February 2012
Parents and Community,
Part of my job as principal is first and foremost to ensure your child receives the best education possible. This can often include educating parents in a variety of ways as well. As I begin working on next year's budget with my staff and the community via the School Site Council (SSC), I would like to share with you what is funded with the school's limited budget and with that of the TPES Foundation.
STANDARDS
Our first priority as a school is to educate your child academically. All educator's, including myself, are held accountable for your child achieving proficiency on the California Standards Test (CST). Some people may say that we emphasize test scores too much. To an extent, that is true because it is the ONLY measurement of a teacher today. Our evaluations, and thus our jobs, are dependent on our students achieving on standardized tests. Are we happy about this single measurement as a staff? Not really, and that is why we have created additional assessments that measure the whole child. We also believe every child deserves to have the arts, physical education, and character education as part of their schooling.
CURRICULUM COSTS VS. BUDGET
So what does a well-rounded curriculum cost? What is covered by the school's budget and what is covered with the assistance of the TPES Foundation? My school budget covers the bare bones . . . Barely enough to open for business if we were a business. If I have any extra district funds to spend I use them on support staff to help students achieve. An example of this would be to hire a retired teacher to work 6 months during the year to give students who are struggling that extra boost necessary to become proficient and feel successful. Without fundraising I would not be able to provide your child with a choral teacher, art teacher, physical education teacher, school counselor, smaller class sizes, or an open library. Some have criticized the Foundation's fund raising efforts, but I think there are very few people that would not want the art, music, and PE instruction, let alone a counselor who delivers guidance lessons in the classroom, smaller class sizes, and a library that remains open most of the school day. Contrary to some beliefs, the Foundation does not purchase Promethean Boards or any of the new i21 technology. This is provided by the school district through Proposition S funding.
THE FUTURE?
As the SSC and I work on the budget for the 2012-13 school year over the next couple of weeks our priority will be to maintain all the wonderful things TPES offers children. I hope this brief explanation gives you a better idea of why we emphasize test scores, what we value as a staff and community, and why there is a need to fundraise each year.
-Jim Solo, Principal
