Editor’s Note: The CCS Finance and Personnel Committee Meeting Report that was presented at the May 8th 2023 CCS School Board Meeting is provided in full at the end of this article. This report is clearly sub-standard and inadequate!! This report is proof positive and beyond a shadow of doubt that the information coming out at school board meetings is insufficient and worthless for all concerned. Especially the Cleveland County Commissioners and Taxpayers. For your convenience this report as provided later in this article is marked-up to show the worst of the poor financial planning and reporting coming from the CCS School Board. And, just another good reason the Commissioners should withhold school construction and repair funding until adequate plans are provided. Robert A will explain!
First and overall, the preliminary CCS annual budget is totally based on the budget from the year before. How much money was spent last year and how much more CCS might get this year. In the last 10 years of Robert A attending CCS School Board meetings it has NEVER-EVER been discussed, much less explained, just exactly how much money does it take for CCS to provide the opportunity for CC Students to obtain a sound and basic education. Which, according to the “Leandro” Lawsuit Ruling is the only purpose for public schools in North Carolina in the first place. No indoctrination, no Religion and nothing extra. Just the opportunity to provide a sound basic education for our children. Reading, Writing, Arithmetic, a little history and social studies, etc. and that is about it. If you ask an educator at CCS how much funding is required to provide the opportunity for a sound basic education, you will always get a bogus answer, all because they DO NOT KNOW.
Bureaucrats ALWAYS spend every dime they can get and then ask for more the next year. It is the same for CCS in the 2023-2024 school year. Except for the fact that CCS, in the past several years has received emergency money and unwisely spent every dime, every penny, on this, that and the other, and have absolutely nothing positive to show for it. Only cancelled checks. And now the health danger is gone, the emergency money is also gone and CCS finds itself way over-staffed and financially busted.
And the Commissioners are broke too! They have given away $million$ on Eddie Holbrook’s American Legion World Series Baseball, spent $million$ to do a hostile takeover of the County’s Rescue Squad by the EMS. Put $Million$ into the County’s Reserve Funds to meet an imaginary goal of 20% to make the “books” look good, instead of paying down on the huge and high interest rate county debt. And, let’s NOT forget the Commissioner’s (and family) latest first-class junket to Washington, DC that nobody is talking about. As well as the many lawsuits that the County pays off in settlements so they don’t have to admit to any guilt. Oh! That’s not counting the Connor Lawsuit where the County refused to (or did not have the money to) pay as many as 100 EMS employees for their required overtime work. For years even. This case has already gone to the US Court where the County lost the case and the case is how going to a jury trial. Any time now.
Back to CCS and their Financial situation:
The marked-up Finance and Personnel Committee Report presented at the May 8th, 2923 School Board meeting is provided below for your convenience. If any reader can make heads or tails of this report, please share your insights with us so we all will know!!!
Editor’s Note: This document has been converted to allow the addition of notes and comments that are in (parentheses). The exact text of this document remains exactly as is.
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Finance and Personnel Committee Meeting Minutes
Thursday, April 27, 2023 @ 12:00pm
The April 27th Finance and Personnel Committee meeting was called to order by Committee Chairman Joel Shores. Rob McDaniel presented a 2022-2023 Budget Amendment. The committee unanimously approved the amendment as presented with minimum changes. This will be approved by the full Board at the May 2023 meeting. (NOTE: How does this committee KNOW this amended last year’s budget would be approved by the full board??? What were the amendments? Basically, the new budget was the old budget marked up and presented to the full board as a “Wish List.”)
Rob McDaniel shared budget highlights on the 2023-2024 budget. These highlights included the reduction of 55 positions in state and local funding. These cuts are being made through natural staff attrition. An additional cut of 27 positions will occur in federal funds because COVID funds are no longer available. In addition, the cost of doing business is increasing and will require additional local funds. (Note: This is not explained and was not presented at the May 8th Meeting) Mr. McDaniel shared the proposed budget resolution for 2023-2024. This will come to the full Board for approval at the May 8, 2023, meeting. This is based on current knowledge of the state and local budgets. (Note: None of which are finalized, so the NEW School Board budget resolution is worthless.) The committee approved the resolution as presented. Once approved by the full Board, the budget will be sent to the county by May 15, 2023. An ESSER funding update was also shared with the committee. (Editor’s Note: Wouldn’t this ESSER information be nice for the full board and the public to know? It was not shared or presented to the full school board or the public at the May 8th Meeting!)
Dr. Fisher shared some funding and budget information. He shared information related to the history of school funding in CCS since 2014-2015, as well as historical expenditures and appropriations per pupil and the state, local and federal rankings. Dr. Fisher also shared our historical appropriation rates per pupil. A lengthy discussion related to the budget and funding occurred. (Note: None of this whole paragraph was shared with the full board or the public at the May 8th meeting.)
Dr. Stephen Fisher shared that he hopes to bring principal recommendations for 2023-2024 to the Board at their next meeting. He also shared the proposed Board meeting schedule for 2023-2024.
With no new business, the meeting was adjourned. The next Finance and Personnel Committee meeting is scheduled for Thursday, June 1, 2023, at 12:00pm.
Editor’s Note: Basically, all the Committee Reports and the School Board Meeting Minutes are all just like this. No correct and fact-based information is provided to the full school board as well as the public or to the Cleveland County Commissioners. Everything is decided at the last minute and behind closed doors by Robert Queen and Stephen Fisher.
There you are folks, a proposed new budget based totally on the old budget with wish list items included.
What YOU just read includes nothing like this:
1-How many total teachers needed at CCS Cleveland County Schools Teachers
- 14,000 Students in CCS.
- Recommended limits on Class size is 25 Students per classroom
14,000 divided by 25 equals 560 teachers needed.
Assume one Teachers aid per classroom equals 560 teachers’ aides needed.
Result NO 1: 560 teachers and 560 Teacher’s aides are minimum required
Add 15 % for absences, sickness and oither contingencies
560 times 1.15 equals 644 teachers and 644 teacher’s aides for all of CCS
2-How many Teachers are needed for the 25 schools in Cleveland County?
Assume each of the 25 schools has an equal Number of Students
From 1 above 644 teachers divided by 25 Schools equals 25.78
Results: Each school should have 26 teachers and 26 teachers’ aides
Then, on and on with this logic until every detail about the resources needed by Cleveland County Schools for proper operation is calculated.
Next, look at the proposed 2023-2024 CCS budget. Go through it line by line. Very soon the wasteful areas will be determined and the proper targets for changes necessary to reduce that waste can be identified and eliminated.
Robert A predicts that only School Board members Ronnie Grigg, Danny Blanton and Aaron Bridges would assist in a complete analysis of CCS along this application of common sense, logic and critical thinking applied to Cleveland County School operations. Perhaps we taxpayers and voters can recruit like-minded candidates for the School Board in the 2024 School Board elections. Only two more like minded school board members would be required for full implementation of waste elimination processes as previously described at CCS. But, why not recruit five like-minded candidates and make a clean sweep of the 2024 Election. Remove School Board members Robert Queen, Ron Humphries, Joel Shores, Rodney Fitch and Greg Taylor and be done with that crowd of misfits, egotistical and maniacal type deceivers and liars and replace them with common sense and logical thinking people-good and conservative Trump-supporting Republicans all. No screws-loose Democrats or Rogue, Criminal Syndicate type Republicans allowed. And then clean up the years long mess at CCS. Clean up the Commissioners offices too. Save Cleveland County for the sake of our children and our moral, Christian-conservative, sharing, sensible, Israel-supporting and law-abiding way of life. All this can begin in earnest with a successful 2024 Election cycle.
Stay tuned!!!