Mon, 25 Jan 2010 08:17:04 +0000

ST. CHARLES – Students sitting in the front row of folding chairs in the Thompson Middle School library were among the dozens who showed up for Thursday’s special Board of Education meeting devoted to how District 303 will dig itself out of a $5.7 million deficit.
 
The board unanimously approved the administration’s proposed cuts at 10:30 p.m. with a few exceptions, most notably restoring the music instruction at sixth grade.
 
Music at the middle school consumed much of the discussion, as dozens of parents, students and other community members spoke out against the new middle school exploratory and music schedule.
 
“I love having music exploratory as part of my day,” Haines Middle School sixth-grader Katarina Harshbarger said. “Please don’t take that away from me.”
 
The new schedule means the schools would no longer offer instrumental music at the lunch periods and instead put it in the exploratory rotation with courses such as art and computers. Students could take one of three options: three exploratory classes; band, orchestra or choir; or a combination of the two, said Brian Harris, area assistant superintendent. He noted the amount of instructional time in music would double.
 
“Again, there’s a lot of student choice here, still,” Harris said.
 
Robin Fleming, music booster president for St. Charles North High School, expressed concerns about how the middle school change would affect music as the high schools.
 
“If you take away the instrumental instruction in the earlier grades, those children will have less skill as they move through the program,” she said. “We just believe it’s shortsighted and drastic to make these changes.”
 
Board members struggled with the decision, especially those whose children participated in the music program.
 
“Whatever we do, we’ve got to pay for it,” Vice President James Chimienti said.

The board's vote keeps the schedule as proposed but restores the pull-out instructions that was initially set to disappear.

District administration has known since last summer that cuts would need to be made and does not expect it to get better next year given the state’s financial woes, Superintendent Donald Schlomann said.
 
“That expectation is held statewide – 11-12 will actually be worse than 10-11,” he said.
 
D303 would have to cut $1.3 million for the 2011-12 year in addition to the $5.7 this coming year, administration said.
 
Board member James Gaffney Jr. encouraged the board to look further into the future.
 
“Over the next three to five months we really need to think about what we’re going to do the following year,” Gaffney said. “A year’s not that far away.”
 
Other cuts include 6 percent site budget reductions, an elementary assistant principal and support staff at all levels.

Go to d303.org to view the budget reduction proposal.

Powerball

15. 32. 43. 44 -
46.
61.1 million dollars.
.1?
What does.1 even mean?
It means that all of our pain and worries are gone.
Ferraris, cigarette boats, and mansions.
Whatever we want.
That’s what it means.

As my heart begins to force the morphine through my already numb veins,
my faint pulse sighs a cold breath of relief;
for now, the marrow-spout at the base of my spine slowly ceases to throb.
With each slow heartbeat, the morphine attempts to convince my body that it will win;
for nearly a fraction of a second, I am able to forget the numbers that are the only honest voices I can trust.

The doctor whose face is usually stretched into a longer grimace by the morphine looks different today.
The motors of the hospital bed complete the work my broken body cannot,
placing me in a polite position to hear the results of this week’s marrow harvest.
He begins in his usual manner of gruffly clearing his throat and pointing at the beginning of my results with his index finger.
As his cold, analytical interpretation of my insides begins, I notice something that not even the morphine can obscure;
He looks at me while he reads my results.
His eyes don’t simply follow his moving finger.

“Your body is producing 1 X 1011 platelets.”
“Well within the normal range,” he clarifies as my radiated brain struggles to recall the word.

There are plenty of different numbers yet to fear.
It’s not time to hope yet.

“And, your body is producing about 10800 blood cells per liter of blood.”
“Well above the normal range,” he clarifies as he sharply taps his index finger on my lab report, the morphine inverting his grimace to some semblance of a grin.

As he continues to decode my fate,
the morphine slowly begins to retract its claws from my soul.
My few remaining hairs stand on end.
“What does all of this mean?” I whisper slowly.
The bed motors cannot work fast enough to get me closer to his voice.

15. 32. 43. 44 -
46.
61.1 million dollars.
.1?
What does.1 even mean?
It means that all of our pain and worries are gone.
Luxury cars, boats, and houses.
Ferraris, cigarette boats, and mansions.
That’s what it means.