Photo by Raúl! on Flickr.

The DCPS budget allocations for next year contained a major surprise for some communities: allocations to schools for art, music, foreign language, and library as well as office and support staff funding changed. Schools that had qualified last year are suddenly under the threshold for full-time staffing, which increased from 300 to 400 students.

Maury Elementary, for example, faces losing its librarian and staff for many other programs, just after growing large enough to get out of the “small school” category under the old rules.

While each school within DCPS receives funding for classroom teachers using a per-pupil ratio, funding for other specialized positions is based on school-wide enrollment. Sandra Moscoso already discussed how this could take away full-time librarians from many schools. It will also impact art, music, and PE teachers as well as office and support staff.

DCPS mentions this change in its Budget Development Guide for SY13-14, but it otherwise seems to have happened without public input or notice.

What is a “small school”?

There is no clear threshold for “small schools” in last year’s (FY 2013) Budget Guidelines. However, last year elementary schools with enrollments over 300 students received funding for full-time librarians, art, music and physical education teachers as well as office staff and other support staff, including social workers and psychologists.

Over the past year, during discussion on the plan to consolidate and reorganize schools, Chancellor Henderson often cited 350 students as the threshold for “small” schools at the elementary level:

When schools reach a certain threshold, 350-ish at the elementary school level, 450 at middle, 600 at high school, you actually have the ability to do more flexible grouping. You have teachers who are able to work together because they’re on a team and are not isolated teaching one grade.

DCPS’ Consolidation & Reorganization proposal also clearly lists 350 students as a threshold: “Schools with fewer than 350 students require additional per-pupil funding to offer a full range of services. Sixty-four percent of DCPS elementary schools have fewer than 350 students.”

In next year’s budget, elementary schools with under 400 students are classified as “small schools.”

Why is DCPS doing this?

In its Consolidation and Reorganization Plan, DCPS outlines the increased expenses and challenges of operating small schools. DCPS officials claim that small student populations limit access to academic and extracurricular programs, limit flexibility on class size and student grouping, and minimize the impact of highly effective teachers.

Additionally, DCPS believes that small schools result in disproportionately high spending on non-instructional staff. A DCFPI report disagrees with this assessment, noting that small schools get only about 4% more funding than larger schools.

This change will directly affect many kids

Schools which fought to reach the 300 threshold over previous years will no longer receive full-time allocations for librarians; arts, music and language positions; or office and support positions.

Maury Elementary School on Capitol Hill, which my kids attend, is one example of a school that will feel the impact of this change. Maury has seen significant growth over the past five years. Its enrollment increased by more than 150 students and is projected to reach 330 students next year. Maury also has approximately 475 students on its waitlist. Yet, the school, despite plans to add a module classroom for next year, cannot meet the new 400-student threshold.

This means that unless the school community is able to obtain annual waivers to allow it to reallocate funds within its budget (which the Chancellor has granted for next year), Maury ES will continually face losing its librarian and staff for other programs.

At Maury, and in many other schools across the city, librarians and special teachers (art, music, PE and world language) do much more than just teach their subject. The lead collaborative projects, work with students who are struggling, and lead innovative programs (Maury has a special “Reading Lunch” for 4th and 5th grade students, the specials teachers support reading interventions, and specials teachers are leading science and technology classes).

Why is small now 400?

DCPS has yet to explain publicly why this threshold has increased from 300 to 350 to 400 over the past year. DCPS spokesperson Melissa Salmanowitz also did not respond to a request by Greater Greater Education for comment.

Councilmember David Catania, chair of the Education Committee, has pledged to look at the number of schools impacted by this decision and what the impact is on the overall budget. But DCPS still needs to explain why this decision was made, what impact it will have on our children, and how it will help DCPS achieve its ambitious goals.