As the county continues to balance itself among the series of cuts it has had to endure, the school board has begun to weigh it's options when it comes to how it will handle its lack of sufficient funds.

So are the cuts being handled in the best way possible?

Many are asking this question while looking into the fact that a number of high ranked downtown personnel (i.e. district superintendents, school board attorneys) are being given salaries that are at significantly high levels for being in such a challenging financial state.

There are approximately 700 Miami Dade personnel making over $100,000; some are making between $250,000 to $400,000. That’s over $70,000,000 being spent on personnel, most of whom are working at the administrative level or higher, not in the classroom with kids. With its top-heavy system of administration, it has been said that the cuts will start at the administrative level before it hits the local schools directly.

According to MSNBC.com, during the vote on Wednesday April 16, the school board agreed eight to one to eliminate a number of central and regional offices, slashing about 164 positions altogether.



Recently, the health insurance debate is in the process of being settled with UTD and the board members, putting a plan on the table that calls for the school board keeping their current insurance plans until the end of this year.



“It is even better than I had expected,” said Mr. Pablo Gomez, one of Varela’s UTD stewards. “When we pushed for it to be free, we thought the best we were going to get was somewhere in the middle which is what we got from the arbitration.”

After months of debated negotiations between union members and the administration on the terms involving the teacher's health care package, the proposal to keep their plans as they were would leave the county employees in a more favorable position than previously anticipated.

“It is a relief that the school board finally heard our voices and realized they could not balance the budget on the backs of its teachers and education support professionals,” said UTD president Karen Aronowitz on the UTD website.

The goal in mind is to leave the schools unaffected, yet the sting of the budget cuts can still be felt at the local level. With the absence of substitutes to cover teachers, the rationing of office supplies and the cutting of electricity in the building during vacation days, it seems to be that the presence of the financial crisis is unavoidable to both teachers and students alike.

“It’s uncertain times, but we’re not lacking anything here in this building. But I guess the thing that most is in need is toner for printers and it’s because we’re used to printing everything. That’s where I’ve been asking people to tighten up their belts,” said Ms. Connie Navarro, principal. “If you can read it online or you can write it on the board instead of making copies, do that because we are eventually going to run out of paper. And I don’t want to be caught in that situation.”

Varela has already lost five part-time personnel and will not be replacing the administrative position vacated by Ms. Lorena Somohano, who left to become an assistant principal at another school.

When the school board asks themselves "Where is the money?” they don’t seem to know any better than anyone else.