There is much moaning and groaning by the Big Education monopoly about having to become more efficient and about realizing that the days of unlimited growth in taxpayer funding are behind them. Take Durham Public Schools, for example. It turns out that DPS has money to fund teacher assistants and move ahead with new projects.
But Superintendent Eric Becoats on Thursday presented the Board of Education with his own proposed $408 million budget that would make up for the shortfall gap with money from the general fund, savings from spending freezes and, if approved, assistance from the Durham County Commission.
The budget would preserve the teacher assistants for the 2013-14 academic year, maintain current staffing levels and allow the district to move forward with initiatives, such as the new School for Creative Studies magnet school on the old Chewning Middle School campus.
In other words, despite rhetoric to the contrary from the Education Establishment, the sky is not falling after all. Kudos to Durham for finding a way to meet its priorities. Let Durham be an example for other public school systems.
