Branchburg Township School District’s Post

As a school board director, I've weathered more than my fair share of budget seasons. But I'll be upfront - this year's process is shaping up to be truly unprecedented. The angry parents, frustrated teachers, confused students, and exasperated administrators on display at our recent meetings? That's the product of a perfect budgetary storm that's been brewing for years now. Perhaps understandably, most stakeholders were caught off guard by the severity of the situation. The reality is, budgeting for schools is never just about a single "season." It's an ongoing cycle of planning, projecting, revising, and adapting to factors beyond our control. This particular confluence of headwinds, however, is testing us in new ways. The COVID-19 pandemic precipitated steep enrollment declines while forcing emergency spending on safety measures and educational technology. Now, those vital federal relief dollars are running dry, leaving sizable gaps in our operating budgets. If that wasn't enough, we're also contending with runaway inflation straining resources for everything from transportation, insurance, to classroom supplies. The analysis from the74million.org lays out with stark clarity the unpalatable choices we may have to weigh - staff layoffs, program cuts, tax increases, dipping into reserves. Any path forward carries the risk of long-term impacts on the quality of education we can provide. As board members, perhaps our greatest failing has been not looping in stakeholders sooner to this rapidly evolving situation. In our defense, we've been immersed in the numbers and projections at every meeting while families and educators were rightfully laser-focused on persevering through the pandemic and re-entry itself. But that's no excuse moving forward. We need to be briefing stakeholders early and often, leveling with them about the challenges to come. These decisions will reverberate for years - we need everyone weighing in from an informed perspective. Leaders like Edunomics Lab at Georgetown University have been sounding the alarm about this looming fiscal cliff for districts nationwide. If you haven't already, I'd encourage every person to explore their insights. Public education has never been a solitary endeavor. We're all in the same boat, and we'll need to be rowing together through this squall. It's fair to say that nobody who decided to work or support public education expected to reduce teaching staff, shutter vital programs, or triage priorities like replacing boilers versus fixing leaky roofs. As we forge through this year's budgeting, my charge to fellow board members is this: Raise community awareness early and often, call for all stakeholders to get educated on the challenges we're facing.  My charge to fellow parents and community members is this: seek information and engage in conversations. Join a committee - speak to a board member, set a meeting with your building principal. Stay engaged, stay informed.

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I wrote this in 2016: Dear Lewis & Clark students who are the first in their family to graduate from college and who grew up low income: Congratulations! You may not know it, but you beat the odds – just 11% of low-income students who are the first in their family to attend college will earn a degree within six years (Pell Institute 2011). I am also a first-gen/low income grad. I graduated from Millersville University on May 15, 1993. Now that I can locate my story in a historical context, I appreciate that I am a ‘success’ story of President Johnson’s “War on Poverty." My dad was a taxi driver and my mom worked different minimum wage jobs. I attended Head Start: "...the most important social and educational investment in children, families, and communities that the US has ever undertaken. Launched in 1965, over the past 50 years, it has provided opportunity for success to more than 32 million low-income families.” (NHSA). I applied to just one college; I hadn’t even visited the campus: it was simply the closest state school to my house. I sometimes wonder how my life would have been different if I attended Franklin & Marshall College, which was also in my hometown. Like LC, F&M is a private, liberal arts college. The F&M women’s basketball coach called me during high school to recruit me. I told her, “No way can I go to F&M! It’s too expensive and I don’t belong there.” Despite my high SAT score and GPA, I had internalized the idea that a state school was where people like me belonged. I thought F&M was astronomically expensive: tuition was $12,000/year. In comparison, MU was $2,300/year. Even with a “Dean” title and master’s degree, my roots still show – and through your life, yours may, too. It can be difficult when your friends talk about how they’ll spend the summer backpacking around Europe and then do AmeriCorps. You’ll wonder how they will pay for Europe and live on an AmeriCorps salary of $14,000/year. It can be difficult to watch your 27-year-old friends buy a house. “How did they save for a down payment? What am I doing wrong?” When your parents die, you don’t plan on an inheritance; rather, you hope there’s enough to cover the funeral expenses. You’ll watch your friends’ parents retire, travel, play tennis and eagerly await grandkids (who they will shower with gifts). Then you may have your own child – and you’ll wonder: “How will I teach them the grittiness, gratitude and resilience I learned when they're surrounded by so much privilege?” (Speaking of privilege, I’m aware that my white privilege absolutely served as an invisible wind at my back). I have made my life’s work social justice -- of trying to help shape institutions to welcome, celebrate and learn from those on the margins, and to challenge those who hold privilege to use it to create equity. I hope you'll use your new degree to help create access and justice for others, too. Congratulations to you and your family 💓

Huntington, West Virginia Home to Marshall University Tops the List of Yahoo Finance's Top College Towns for Retirees: Retirees are increasingly choosing college towns for their post-career lifestyles, and Huntington, West Virginia, stands out as an excellent choice. With a livability score of 81, this town offers a welcoming environment for those aged 65 and older, constituting 17.2% of the population. Key Financial Insights: Monthly Expenditure Costs: $1,951 Average Mortgage: $707 Why College Towns? Many retirees are drawn to college towns due to factors such as affordability, walkability, and the abundance of cultural, educational, and entertainment opportunities. Huntington, in particular, provides a diverse community and a continuous influx of new faces with students and university staff. Additionally, the town often offers part-time job opportunities, providing retirees with extra income options. Methodology: To determine the best college towns for retirees, GOBankingRates considered various factors, including livability scores, the percentage of the population aged 65 and older, monthly living costs, and housing expenses. Explore the full list to discover the top 25 college towns offering an ideal blend of retirement-friendly features. Marshall University Brad D. Smith University of Charleston #RetirementLiving #CollegeTowns #HuntingtonWV #FinancialInsights #RetirementChoices #Greenbriers #jimjustice [Read more: https://lnkd.in/dgCnJbPr]

Afterschool, vacation, and summer programs were key beneficiaries of federal stimulus dollars. But the expiration of ESSER funds means these types of programs may be first on the chopping block for district spending. In a new op-ed, Emma Banay, manager of the Inspired Minds portfolio, points to the important role high-quality out-of-school-time programs play in children's holistic development. “What’s really special about them isn’t just the opportunity to improve academic skills. It’s that they are — simply put — fun.” Programs from grantees including FIRST, DiscoverE, Learn Fresh, National Inventors Hall of Fame, and National 4-H Council provide academic benefits while also supporting children’s social-emotional development, such as improved interpersonal skills and stronger peer-to-peer and peer-to-adult relationships. That makes them particularly important now. Read more in The 74 Media.

I got this quote from a teacher just outside of the Houston, Texas area who contributed her own knowledge and expertise to the #TeachersServeToo book project. We did countless interviews with superintendents, admin leaders, and industry experts...but this quote was one that still haunts me. This experience pains my heart and highlights a stark reality: The system fails to care for those who have devoted their lives to service. Educators, who spend decades nurturing and shaping future generations, deserve better support and care in their retirement years. The fact that so many former educators return to the classroom or have to take on additional work in their retirement years not out of passion but necessity, speaks volumes about the gaps in our support systems. It’s the story of countless educators who face similar struggles. As a society, we must advocate for better healthcare and retirement benefits for our teachers. They deserve to retire with dignity, without the fear of medical bills or the inflated cost of living driving them back into the workforce. Let’s honor their service by building a system that truly cares. #TeachersServeToo #SupportOurTeachers #EducatorsDeserveBetter #RetirementWithDignity

The Times They Are A’ Changin’ So crooned Bob Dylan in 1964, referring to the sweeping societal changes brought forward by the civil rights movement. So too might pro-school choice advocates sing today. As of March, 2024, 29 states and the District of Columbia have at least one private school choice program, according to Education Week. Of those, twelve states have at least one private school choice program that is universally accessible to K-12 students in the state. Texas appears to be next! The efforts of Governor Abbott to defeat members of his own party in the spring primaries who voted against school choice last fall were successful. Of the 16 anti-school-choice incumbents seeking re-election, a stunning six were defeated outright, and another four were pushed into runoffs. That almost never happens to incumbents. Meanwhile, all five of the seats vacated by retiring members will be filled by pro-school-choice candidates. Texas now seems positioned to pass some sort of universal choice program in the next legislative session. Advocates are aiming to make it the most generous program in the nation, giving parents of any income up to 10K to apply to the school of their choice, or toward an array of education-related expenses, such as tutoring, books, supplies, uniforms and transportation. That would be an absolute game changer for both public and private education in the state, with ripple effects in every direction, regardless of a school’s socio-economic standing. And it could well save struggling Catholic schools who serve poorer communities. We’ll have to see what shakes out. But keep an eye on Texas!

Happy National School Counselor Week! National School Counselor Week may be winding down, but school counselors nationwide are hard at work supporting their students in countless ways. Thank you to all the incredible school counselors who serve as guides, mentors, and inspirations. It is no small feat to help students navigate turbulent waters from elementary school all the way through the higher education process. We understand that the counselor's role is fulfilling but exhausting. We focus on easing this burden by helping counselors bring much-needed college funding resources to their community. We're committed to helping families afford a quality education without undue financial stress. The hard truth is that college is expensive. While the thought of college or an alternative higher education path may seem far off, it is crucial that parents start planning as soon as possible. We hear from so many college counselors about their students getting into their dream school and then realizing there's no way they can afford it. Our goal is to prevent this from happening in the first place by arming parents and students--well before the college process--with the knowledge they need to become informed consumers of higher education. Want to collaborate with us to help out your community? Do you know a school counselor who would benefit from our free workshop and resources? Learn more here: https://hubs.li/Q02kyGWt0

#LifeUpdate: I am excited to share that this week I started a new position at Black River United Way as their Director of Community Engagement. I will be working to mobilize partners and support for BRUW’s efforts to ensure childhood success and disaster resiliency in Georgetown and Williamsburg Counties. It’s been incredible so far, and I’m thrilled to have another opportunity to make a difference through my career and even more so, in the community I call home. Georgetown is pretty special to me - it’s where my husband and I got married (city) and Georgetown County is where we chose to live and buy a home a together. I am really looking forward to having a front row seat to some much-needed work in my this area (such as kindergarten readiness and early-grade reading initiatives) and can’t wait to share more about the amazing work that Black River United Way does to help children and families in Georgetown (and Williamsburg!) thrive. For now, I am so grateful for all of the support and encouragement that has helped me begin this new chapter (Thank you! - You know who you are!). “You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.” – C.S. Lewis On to new goals and new dreams in 2024! PS - Did you know that less than half of students in Georgetown & Williamsburg Counties are currently reading at grade-level? Or that 88% of students who failed to earn a high school diploma were struggling readers in third grade? I was shocked when I heard these statistics! These are facts that that BRUW is working to change.