The frills are gone as students head back to class

Fairfax County, which begins class after Labor Day, lost about 250 positions as a result of spring’s budget cuts.

“Everyone — students, teachers and administrators — will take a hit,” said Fairfax School Board member Dan Storck. “Classes will be crowded at all levels. … High school students will see some elective options disappear.”

In Prince George’s County, 270 staff members won’t return to their jobs, meaning fewer adults in the hallways and classrooms. The cuts include 120 parent liaisons who managed communication between schools and homes — often with families who spoke little English. In total, 800 positions were cut throughout the system, and eight schools closed over the summer, forcing hundreds of students into new schools this fall.

“The one thing that makes me nervous is wondering if we’ll get more children than we accounted for in our projections” for each school, said Prince George’s school board member Rosalind Johnson.

In Montgomery County, widespread cuts were largely avoided due to the elimination of cost-of-living raises, saving the system $89 million. But schools that rely on fundraisers for activities and after-school programs will likely be pressed in the tough economic climate, said Kay Romero, president of the county’s parent-teacher association.

Romero said some school principals are taking over the large fundraisers to offset the reduced school fees, paid by parents, implemented for the coming year. The fees were used to supply such classroom basics as books, cleaning supplies and art materials.

“This will definitely create a competition for funds,” Romero said. “PTAs will not be able to offer children programs or activities they funded the year before if school administrations take away fundraisers that, traditionally, a PTA might have used.”

The region’s smaller districts were not hit as hard. In D.C. public schools, the amount spent per pupil will remain about the same. Arlington County achieved necessary savings by withholding a half year of teacher salary increases. Alexandria City Schools adopted the same measure and cut classes with low enrollments.

Michele Menapace, president of the Fairfax County Council of PTAs, said parents needed to adopt a wait-and-see attitude regarding the impact of the cuts.

“Principals have a lot of discretion with individual schools’ funds,” Menapace said, explaining that if administrators aren’t given enough money in one area, they will cut in another.

“It will be critical for principals to work with their parent communities and for everyone to have information about what’s happening,” she said. “Parents working with the schools can make these things smoother, and they can support those classrooms that need extra support.”

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