Well said Truthteller, lol. 

I believe there is a gut reaction against higher taxes, particularly at the national level where our elected rulers (not representatives) are frittering away our children’s future.  I think most people are willng to pay more in taxes as long as they know that our money is being used wisely.  From what I can tell, our local officials for the most part are being reasonably responsible.

Hopefully at the national level we will stop electing the same people over and over again, such as publicity hound Eric TARP Cantor, who ‘represent’ corporate interests, but ‘rule’ the rest of us. I was a hard core Republican for most of my life, but I’m convinced now that both parties are corrupt and replacing one set of crooks with another is unlikely to make much difference.  Hope springs eternal though….

Pat

I appreciate the point you’ve made, Pat, and agree that my tone is less than friendly, but calling truthteller’s ideas ignorant and short sighted is wholly different than calling him names.  Perhaps calling him “full of it” was over the top.  You’ve got me there, but tossing a jab at an anonymous internet poster seems to come too easily.  Return fire expected.

Personally, I find it offensive that the suggested solution in a county as well off as ours (our median income is still over 30k above the national average) is that our children attend school four days a week or that our teachers don’t have days at school without children for the purpose of planning.  I’m quite tired of our schools getting the short end of the stick because people refuse to fund them. 

Our real estate taxes in Goochland are ridiculously low. 21 cents lower than Powhatan, 34 cents less than Henrico, 9 cents lower than Louisa… And we cut our school budget and lost teachers because of adamant opposition to a .04 real estate tax increase.  That is, imo, pathetic.

If my tone doesn’t suit you then I apologize. I am frustrated with people intent on keeping taxes ridiculously low at the expense of our public schools and the education and future of our children. As I said before, nothing that our taxes pay for offer a more documented return than education, and while there are plenty of “bloated” school systems in the country, Goochland is not one of them.

Is it really necessary to use the words “ignorant” and “pathetic” to describe another’s idea, or to say that someone is “full of it”?  Is this really helpful?  Does it do anything for your personal credibility as a caring human being? 

In general, I agree that we will probably have to raise some taxes, as those ‘in the know’ have told me there isn’t a whole lot left to cut. I may not agree with Truth Teller, but his/her ideas deserve consideration, as do all ideas. 

As to being one of the wealthiest counties; we all know that this is based on the “average” because of a few very wealthy individuals who change the curve to raise the average for the entire county.  The “median” which is a much more accurate indicator, would show us to be very typical compared to other counties throughout the country. 

At the very least, if you are going to call someone names, please have the courage to identify yourself. 

Pat

I’m sorry, but the “truth teller” of Goochland is full of it.  If our taxes were anywhere close to the surrounding counties I could see your point, but we are so low and so far behind that the schools are suffering.  4 day school week?  No teacher planning days???  What an ignorant and short sighted vision of what needs to happen.  NOTHING that our taxes pay for brings more of a documented return than education.

We are one of the wealthiest counties in the country and are bickering about a slight raise in taxes to fund our schools.  It’s absolutely pathetic.

Lower taxes are what will bring folks to Goochland and ultimately allow our county to survive this economic downturn.  As the surrounding counties raise their taxes more and more to pay for their bloated and wasteful public school systems their tax payers will slowly migrate to counties like Goochland who are fighting the good fight and (at least so far) refusing to bend to the will of those who call for higher taxes.  How in the world can falling property values combined with increased property taxes sound sustainable to anyone?   

Some have already pointed out cost saving measures for our school system and yes they have been largely ignored which is unfortunate.  But even those suggestions are far too conservative.  Much bigger steps must be taken if we are expected to cut another two million or more from next year’s budget.  Going to a four day school week, doing away with teacher planning periods and days were teachers go to school and kids don’t (which would allow the schools to do more with less staff), and outsourcing bus transportation (if it is proven to save money) would be a good starting point.  But there are many other ideas out there that must be talked about and implemented before any talk of raising taxes can be justified. 

Many of us who are forced to post anonymously on comment threads like these for a variety or reasons will continue to fight higher taxes and offer counter points when those who call for higher taxes start to run amuck.  We were not ignored last year and I don’t think we will be ignored this year.

I agree John. There are still areas where the schools could make savings, and I believe should have made savings, in last year’s budget, such as cell phone use, auto costs, administrative overheads and building maintenance costs. All these suggestions were made to the School Board last year, to no apparent avail.

Instead, the School Board decided to cut the supplies budget in half, cut the textbook budget by 35% and to eliminate many teachers who work directly with our children on a daily basis. I do not feel these were good decisions. The PTA is now scrambling to raise funds for school supplies, our children do not have textbooks for some of their classes, and we are receiving letters from our child’s teacher asking for parent volunteers to fill the job of a school PE assistant, all as a direct result of what I consider to be poor choices. I don’t agree that cell phones are a higher priority than school essentials, and do not like to see funds raised in the community (whether by taxes or school fees) spent on such items at the expense of the quality of public education offered in this County.

OTOH, the cuts required in the school budget last year were draconian. The reason parents formed GEPA was to help identify areas where any necessary cuts could be made with the minimum impact on the quality of education offered to our children. I do personally believe that tax increases may be necessary to support the quality of public education in this County, and to support property values, (given that public education is a major determinant of property values). However, I would first like to be assured that the schools are operating efficiently, and making decisions in the best interests of this community and the quality of education offered in our schools.

Jane.

While I agree that the budget situation for both the county and schools is dire, I must point out that Goochland Education Parents Association (GEPA) provided numerous ways of cutting costs within the school budget last budget cycle. Many of those suggestions were not taken by the school’s superintendent and/or finance director. I can’t say whether they were even considered in any serious manner. However, the validity of those suggestions (phones, maintenance, administration, etc) remain.

There are some areas within the schools that could survive further cuts over and above the ones made for the 2010-2011 budget. Those cuts previously proposed by GEPA do not cumulatively amount to the full amount the schools will be asked to reduce. Therefore, the choices remaining are to raise taxes, cut the school’s budget, or a combination of the two. Personally, I think a combination is the best course of action.

It is my sincere desire to provide the school administration and board with proposals for cost cutting measures. I hope that these proposals will be given full consideration. I also hope that the administration will communicate the reasoning behind the cuts that they ultimately propose to the school board and board of supervisors, and explain why the public’s proposals were not incorporated (should that be the case).

I am certain that whatever course of action is taken will not satisfy everyone. However, if everyone is left feeling that their voices have been heard, and considered, the acrimony of the past budget cycle can largely be avoided.

Sirs,
I couldn’t agree with you less or more in many ways. It is important to understand that for those parents who do have a dog in this race the school situation is extremely upsetting .However, while emotions run high it is not helpful to call names . As a former member of GEPA I can tell you that countlesss hours have been provided to research to finding solutions rather than just pointing out the problems. These parents who are writing in are not the sole voice of GEPA but rather individuals who like many of us are upset and concerned for their schools and their individual children.With that being said it is important to remember that we judge ourselves by our intentions and others judge us by our actions.Some of the actions you refer to are inappropriate and not constructive.
BUT
(So that we can lay it all out on the table)The schools are facing as is the county another 2million in cuts in their budget this year . This is taken for Ms. Dickson’s budget meeting of February of last year minutes can be found online or I am certain Ms.  Dickson will provide you with the information.Our schools can not afford to lose this. Conditions at the schools are very tight and teachers and staff are working over and above maximum because of the lack of resources. While I personally disagree with chasing after $20-80 worth of fees . I admire the resistance that these parents are showing in not just demanding tax increase for this year . They are attempting to work at cutting whatever waste remains in the schools which is very little at this point to save a larger tax increase.
It isn’t okay that a school board votes unanimously everytime. I can’t get this kind of unity at dinner in my house. It is esspecially inappropriate when so many parents disagree. I am sure you must see the reason in that . Their role in that causes parents to lash out at the only person who seems to have an opinion and that is the superintendent .
Now I ,and my dear friends at GEPA are aware of my feelings on this do not think that this is the role GEPA should play. I find chasing after school fees and water bottles ridiculous and unneccessary. But I am able to say as an individual taxes in this county must be raised this year. I will be saying this in the board room to the Supervisors and I will say it to anyone who will listen. There is not enough money in the school budget .Most certainly there is no money for a million in cuts.While I can understand and respect that your son had a great experience at GCPS ,my children are there during the biggest economic crisis the schools have seen in at least 30 years.
I understand your points gentlemen and I applaud your efforts towards civility In short(now its time for me to quote) while their over reactions are entirely justified they are non the less over-reactions.

Dear Mr. McDermott,

As the presumed “Mr. Civility” I’ll point out that I did in fact offer constructive ideas on the blog about how to compare Goochland’s cell phone costs with other counties, how to evaluate whether we had reasonable and competitive plans, whether they were being used properly and according to plan, and suggested dialogue to address any concerns about the current cell phone issue.

Are there any constructive solutions in your recent posts or LTEs, or just artful dialogue?  You are quite the wordsmith - but what is your message aside from striving to create separation between citizens and their government officials? The implication that if one works with his government officials he or she is ‘drinking the Kool-Aid’ is absurd.  I refuse to accept that if someone doesn’t agree with you, they are drinking Kool-Aid. 

There’s also a saying that one should keep his friends close and his enemies closer.  Calling someone a “cancer” as you did in an earlier blog post, would not seem to further that goal.  I would like to see you apologize for your use of that term, and your opinion frankly means very little to me if you are the kind of person who would say such cruel things.

I confirmed with some perseverence, that the school fees were not an issue - just a red herring; something intended to get people all worked up, by an individual who clearly has the goal of destroying the career of a person who has devoted her life to public service. I stand convinced that a small group of vociferous people are out to destroy the career of this educator - yet I have not read anything that would justify this attempt.  Until I do, I will speak up if I feel people are using misleading issues to manipulate emotions and create incorrect impressions.  I get enough of that political crap in email; there’s no sense putting up with it where I can directly counter it. 

What if Ms. Underwood had called GEPA a cancer that needs to be removed?  What sort of outcy would that evoke? I continue to call for civility and fairness.

Pat