Budget Concerns Aired at Perkiomen Valley School Board Meeting

It was a night of emotion and much debate during the Perkiomen Valley School Board's four-hour work session Monday night.

Dozens of parents, teachers, students and other district residents attended the meeting, spurred by an agenda item to gain the Pennsylvania Department of Education's (PDE) approval to curtail—if they had to—certain educational programs and to furlough those programs' respective instructors.

The initial resolutions included elementary Spanish, the third-grade strings program, driver's education and the middle-level world language program.

The board members stressed that Monday's vote did not mean the programs were immediately cut—and in the end, they may not be cut at all. However, because those programs require PDE's OK in order to be curtailed, and the time constraints that come with furloughs, the board had to vote now in case those programs would be affected by the current, near-$2-million budget gap.

For more than an hour and a half, a continuous stream of commenters urged the board to spare the middle-school language programs, music programs and library paraprofessionals.

Many pointed out that early exposure to music and foreign languages boosts test scores and engenders better proficiency in those subjects. Others said PVSD has bolstered its reputation for academic excellence by offering a variety of programs to so many grade levels.

Some teachers and parents—identifying themselves as PVSD taxpayers—said they would pay more taxes to keep these programs in the schools.

When addressing the attendees, both board Vice President Lori Snyder and board member Randy Bennett described the idea of dismantling programs as "gut-wrenching."

"We are not in favor of cutting anything, but we are charged with closing a $2 million budget gap. The answer can't be 'Don't cut anything.'" Snyder said.

She encouraged the assembled crowd to take their passion to state-level officials and representatives because part of the budget crunch is due to a loss of state funding.

Board member David Warren made a motion to amend the agenda item to remove the resolution to curtail the middle-level language program.

"There's no condition in which I would vote to remove it," Warren said.

Board member Gerry Barnefiher disagreed, saying, "To remove any item would not be fair to the other items."

The actual vote to curtail programs would come later, so he suggested the board reserve any decision for that potential, future time.

Snyder agreed with Warren, and said she wished the board could vote individually for each resolution.

The amendment passed in a 6-3 vote. Board President Lynn Bigelow and members Snyder, Warren, Bennett, Diane Landes and John King voted "yes." Members Barnefiher, Bonnie Neiman and Capt. Sam Schweigert voted "no."

The board voted 8-1 to request the PDE's permission to potentially curtail select programs. Neiman cast a "no" vote.

More details coming today.

See the answers to budget FAQs here.