Anger Simmers Over Groton School Budget Cuts

Hours after the Groton Board of Education approved a $73.66 million budget for the coming fiscal year - a 1.4 percent increase over this year’s spending - the venting began.

“This is a disaster....” wrote Sally Giglio-Dauda Price on Groton Patch facebook. “This is not where the cuts need to be....I know this is not a popular choice to have to make but some of the deepest cuts are in the worst of places.The kids are going to suffer greatly!”

“Are we trying to head in the same direction as New London schools?” Melissa Hall Baker wrote. “Why is education not a priority in Groton?”

Others commented on the story that detailed the cuts.

“. . . To see those cuts, when one knows what those administrator salaries and benefits are (astronomical) is mind-boggling. Where's the shared sacrifice?” wrote Genevieve Cerf.

three special education tutors and transportation for students who choose magnet schools outside of Groton. The board also cut $1380,000 to buy ipads for seventh graders.

Brad Julian wrote that the district never should have been paying to transport children to magnet schools elsewhere.

“. . .$138.396 for IPAD's, are you kidding me,” he wrote. “We are laying off paraprofessionals that probably make not much more than minimum wage and we were going to spend this kind of money on IPAD's, for what?”