We have a message to those protesting teacher and staff cuts at the Davis School District: We sympathize with you but your complaint needs to be directed at the Utah State Legislature, which funds education. The district is doing what it can with the money it has, and the money isn't there. Legislators decide how much money Davis and other districts can spend.
As was evidenced recently, Davis County has become point zero for education issues. The district is located in a growing area of the Top of Utah and has the difficult task of trying to fit an increasing student population within a budget that has consistently dwindled.
Davis district officials recently announced that they might cut $31 million for the new fiscal years. That's another cut that comes after a slice of $30 million the district has made for the current year. Next year, the district expects to add 950 additional students. One way to handle that increase will be larger class sizes, district officials have said.
However, that's not enough to handle the budget woes and the district announced that teachers and staff with one-year contracts would not be renewed. At Syracuse High School, for example, that means six teachers and one counselor are being let go.
Not surprisingly, there was a large student protest of the cuts at Syracuse High School. Like other schools in the district, there are many well-educated families who live in the suburbs and cities. And parents and students understand that Utah is poorly funded compared to other states in regards to public education. We probably don't have to remind most of our readers that Utah ranks last in the nation in per-pupil funding for public education. This is largely a result of our large student population. But what many don't know is that Utah's education funding effort is declining. A Utah Foundation study conducted before the recession showed that our state ranked 27th when education revenues are compared to personal income. However, in the mid-1990s, Utah's education funding effort used to rank within the top 10 states.
The long, severe recession, as well as changes to Utah's tax structure that impacted the revenue elementary and secondary schools received, have only made the situation worse.
But, again, there's little the district can do. Some protesters have expressed outrage and concern that there are personnel cuts so soon after the Davis district voters passed a $250 million bond to upgrade, renovate and build facilities. But that issue is not relevant. The district cannot use the money for salaries. If it did, it would be breaking the law.
It's important to recall that the district has not finalized its budget. A public hearing is planned and we're sure it will be well-attended. That's good; we need to have the people keeping an eye on education. However, ultimately the pressure needs to be on the Legislature to find a way to increase money for public education in Davis and elsewhere.
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