided the sheet into three sections:

The problem: Aid distribution is inequitable. We have made staffing cuts that other districts do not. These cuts have resulted in the loss of program for our students, which will have an impact on our community, our students, and our economy.

The solution: We need equitable aid for districts like ours. Wealthy districts have more programs than poor districts, while also having greater opportunity to raise local funding due to their expansive tax bases. We cannot afford to become a substandard school for our students.

The action needed: Can the residents of our school district count on the legislators to refuse to accept any state budget that does not correct this problem? Will the legislators lead their colleagues to do what is right for our students?