DEFICIT: $64 MILLION!
Submitted by Allen Gwinn on Wed, 09/10/2008 - 15:21.
Update: Jack Lowe "very embarrassed." Quoted as saying "the money's gone and there's nothing we can do about it." Read the story here.
Superintendent Michael Hinojosa announced today that the District is in the hole to the tune of $64,000,000.
Notably absent from the press conference was Eric Anderson, the District's "Chief Operating Officer" who, until today, was over the budget.
Anderson was hired by Hinojosa in 2007. Prior to that, he was CEO of Crescent Machinery. Anderson's company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2002 and emerged in 2003. The company apparently ceased operation a short time later.
Anderson's absence prompted the question: have any employees been placed on leave. Hinojosa indicated he couldn't comment on personnel matters.
When pressed about where Anderson was, Hinojosa said he couldn't comment and refused to answer.
Though the Texas Public Information Act restricts disclosure of some information, an individual's status with the District (employed, on leave, or terminated) is generally a matter of public information. So Hinojosa's statement that he "couldn't" comment may not be entirely accurate.
Hinojosa announced that control over the budget was being placed in the realm of Arnold Viramontes, the District's Chief Transformation Officer (and husband of the District's Chief Information Officer).
The $64,000,000 figure represents a cost of about $400 per student and may be the largest deficit ever reported by a school district in the State of Texas.
Ironically, while Hinojosa was making his announcement, across the hall the School Health Advisory Committee was enjoying a meeting complete with a catered lunch.
still wasting momey
On 10-1-2008 from 8:30 - 11:30, I was forced to go to a training by the NE Learning Community at a time when these unnecessary trainings (Teaching 101) should have come to an abrubt halt. Subs were hired for the approximate 60 teachers that were required to attend. Also required to attend were job coaches and reading demos. More are scheduled groan....every 4 weeks. Whose job could be saved by eliminating these meetings?????
You Can Make a Difference Today! Here's how:
NEA-Dallas Calls for Citizens to Support Academic Achievement:
http://dallasisdblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2008/09/disd-trustees-have-...
NEA-Dallas feels that the Superintendent and Board of Trustees should scrub the 2008-2009 budget with a "fine toothed comb" and make all of those cuts before removing our students' teachers.
We urge the public to join us at our offices at 3816 San Jacinto Street, just across Washington from the Administration Building, at 1:15. From there we will proceed to the called Board meeting to let everyone know that we will not support requiring the District's students to bear the brunt of this $64 million mistake.
PLEASE COME AND LET YOUR VOICE BE HEARD!!! WE ARE THE TAXPAYERS PAYING THESE GUY'S SALARIES. IT'S TIME FOR THEM TO LISTEN TO US...
Will DISD ever learn?
Back in June I attended the board meeting after protesting outside the administration building for a couple of hours. At that meeting I saw the pure stupidity of the board and its "rubber stamping" everything the Superintendent wants. I was only one of many that heard many reasons why the district could not give us pay raises and thus froze our salaries, at least those of us that got longevity in some form or another. The members in attendance not only included teachers but parents, business leaders, partors and parents. The board REFUSED to listen to reason or any ideas for that matter in ALL of the contested agenda items.
DISD had just finished a good year where test scores were up and the number of recognized and exemplary schools incresed as well. The last bond issue passes and things were good or so we thought. The audit was deliberately delayed so that a deficit of 50+ million would not cause the bond issue to fail. The board and Supt. knew about the shortfall before the general public or teachers. Even though they knew of it, they denied knowing about it. Why was something NOT done about it then and there?
To make matters worse salaries were frozen for all of DISD employees that got the now done away with longevity. this is only a part of it, before this was voted on, the
Supt. got a performance bonus added to his already very high salary. He got the credit for the performance gains and not the ones that got him that extra money. In all fairness he should have refused the bonus since teachers WERE NO GETTING or getting very little pay raises. I lost ALL support and respect I had for him at that moment.
Now to the present, we have a deficit of over 60 Million and the Supt. and board are once again taking it all out on the teachers. We are the ones that helped get the districts test scores up and gave DISD more recognized and exemplary schools. Is that our appreciation for doing our jobs? In this case it is, which is not fair. The supt. should first fire most of the administrators at Ross Avenue that are corrupt and out only for the $$$$$$$$$$$ and all they can get. Once that is done, Hinojosa needs to resign. Look what happened on his watch? The board needs to be recalled and told they are not to ever run for the board again and we will then have a partial chance of making the necessary changes. The "Road To Broad" needs to go to some other district that deserves it. Dallas does not and never will due to the corrupt nature of DISD and even rewarding those that take money and services from not only the district but from the very things that make up the district, the students and teachers. GET RID OF DALLAS ACHIEVES! It alone is one of the biggest pieces of crap that has ever been put together in Dallas.
DISD budget
Dr. Hinojosa knew the budget was based on projected attendance not actual.With 23,000 kids not registering the first day Mr. Anderson said in April there was a $50 million gap in revenue and spending.It's a lie that they did not know.Mayor Leppert should never trust Lowe or Hinojosa again, That whole student round up was for Hinojosa to make up the numbers needed to help the budget. Hinojosa said he's not going anywhere , first time I ever heard a hired person say that. He must know something the Taxpayers don't.
FIRE HINOJOSA Immediately
Where are our TAXPAYERS, parents & leaders? It is time to stand up and fight back. There should be some meetings and planning going on away from the school board. There should be a massive march ASAP. The students, teachers, and support staff did not cause the most devastating buffoon trickery in the history of Dallas ISD. Many of these people who are about to be laid off have children to feed and clothes and mortgages to pay. Many of these children have special needs and come from single parent homes. Please, there is an outcry for help for these people. TAXPAYERS it time to step up to the plate and hit some homeruns. 1st and foremost FIRE HINOJOSA Immediately!!!!!!!!!!!
Called Board Meeting - Friday, September 19
I haven't been able to pull up the agenda for Friday's called meeting. Typically I can go to DISD's website and then to the Board of Trustee's page and pull meeting agenda. Has anyone else been able to pull the agenda? Just wondering?
financial boondoggle
Called Board Meeting Agenda and Notice
Friday, September 19, 2008
Board Room, 3700 Ross Ave., Dallas, TX 75204, 2:00 PM
1. Notice and Return
2. Moment of Silence and Pledge of Allegiance
3. Consideration and possible approval of resolution declaring (1) a state of financial exigency in the Dallas
Independent School District and (2) directing the administration to implement a reduction in force for
employees.
4. CLOSED SESSION - the board will retire to closed session pursuant to Texas Government Code Section
551.074, to deliberate the appointment, employment, evaluation, reassignment, duties, discipline, or
dismissal of a public officer or employee; including evaluation of the performance of the Superintendent of
Schools.
5. Adjournment
Agenda
Thank you, Jackie. I wish I could be a bug on the wall during the open and closed sessions. Should be very interesting, but do you think our board members will really stand up for the students of DISD? I am thinking about running next time my area member is up for reelection.
10% Cuts
Wayne Harris
Parent, Volunteer & 1991 Graduate
Seagoville High School
Will the 10% cuts be used to pay back the reserve accounts that are being tapped or is it to cover the budget for this school year?
They say that teachers will only be cut as a last resort, but how much more can be cut at the school level? We already have organizations that can't afford to take buses to football games because of departmental budget cuts and Special Ed. departments that have had their budgets cut in half, yet had the number of students double since last year?(brought in from other schools)
However, the new flower garden in front of our school looks good. Almost takes away from the condemned and collapsing building it's sitting beside.
Just 2 hours before Hinojosa
Just 2 hours before Hinojosa called his press conferene to announce the district's 64 million dollar budget deficit, Miami school board members saw fit to buy out their superintendent's contract after their district sustained a 88 million dollar shortfall. I wonder what will be the magic amount for DISD before their board members decide it is time for Hinojosa to go? Obviously 64 million is enough to put everyone elses job on the table but not his. If Hinojosa is allowed to keep his position and his 400,000 plus salary after this debacle then the practice of removing principals and other department heads from their postions (after they have proven themselves incompetent) should be suspended since such a practice results "having to start over."
How arrogant of Hinojosa to believe he is irreplacable and above the standards he sets for everyone else. The board should have taken action immediately after the announcement was made. Arlington got rid of their superintendent for accepting honorariums. When will our board or the citizens of Dallas say enough is enough?
Board Members cant call the Kettle Black
Comeon,
Last years incomplete and unfinished budget was submitted to the board for approval by Hinojosa, and the board approved it. This spring Hinojosa submitted another incomplete budget to the board and the board again approved it. When the school board members who voted to approve the budget are now guilty of duplicity, they have to stand united behind Hinojosa's choice of sacrificial lamb or they acknowledge their part in the deceit.
What bothers me the most is not what appears to be the inaccurocies of 'I didnt know about $64 million because I wasnt given the information in a form I could comprehend' but rather if the budget people didn't possess the intellect to include the $64 million in the budget, is there a fudge factor for the loss of revenue from 23,000 empty seats in this years budget. The importance of that info will tell us if a 10 percent reduction to the budget is enough to cover the shortfall, and if Hinojosa has been less than forthcoming with relevent info as to the financial status of the district.
A public statement from Hinojosa and Jack Lowe, TODAY,that the budget allowed that fudge factor would bolster the reputation of the district. The attendance report due to be reported to the state at the end of this month would in turn bear witness as to the validity of their statements.
So mi dos amigos,(Jack and Mike), what say you ?
Budget BIG Picture
Folks,
One more time you have allowed the districts spin to draw you eye away from the ball!
If, and I do mean IF, this years school budget,which was again rubber stamped by the school board and championed by the magnificent bussiness acuman of school board Prez Jack Lowe, in fact covered payroll for every employee on payroll May 28 2008 and correctly factored rising fuel and utility costs, you allowed yourselves to believe that the district needs to cut approx. $64 mil from the budget to break even at the end of THIS school year. ( I think that was one sentence ha ha )
You just thought you were scared!
Remember that posse that Mayor Tom and Coach Mike swore in last saturday to round up approx. 23,000 school scafflaws? This years budget was based and relied upon the state and federal funds the district would have recieved if those 23,000 kids were in school this year.
Does $64 mil = a ten percent reduction in the current budget? I am going to make you do the math. HINT Find out how much the district recieves to educate each student and multiply. Now add that to the $64 Mil.
So who can scream the loudest????
The Road Too Broad
This is a new concept. A school system which can't afford teachers, well maybe the kids can borrow the distrcits laptops and just get edumacated online.
Thank you Mr. H., Thank you, Jack A. (I mean L.)
Oh, Thank you All Very Much
I should see your dum a's on the street corner with a can beggin for donations to make this right!
And I'll be there too!
School: Beware of the moms who are aware of your lowly efforts to not do the job! I think the district needs to hire parents like Open Minded to get the administration on track! You could get 6 good parents to get it right for the price of one worthless superintendent and another half dozen to do the bookkeepping correctly for the price of the idiot controller. What a joke! The Texas Legislature needs to have laws to hold the personnel accountable or put them in jail! We need to be sure the state representatives and senators know we have this going on and the district is embarrassed so we should be accepting. NOT!
Another point; the district does not need to spend hundreds of thousands of taxpayer's dollars on lawyers! It is just effort to cover up malice and the people are being cheated while the unaccountable personnel are having free lunch. There is no use for the fight. We have the evil in power at DISD!
anonymous
anonymous
$100 million jackpot
According to the Dallas Morning News, the deficit actually reached a high of $100 million.
Hinojosa refuses to leave, because he thinks no one else could understand how to fix his mistakes??
He hired 750 teachers and 150 administrators and didn't think the budget would have to be dramatically larger?
This would all be hysterically funny, a Monty Python moment, except teachers are about to be thrown out in the streets in September. Not many teaching jobs available in September, are there?
This superintendent has not only shown his total incompetence, but his complete inability to accept responsibility for his lack of intelligence.
Jack Lowe's business acumen is also MIA, but his vendor ties are way too apparent.
Time for the Road to Broke team to leave the stage.
Teachers Thrown In Streets?
I thought teachers had a contract to teach for a year. I didn't know DISD could terminate a contract and just "throw [people] out in the streets" because there was a budget shortfall.
Is this not the case?
Allen, As long as they
Allen,
As long as they classify it as a reduction in force they can fire the teachers, or anyone with a contract.
fired teachers
That's amazing they can fire them because of "the administrations" inept abilities. So what exactly is the contract for?
Hold Teachers in Place
The contract is there to hold teachers in place for the school year. If a teacher gets a better offer, they may not break contracts without permission, or they face the penalty of having their certification revoked.
Teachers can't negotiate the terms of their contracts, even if they are the most outstanding available.
The public might finally be willing to refuse administrators perks. While teachers are paying hellish rates for health insurance, those at the highest salaries have their insurance paid by the district.
If anyone was laboring under the delusion that urban superintendents are worth the salaries they are negotiating, that delusion should finally be put to rest with this fiasco.
This CEO model that has become so popular doesn't fit public education. Hinojosa is supposed to be a public servant, not a CEO.
The board keeps relinquishing their ability to make policy in small steps. They have pretty much given the entire farm away.
As far as s embracing the titles of "Chief" this and that, these people are not working for public companies. They are on the taxpayers' ticket. This foolishness needs to stop.
Thank goodness Allen has provided the public a salary database. Grab the org chart off the DMN website, and look at what the Broad team has fashioned. A whole kingdom of fiefdoms that needs to be abolished are on that org chart.
Look up the pcard offenders on the org chart. There they all are, or still on the campuses where they stole millions.
Of course, if the board had done their jobs, they would have raised all these questions.
Teachers Can Be RIFFed tomorrow
You guys better understand this.
You can all be terminated tomorrow because of this "budget shortfall," i.e., your superintendent is a total idiot.
This happened in the early nineties, and over 200+ teachers were fired. Some were put back at different schools.
Not only that, but your IDIOT board members handed over their policy-making powers to the joke they hired as superintendent. Previously, it was the board's role to vote on such matters.
You need to contact your board members en masse and let them know they need to release everyone in central administration before they begin tinkering with the campuses (they have already started).
They are choosing on the basis of grades and seniority. Viramontes knows NOTHING of the effects he will cause by doing this.
Your only hope is to contact the mayor, your board members, and your local and state reps and ask that Hionjoska be fired immediately and stop the entire process, or demand that only central administrators go.
Most central administrators are $80K and above, so you get two teachers saved for each administrator.
Let them eat their own. Leave the campuses alone.
Jack Lowe
Maybe if Jack had spend more time focusing on the district's budget and not his own company's 9 million dollar contract (courtesy of DISD) the "mis calculation" would have been caught. You think?
Jack Lowe and Budgets
Jack has a philosophy about being on the Board. He believes that the job can ultimately be done with 8 hours involvement a week. He feels that the Board's primary responsibility is to hire the chief executive, then hold him or her to a standard of performance.
According to policy, Jack has no authority over the budget.
Jack Lowe
Loyal to students not Dr. Hinojosa
Jack Lowe may not be responsible for the budget, but he is responsible for insuring that the Superintendent he vehemently supports is doing the job he was hired to do in a manner that is both above reproach and in the best interest of the students and citizens of DISD. I don't believe Dr. Hinojosa has done this, yet Jack Lowe is supporting him. It is time for the Board president and the board to admit that they were wrong and that Dr. Michael Hinojosa did not and does not have what is required to manage a district the size of DISD. The students of DISD will be best served if the board terminated Michael Hinojosa.
Jack is Responsible for His Vote
Well, Jack Lowe didn't hold him to a standard of performance, did he?
Even with this hands-off attitude, Lowe's mea culpa is unacceptable.
Lowe has touted his business skills. All he has done in life is inherit his father's business and reputation. The halo needs to be removed.
Lowe sat there and watched the staff additions, the continual spending on every fiasco, and didn't see growth in expenditures?
How about his famous line, "There's no money missing."
Lowe doesn't know the difference between a fraud audit and the audit just completed to try to make sense of the books?
Why doesn't Lowe just sit down with the org chart and your database on pcard offenders and go through all the folks downtown who stole millions? Would that wake him up to the fact that he has been supportive of a superintendent who allowed this behavior? A superintendent who promoted some of these people after evidence of major malfeasance? At any other district, most of these folks would have been looking at jail time. INstead, Hinojosa made decisions based on favoritism or fear of certain group's political power.
Did Lowe even read the interviews on the Dallas ISD web site after the district mistakenly paid Paul Coggins a million to conduct a very shoddy investigation?
Or does Lowe think that is micromanaging? If that is his version of micromanaging, he needs to resign. If he didn't bother reading about major malfeasance in a district where he is board president, he needs to resign.
Instead, he wants to be a buddy to the superintendent who allows major fraud under his watch.
Auditor
It seems to me that there is not any oversight as in an auditor that can't be paid off to report on these matters. I have read all of the concerns that members have posted, they seem to be all valid. What does it take for the personnel in the position of authority to be audited from a neutral party. It shouldn't matter their position, title, race, age or sex.
In the financial industry there are regulations that impose controls on persons in power. Would it be a positive change if that where the case and what would it take to put that in place.
-Concerned and Sincere
Questions without actions
Your absolutly correct that in the financial industry there are regulations that impose controls. Unfortunately it appears that Texas has a "self" controled educational system. What I have been told so far with replies, what little ones I receive, is that the Board is Supposed to control the show. Texas Education Agency, Dept. of Education, both pass the buck right back without a blink. That's why DISD is in this position. The "self" control does not have a QA dept. outside it's own agency and they control the check book and draw from the kitty til all is gone, then watch H. & L., Inc. Run!
The City of Dallas, Mayor's office should be on high alert with what is happening, right. But have we heard this from them yet? The Attorney Generals office should be on high alert with what is happening, right. But have we heard this yet?
Somethings just have to hit bottom before someone notices.
Remember the slogan; "Our Kids Sour Future"
Can't say we weren't forwarned.
Let A Good Fixer Get To Work
Just ask Ms. Olson to fix it like she fixed those contracts in Iraq. Lots of money to be made, and the District needs it now.
"Embarrassed" is not enough!
mom of 2
With my experience in advocating for the special needs my kids require and the school fails to provide, they (THE DISD) excuse themselves regularly for being incompetent, proclaiming the feeling of embarrassment. Embarrassed is when your pants are wet in the crotch. Embarrassed is when your body odor is unchecked. THIS IS BEYOND "Embarrassed" This is BUSTED!
GO TO JAIL! Do not pass go! Do not collect your pay!
Qualifications
So, Arnold has experience in FINANCIAL management? Or is he a temp, so to speak?
Don't they see these number problems monthly when expenses come in? Teachers have an annual contract, and they are paid monthly. How do you WAIT to see a $64 million deficit?
Arnold Viramontes
Let's set the record straight: Arnie Viramontes is a decent guy. He was dubbed the best CIO in Texas, and has tons of experience. He works long hours and, I believe, is totally committed to education.
I've been critical of Arnie and Patricia not because they're incompetent, but because of the nepotism situation that exists.
I think putting the budget under Arnie is a good thing with one exception. You can only put so many things under one person before it becomes self defeating.
The real answer to the problem, though, is to make sure somebody is watching the budget for these kinds of issues before you end up in a situation where you're firing people and moving departments.
This is Hinojosa's fault. Nobody else's.
Viramontes' Financial Mangement Skills
When you are Mike's friend, you can do ANYTHING and get paid handsomely for it. Experience not required but hand kissing is. I wonder how much of a salary increase Arnie will get for this new assignment? Add that to the list of questions.
Response to Anonymous Ones
What monthly budget reports? They don't exist. They don't monitor anything. And they obviously do no Q/C of their budget submission; otherwise, SOMEONE on that overcrowded org chart should have caught the mistake(s). You can't monitor anything on Ross because that would mean stepping on someone's toes like Shirley Ison-Newsome and she can't be touched. And you can't give the "brown" schools more money than the "more brown" schools because that creates a near riot. And one Area Office can't get more money than the other Area Office. But you have to give Arnie's department more money and people because he's Mike's buddy. So nothing gets questioned. No one and nothing. There is no regular review of the budget reports, financial status, etc. because such reports don't exist. And if they did exist, who the heck is going to analyze them? Those idiots in the Budget Office? The same idiots who obviously have been making these mistakes?
Time to get rid of everyone starting with Hinojosa and anyone with the name Budget or Finance in their job title. And I don't mean send them to another department. SEND THEM HOME. NOW. This is huge. The reserves are being used to cover this screw up. Do you know how long it will take to re-build the reserves, especially in today's economy? And what about the bond rating? How much is this going to cost us - taxpayers - for that bond program that people out there were STUPID enough to vote for. Lower bond rating = higher interest rate.
Hinojosa took NO PERSONAL responsibility for this screw up at the press conference today. The closest he came was using the word "we" in referencing the misakes made. No, idiot, we is now YOU. You can't blame ANY of your predecessors. This was your budget that you signed and presented to YOUR school board. So now YOUR school needs to show you the door.
Org chart=autodialer
Kim Olson needs to get the org chart out and hook it up to her autodialer.
Those of us who have been around for thirty years or more got our first view of departments that used to have 2-3 people in them and now have 10-12. THE STUDENT POPULATION HASN'T GROWN. This is pure bloat at the administrative level.
Hinojosa is trying to spin this as something he did for the students. Baloney. This is the reason the org chart has been the biggest secret since the Manhattan Project.
The guy has finally crossed the line into total idiocy.
Olson-get the org chart and figure out how to delete 2/3 of the positions on every page, and the top heavy administration will be brought back in line.
Hinojosa has THREE secretaries. $161K in salaries in addition to his $400K. There are CEOs of major corporations who share admins. Every department is overloaded with secretarial staff. Folks have phones and computers, and they can do without admins. The business world doesn't assign this much secretarial help for people who actually have jobs and do real work.
There are other entire departments where LULAC or the old guard out of south Dallas have dumped all their has-beens. These people haven't worked for years, and they are just occupying space until they retire.
Olson needs to draw a line. If a DISD central employee doesn't directly help a child read, do math, or another subject, release them.
Don't worry. No one will notice.
And Hinojosa doesn't need 3 secretaries wiping whatever he needs wiped.
Right On
I worked on Ross for going on 23 years, had all I could stand and got out. Never have I seen such waste, incompetent employees and apathy. Many employees couldn't spell computer much less use one.
And what a sham; "for the good of our kids" is a nice but stale slogan. Most folks don't care about the schools, kids, or much else. One thing about working for a school district is job security. You can get paid well to do nothing...I know because I did. My gosh, don't get me started on that!
Well said!
I have seen that for myself, and it is true. The people on Ross DO NOTHING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Except hire a contract lawyer to intimidate and cover up the malice, when a parent will not back down from the bullying they will do!
The best way to stay on a budget is to do the job right and be accountable. That is outside the box for DISD!
DISD Deficit
OK... when does Hinojosa get his hand slapped. Surely things can't get out of hand like this and he not know anything about what is truly going on??? Now good employees have to bare all the blame... Something is wrong with this picture!
So Who Will Get The Blame?
Who do you believe will be blamed for "overlooking" the deficit? Do you think Hinojosa will find another "Sheri Brokaw" to blame?
Blame Nobody
Blame Nobody.
Seriously.
Nobody did this.
Nobody cared.
Nobody involved will get fired.
Nobody--Nobody--Nobody.
For over a year, Allen, you seem to hope that the DISD top dogs have a genuine concern for kids. You seem to hope that trustees are really, really nice people who do this for the kids.
I often knock you for your naivity, but honestly, Allen, this should be stone cold proof of why so many DISD personnel have such a cynical view.
We just want to help the kids God puts in our classrooms each day. We just expect that support staff and supervisors will be behind us in this mission. But year after year, administration after administration, board after board, nothing changes--no, I tell a lie: It gets worse.
Some of us remember the scandal of Dan Peavy and insurance. Don't we miss those days now? Teachers could teach then!
We have a chance to vote in new people, and we don't. Over and over. We have a chance to speak up, and we don't.
So, Nobody will take of it. Nobody always does.
It's time to close the DISD Budget Office
No matter how many budget/financial problems DISD runs across, they always blame it on the top financial person---CFO, Deputy or Asst. Supt. of Finance, all job titles held by the top person who has been blamed. Yes, toss them out the door. But isn't the common denominator here the BUDGET OFFICE?? The CFO position keeps rotating and the problems continue to recur. Seems to me that the root of the problem is the incompetent budget staff. Start with the Budget Director and fire everyone from there down. Start over. ANd, if I am not mistaken, did HijNOjosa say after the last screw up with the audit that they were going to reorganize the Finance Division immediately? And today didn't he say it again? STOP SHUFFLING INCOMPETENT PEOPLE AROUND!! Show them the door. A few months ago they made another big miscalculation error in the Budget Office but they "wrote it off" by saying "ok, we underestimated expenses but that's ok becuase we also underestimated revenue. ANd revenue is really higher than projected so all is square. So even though we miscalculated and understated expenses, we made the same exact error on the revenue side. Oh, lukcy us at DISD." Didn't anyone think it was odd that the two errors offset one another so the net $0? For such a HUG mistake, sure was a strange coincidence. Only at DISD. What a mess! I hope they don't teach that kind of DISD math in their schools.
Money and teacher and students
Ok, begin with the basic student/teacher relationship--that is precious--dont touch it.
Now begin elimination of the non-essentials--simplify, unify and identify the truly necessary. Let a few teachers help in the identification of what is truly necessary and I promise--things can be streamlined quickly and in order.
Other districts have gone to four day work weeks just because of financial problems.
This problem seems to be one of too many folks milking a system created for the teacher/student relationship--not too many days in school each week
Viramontes
Sicily 1949
Organized Crime…………………………………………………………… 214-653-3800
Dallas County District Attorney’s Office
Frank Crowley Courts Building
133 N. Industrial Blvd., LB 19
Dallas, Texas 75207
214-653-3600 main
214-653-5774 fax
www.dallasda.com
what does this mean
I am not sure what the implication about Viramontes and organized crime is. Someone please explain.
O M G
What, just WHAT, will it take for a Dallas District Attorney to step in?
Can't Put Lipstick on THIS Pig
Can’t Put Lipstick on THIS Pig
On Friday, September 12, 2008, some principals informed their faculties that due to the $64 million dollar budget “embarrassment,” some teachers would lose their jobs. The decisions would be based on those cuts which would be in the best interest of the children. The proposals are due to Superintendent Hinojosa early this week.
The word on the street is that the DISD has indicated that 900 teachers may lose their jobs to cover Mr. Hinojosa’s backside.
At least one local writer, Rick Wamre of the Advocate, has passively accepted this move, indicating in writing that the DISD is innocent of impropriety relative to the $64 missing million on the grounds that “apparently” the shortfall exists because the district hired extra teachers last year. Hinojosa says that the shortfall came from teacher salaries. Does this mean that the shortfall in fact resulted from hiring additional teachers?
Our view: Cut FAT, not teachers. Children need attention, and cuts are being called for that will NOT be in the children’s best interest.
Our view: The local media is remiss in not publicizing this immediately. Where was the DMN on Saturday? Don’t they cover the real action? Maybe if we had called it “Hurricane Hinojosa” it would have attracted more attention.
We agree that the District Attorney should be called in. At least two independent auditors should examine the situation and report. That means nobody associated with the Road to Broad, etc. etc. or Principals of Learning, etc. etc. Or the DISD, etc. etc.
The DISD needs to cut FAT, not teachers. Starting with the American Airlines Center dog-and-pony show that kicks off each new school year. What did that cost?
Leave 50 of them
Hinojoka needs to be told he can keep 50 central administrative staff in order to handle payroll and pay the bills.
Everyone else needs to be released.
No more Nolan Estes. No more buildings full of bureaucrats. Get out of the alternative certification business.
None of these fools was here when teachers were Riffed in 1991. It completely ruins the school year and stops learning.
They can clean out two problems at once-the deficit and the bureacracy.
deficit
anonymous
your right