Two things weighed heavily on parents’ minds at the North Colonie Central School District’s Monday, March 14, budget presentation: the addition of two full-time counselors and the elimination of the Chemistry Center at Shaker High School.
During a presentation of the staffing reductions for the 2011-2012 school year, North Colonie Superintendent Joseph Corr said the district is proposing to give two counselors who were formerly under contract with the Colonie Youth Services permanent positions at Shaker High School.
The plan is to offer those two counselors, which the district was already paying a total of $100,000 for each year, positions as staff members for an increase of $53,796. In negotiations with bargaining units, Corr said he took the legal counsel’s advice and offered the increase to keep the counselors at North Colonie.
I have a real issue with the counselor position, said district parent Mark McCarthy. `If we have been contracting them for so long, do we need to do this? With all due respect, I don’t understand them [bargaining units] pushing this issue this year.`
The reason for keeping these counselors on, Corr said, was because they provide a service of assistance in situations such as crisis management, bullying, substance abuse, behavior, study skills and peer relationships in both Shaker Junior High School and Shaker High School. Some parents felt the addition of those two positions would result in the elimination of teaching positions.
Bob Bedell, head of the North Colonie Teachers Association, said it was a good move on the district’s part to keep those counselors because it suffered a massive loss when one left the district to head to Shenedehowa.
`The district did what it should have done,` he said. `The kids need these because the kids are troubled sometimes and need the extra help in studying. I’m proud to say it will be able to keep these people.`
Most of the reductions in staff came from the study of student enrollment in each of the departments. There is a projected decrease in the total number of students in the district from 5,512 to 5,433. With that, Corr proposed staffing reductions of 0.1 in Health, 0.1 in Music, 0.2 in Physical Education, 0.4 in Math, 0.6 in Career and Technical Education. 0.5 in Art, 0.4 in Foreign Language, 0.6 in Science and 1 in Social Studies.
Many board members and district parents at Monday’s meeting also took issue with the reduction in the Science Department at Shaker High School, including the proposed elimination of the Chemistry Center, which assists students struggling in chemistry.
The Chemistry Center helps `beef up` the course into something more college-ready, said Keith Bogert of the Science Department. Some parents were concerned that eliminating the program would mean less help for those students struggling with the subject. Bogert assured parents this was not the case.
`It’s strengthening the program so it does not leave students behind,` he said. `The goal is to encompass all students who fit the Chemistry E requisite as well as strengthen the program to meet all students. I’m pressed to believe any students are struggling through the program. What we have now are people sitting in the program finding it far too easy. No one in the program is finding it so hard that they’re having a hard time.`
Former board member David Rosenthal pleaded with the district that if it comes up with any more money as time goes on that they put it toward bringing back the Chemistry Center.
`We’ve lost terrible things over the years,` he said. `I think somewhere along the line, if the board finds extra money, I think the Chemistry Center should see it.“
