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Archive for the ‘budget cuts’ Category

“True leadership is recognizing a mistake and resolving it”

Posted in budget cuts, tagged , , , , on July 17, 2023| Leave a Comment »

Community support for the reinstatement of Dean of Students Tom Black is loud and passionate. (Moira Reed photo)

Expect #bringbackblack to dominate the airwaves once again.

The Coupeville School Board has a budget workshop this Thursday, July 20, then the budget hearing during its regular monthly meeting July 27.

That means the push to reinstate Dean of Students Tom Black, a 19-year vet who is currently a victim of budget cuts, will once again be front and center.

The following letter to the editor, which was also sent to school board members and Superintendent Steve King, is from a local family:

 

Hello Alison, Christine, Morgan, Nancy, Sherry, and Steve,

We respectfully request that you reinstate Mr. Tom Black as the Dean of Students.

The board was elected to represent and serve our community.

In our eight years with the Coupeville schools, we have rarely ever seen another district issue where the community has so clearly stated how they would like to be served.

The community has written letters to the Whidbey News-Times editor.

Written testimonials on Mr. Black’s positive impact on them among the many articles by David Svien about the community wanting to reverse this decision.

Been referenced in a top front page newspaper article about the controversy.

Been a frequent local discussion topic among parents and students plus posted across Facebook and social media.

Signed a petition that has 500+ people saying Mr. Black needs to be reinstated, and multiple people showed up to your recent board meeting in support of reversing this decision

There is unified, vocal, and extensive community input to reinstate Mr. Tom Black as the Dean of Students.

The community is asking you to figure out where else you can cut $85,000 from the budget.

This is only 6% of the budget cut proposal.

Nobody is “happy” with the other 94%, yet people understand that budget cuts are needed. 

The focused public outcry is not second guessing that 94% or asking you to do the whole effort all over again.

It is important to not confuse effective leadership with “sticking to your guns” and “making the hard decisions that are not always popular.”

A mistake was made on a small portion of the overall proposal.

We are not perfect and nobody on this thread is perfect.

We hold no grudges against the initial mistake, especially since budget cuts are always hard.

However, the current situation is quite disheartening.

You are passively ignoring the ramifications, the clear community feedback on that initial decision, and the clear community directive to cut something else instead.

If the superintendent and the board just says “that’s the way it is” without listening to the input from your community, then you lose your ability to say you represent the interests of this community.

A sign of true leadership is recognizing a mistake and resolving it.

Anything else is just a case of inflexibility and a false sense that you have done your job, community needs and priorities be damned.

Since Steve has expressed his belief that he made the right decision with no known interest in changing it, we ask that the Board override his decision on this one item, direct Steve to seek cuts elsewhere, and reinstate Mr. Black promptly.

This request is coming from a broad base across the entire community that you are supposed to serve.

If you do not reverse this decision, it would essentially mean that you are unwilling to represent the clearly and loudly stated interests of your community.

You would do everyone a disservice if you are just a rubber stamp to a bad decision.

And this issue needs to be corrected rapidly before Mr. Black understandably needs to move on and find employment elsewhere.

Regards,
Scott, Karen and Lydia Price

 

Contact info for the superintendent and school board:

 

Steve King — sking@coupeville.k12.wa.us

 

Nancy Conard — nconard@coupeville.k12.wa.us

Alison Perera — aperera@coupeville.k12.wa.us

Sherry Phay — sphay@coupeville.k12.wa.us

Christine Sears — csears@coupeville.k12.wa.us

Morgan White — mwhite@coupeville.k12.wa.us

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Drinking gold there, are we?

Posted in budget cuts, tagged , , , , on July 7, 2023| Leave a Comment »

Is that Coupeville water, or fancy water? (David Stern photo)

Welcome to Watergate, the sequel.

OK, it’s not that serious, and I’m 99% having a bit of fun here, but facts are facts.

Coupeville School District officials spent more on bottled water during the 2022-2023 school year than they did on funding an athletic trainer whose expertise, hard work, and dedication helped Wolf athletes deal with injuries.

Now, Superintendent Steve King is cutting both from the budget, after the school board rapped knuckles for the general fund dipping below the mark directors set.

But that water was drunk.

Or, sat around burbling in fancy corporate plastic containers in school offices, until the next appearance by the cheerful delivery man.

One of the two.

It’s right there, in the updated list of budget cuts from June 21:

Slashing Jessie Caselden, a CHS grad, a daughter of the prairie, a role model to a new generation of young women (and men), and someone universally hailed by Wolf coaches, athletes, parents, and co-workers, saves the district $8,200.

Telling employees to drink from the taps, bring a water bottle from home, or, I don’t know, walk across the street to Prairie Center on their lunch break saves $12,000.

Sure, as someone who has lived in Coupeville for three decades, I am well aware our prairie water can sometimes be on the … chunky side.

Yar, there be minerals here!

It’s why Miriam’s Espresso went through so many water filters back in the day.

It’s why you’re not going to be on vacation in Bali and purchase a bottle of water bearing a photo of Whidbey Island, with the motto “Drink the prairie!”

But Coupeville water is also not Flint, Michigan water.

Generations of farmers, and farm animals, survived just fine with a little bite to their liquid refreshment.

Or they went to the $1.25 store and bought those little favor packets and gave a splash of lemonade, or iced tea, or Grandma Gertie’s Wild Passion Cranberry Twist to their water and went about their day.

Until they got a job with the local school district, and suddenly could slurp that sweet, sweet, tasteless, processed bottled water — production of which, probably, allegedly, will cause the emu to go extinct.

Now, $12,000 isn’t going to solve the district’s money issues on its own.

But you know what it could have done?

For about $7,200, the district could have paid a year of my bills (seriously, I live lean), gotten a PR person, and not had to read slightly annoying stories such as this one.

Would I have sold whatever remains of my journalistic integrity for that dollar amount?

You’re asking a guy who once launched a spring cookie drive, where Wolf Moms from various sports openly bribed me via helping me achieve my diabetic goals.

So … never say never.

Or, back in the real world, that $12,000 could have made Jessie’s salary closer to the value she brings to Wolf Nation.

Not equal to, but closer.

Or funded part of a paraeducator salary.

Or a billion other things which didn’t involve large water bottles being lugged on campus while the emu die.

Allegedly.

Which is all neither here nor there, as both the athletic trainer and the bottled water are being cut, with only one being truly worthy of being saved.

In the end, let’s just tip one out to the emu, who are, allegedly, in trouble.

But let’s do it with a water bottle you brought from home, with water not funded by taxpayers.

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#BringBackBlack hits 500 signatures

Posted in budget cuts, tagged , , , , on July 6, 2023| 3 Comments »

The movement builds. (Moira Reed photo)

They hit a milestone yesterday.

A petition on change.org calling for the reinstatement of Coupeville High School/Middle School Dean of Students Tom Black picked up its 500th signature Wednesday.

The clarion call, which was launched June 25 by Gabe Reed, hit the round number on day #11.

Black, a 19-year veteran of Coupeville Schools, is part of a series of budget cuts issued by Coupeville Schools Superintendent Steve King.

The actions are in response to the school board passing a “modified education plan” on a 4-1 vote requiring up to 1.45 million in cuts.

This was instituted after the district’s general fund, under the guidance of King and now-retired Business Manager Denise Peet, dropped below the figure mandated by the board — 6% of budgeted expenditures.

This is the second time in recent years this has happened.

Many of the people signing the #bringbackblack petition commented on why they believe it is important to reverse his job loss.

Some selections:

 

Jessica Bester:

Mr. Black is the heart and soul of that school.

He is the ONLY administrator who actually cares about students and their wellbeing.

Not keeping him is a huge mistake, and the students will ultimately be the ones who suffer.

 

Rebecca Dale:

Mr. Black is an incredible, amazing, caring man.

He helped me so much in high school and was one of the biggest supporters I had.

He helped me achieve to graduate – I probably wouldn’t have without him.

If a kid didn’t have lunch or couldn’t afford supplies he always helped, he even bought my senior yearbook for me.

You’re the best Mr. Black, thanks for the candy! 

 

Ana Paula De Souza

I live in Oak Harbor and my daughter attends Coupeville Middle School.

She said Mr. Black is (was) one of the best things about Coupeville MS because he really cares about the students.

She was devastated when I told her the news about him not being at school next school year anymore.

I don’t know Mr. Black personally, but if my daughter says something like that about someone I tend to believe her.

I trust her judgment.

 

Joshua Wilsey:

Mr. Black is a staple in the Coupeville community.

He has changed and altered so many young lives for the better; he’s the one that you can go to when you feel nobody will listen, because he actually listens, and he actually cares.

Without him, I would not have been able to manage my ADHD.

And I would have kept getting into trouble and I wouldn’t have been able to keep grades to play the sports that were an absolute necessity for me as an escape from my day-to-day life.

Mr. Black is for the students, and I will forever be grateful for the impact he had on my life.

 

Lita Woollet:

Mr. Black helped me get away from a lot of the bullying I faced there, pushed me to go to court after I was touched and put on a hit list, and would listen to me talk about it.

He helped me tremendously and he’s always helped my two younger siblings.

He deserves so much more than this; thank you, Mr. Black!

 

The petition can be found here: 

https://www.change.org/p/keep-tom-black-as-the-coupeville-dean-of-students?source_location=search

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“This is scary and alarming”

Posted in budget cuts, tagged , , , , , on July 3, 2023| Leave a Comment »

Jessica Van Velkinburgh

The debate about what should and shouldn’t be included in ongoing budget cuts in the Coupeville School District is the story of the summer.

The following letter to the editor comes to us from Wolf Mom Jessica Van Velkinburgh:

 

What does priority services mean to the Coupeville School District, its parents and its leaders?

When we talk about budget cuts it’s important to acknowledge what’s a priority to keep and what’s seen as excessive and/or unnecessary considering the available budget.

As parents, students and staff, if we were asked to rank these four items in order of priority services, what would your order be?

1 — Adequate special education service that meets the IEP requirements of ALL students ($200k appropriately).

2 — Adequate paraeducators to be able to provide necessary safety and educational services to all students, required by IEPs — 30k average annual salary per paraeducator.

3 — A Dean of Students with over a decade of working with these students inside this district.

A staff member who is the #1 relied upon staff member students trust to confide in when being bullied, feeling unsafe in and out of school, and asking for help with mental health services.

Annual salary — 85k.

4 — A six-figure salaried farm to table private chef experience with a personal assistant to this chef with a pay of 80k salary per year.

A ‘pet project’ to the superintendent, totaling 180k.

Not including anything else related to the lunch program — two salaries only. 

As a mom of a student with an IEP who Coupeville has acknowledged for nearly a decade they can’t/won’t accommodate due to funding, my priorities may vary from yours. 

But keep in mind I also have three children who have a combined 20+ years of schooling in Coupeville — one graduated, one in middle school, and one in elementary.

My husband, myself, and my mom are all Coupeville graduates, so this district is dear to us.

With that said these are my thoughts on our budget crisis.

My second oldest child is autistic and has been enrolled in the Oak Harbor School District since first grade.

She has been in their self-contained special education program as an out of district student for over nine years.

All nine of those years Coupeville released their state funding for her to Oak Harbor so they wouldn’t have to accommodate her IEP.

Several of those years Superintendent Steve King signed an agreement with Oak Harbor to pay upwards of 30k annually on top of her state funding so he didn’t have to accommodate her special education IEP in Coupeville.

What does that amount of given away money total, and what could it have done for Coupeville, as well as other students in the district whose needs aren’t met?

I know at times many students with IEPs were being sent away from the district as well, with the same financial loss to Coupeville.

This year, with the support of the OSPI Special Education Director, we have met with the Coupeville Special Education Director to require they meet her IEP and accommodate her as the law requires, so she can attend her home school next year.

In this meeting the Coupeville director acknowledged that they not only don’t and likely never will have the self-contained special education program her and many other Coupeville students need, they are extremely short staffed in paraeducators.

That makes it impossible at the moment to accommodate her IEP, which requires a 1:1 para throughout the duration of the day.

They assured me over the summer they would be filling this position to ensure there will be adequate paraeducators for my daughter and the other students.

Now I am seeing not only did they eliminate one full time paraeducator position, they also cut the hours of the remaining paras.

Meaning in essence, if they assign her the full-time para next year as the law requires, the remaining students in the district are now short two full time paras with eliminated hours for the remaining.

This is scary and alarming not only for me and my child, but for the parents and other students that will no longer get their legally required paraeducator support because this was seen as a lower ranking priority to Mr. Steve King and the board.

With all that considered, what seems to take #1 priority for the above mentioned is the farm to table private chef service they offer at our district.

Now, don’t get me wrong, it’s a wonderful idea.

And the students and us parents think it’s a great program IF, and only IF, there are extra funds to make this program work.

But in what I believe to be a biased decision, the superintendent is protecting his ‘pet project’, his ‘resume builder’, over protecting what’s essential for students to have a free and safe education.

Their most basic right.

The salary going to the private chef (100k annually) as well as the salary going to the private chef’s assistant (80k) would cover not only Mr. Black and 3+ paraeducators.

It could instead cover a fulltime special education teacher, and 2-3 full time paraeducators, which is what is needed for a self-contained special education program.

Or that 180k would rehire Mr. Black (who I whole heartedly believe saves fragile teenage lives every year in our school district), fill the eliminated para position, at least keeping the number the same as opposed to 2+ less than promised.

While still allowing for a reasonable salary for an adequate lunch program coordinator.

What I would ask is, are the priorities of the leaders of the Coupeville school district in line with the best interests of their students?

Mr. Black saves lives; paraeducators and children receiving the services needed for a safe and free education truly saves lives of special needs children.

We can even argue saving sports and athletic positions can help keep struggling children alive and on the right track.

But the question is why, when a luxury lunch program in a small district can’t save lives, why is it being placed so high on the priority list above all others?

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“He is irreplaceable, plain and simple”

Posted in budget cuts, tagged , , , , on June 30, 2023| Leave a Comment »

Coupeville High School Class of ’82 grad Matt Bepler injects some rock and roll into the conversation with his new take on a classic design.

United, with one voice.

From the moment Superintendent Steve King cut the position of Dean of Students at Coupeville High School/Middle School, the outcry has been intense.

And it’s not stopping anytime soon.

Wolf Nation wants the world to know what Tom Black has accomplished the past 19 years, and they want him reinstated.

Our latest letter comes from Nicole Strelow, mother to two Coupeville students — Class of 2023 Valedictorian Helen and younger brother Thomas.

 

Mr. Black is an immeasurable resource in our school district.

The kids in Coupeville know he is genuinely invested in their lives and that is a trust built from years of his efforts within our schools.

This trust is something that cannot be replaced by dividing his role to other staff members. 

Mr. Black has provided a source of comfort for the kids knowing that an adult is in their corner in what may be the only safe place for some children.

For the kids lucky to have a secure home the comfort comes in knowing he is their cheerleader as well.

Removing Mr. Black and splitting his job between multiple employees is an unrealistic step.

He is irreplaceable, plain and simple.

In doing this we would be relinquishing some kids to fall through the cracks in the system.

Removing Mr. Black would unfortunately be taking Coupeville schools in the wrong direction for the sake of budget.

Having Mr. Black so visible around the schools and knowledgeable about the students is our largest factor in prevention and keeping our schools safe.

I know the school board is trying to fix our budget and this is a hard task.

But the most important investment the board can make for the children is keeping a valued staff member that makes the biggest positive difference in their lives.

I urge the board to reconsider a different budget cut for the sake of the community.

I would also like to thank Mr. Black personally.

Thank you for not only being a guardian to all the children of Coupeville but thank you for being a support for all of us parents.

You always had kind words of encouragement to parents bringing their 6th grader for the first time to middle school or the parent watching their senior graduate.

Knowing you are walking the halls and greeting every child is a great relief to parents.

Thank you for being the example to our children of what a productive and kind human being in our community looks like.

Nicole Strelow

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