Scary stuff. More than 500 teachers lose jobs in Marion County, Florida.

[madfloridian]

This is the county in which Ocala is located. Not sure what other cities are nearby. This is very disturbing news.

More Than 500 Marion County Teachers Lose Jobs

Those teachers losing their jobs include every first- and second-year teacher districtwide. District officials said some district employees who serve in support positions would be moved back to the classroom for the 2009-2010 school year to soften the impact of the cuts.

The 522 positions eliminated represent roughly 17 percent of the 3,000 teaching positions in the county's public school system.

The school board’s operation budget, from which teachers are paid, was $277 million during the 2008-2009 budget year. That was down from $301 million the year before.

Florida has cut back education spending so much that they may not get the expected matching funds from the stimulus plans.

The U.S. House of Representatives passed an $819 billion economic-recovery plan Wednesday. Under that bill, money in a special "state stabilization fund" would go only to states that could fund schools for the next two years at the levels they had in the 2005-06 school year.

But the state is below that threshold. In fact, school funding coming directly from the state is now lower than it was in the 2004-05 school year. With Florida's budget shortfall for next year ballooning toward $4 billion, it's not clear it could meet that requirement.

The state may have to give up the vouchers that send 42,000 students to private schools with public money.

"Today, 42,000 Florida students attend private school on the public's dime. And a new study touting voucher benefits could trigger more expansion."

They should figure out a way to generate more income for the state, but that would go against the grain of Jeb's cronies who still control so much here...the "empty government building" Republicans.

[Veritas_et_Aequitas]

1. That's horrible. We need more education, not less.

But Republicans don't seem to understand that education = better economy and a better country.

[Karmadillo]

2. If only the Democrats controlled the White House and the Congress. Then they

could go to work mobilizing the American people in support of education.

[madrchsod]

5. well the new guy loves charter schools....

so look for charter schools to be the next big thing! of course like "every child left behind" someone has to come up with the money.


ya, the democrats are right on the ball....

[madfloridian]

6. And so does the new guy's Education Secretary...loves charters.

I think we will no longer have a public school system.

[ComtesseDeSpair]

9. Sadly...

Education is one area where Obama just doesn't get it.

[madfloridian]

13. Agreed. Over the next few years I think we will see the end of public education

as it has been.

Just as charter schools are failing more often...we now have an education czar who thinks they are the final answer.

:shrug:

[madrchsod]

14. bill ayers wrote a very interesting article about the guy

he had nothing much good to say about him because the guy thought the salvation of the chicago public schools were charter type schools. but ayers pointed out that real reform came from the commmunity organizations because they could`t wait for the man at the top to make a decision.

[madfloridian]

15. Charter schools have been the goal of the DLC for years.

They have detailed plans all over their website.

Obama and Duncan are merely following their policies to substitute charter schools for public education.

[Hannah Bell]

19. and pilots being funded by, e.g. Gates Foundation & other big funders.

IT's the elites' plan for the masses.

Shitty,solely state-funded ones for the masses, & step-wise better ones, funded by the basic state grant + private funds for those with more means.

Slice & dice the citizenry into income classes & educate them according to their class origins.

[ComtesseDeSpair]

8. Actually, Republicans probably realize...

that more education = less Republicans.

[bertman]

33. More education may indeed = fewer Republicans. Maybe that's why they are working

so hard to prevent verifiable paper trails for ballots.

[stray cat]

3. I thought teachers would be relatively secure

[defendandprotect]

17. Not when Republicans keep choosing the MIC and wars . . . !!!

and, Oops! Pelosi and Reid seem to have been doing the same thing for the past

two years!!!

OUCH!

[madfloridian]

24. You are right. It has been a pretty secure profession.

One that was appreciated and needed...but whe Jeb came to FL things changed.

[Sarah Ibarruri]

4. It's horrible and it's wrong :( When are we going to learn our lesson that

Repukes exist only to redistribute our country's wealth up to the already-rich, even if they have to hurt children to do so?

[upi402]

7. Whenever I think the "New Dems" are bad

I look at the Reichwing Republicans and am grateful.

[Are_grits_groceries]

10. It's hard to get new teachers, and

to get them to stay. This is madness.

[KathieG]

11. Yep...it's my county

It was originally supposed to be about 400 then suddenly it jumped to 522. Things are pretty bad here.

[buzzycrumbhunger]

12. Wow. Just when you think our schools couldn't suck more. . .

I am so glad my youngest is finally free of public school. My only regret is not letting her get her GED as a 9th grader because it would have saved me about 10 years of frustration. (You actually get a diploma from the state when you score high enough--which isn't saying much because it's written on a 4th grade level.) W00t, Florida--doggedly leading the march to the Middle Ages, when education was for people who could afford it, damnit! :eyes:

[defendandprotect]

16. Let's just be sure we're calling this the Bush Depression . . ..

or, maybe in Florida it should be the Jeb Bush Depression?

It would be good to see the vouchers go -- how they're getting away with that is

amazing and unbelievable!!

[Two Americas]

18. I don't think that matters, defendandprotect

I think we are far past the point of worrying about that now. It could actually work against the success of the Democratic party if people worry about which party gets the blame. The party "controls its own destiny" now as they say in sports parlance. The party moves to the left and rescues the people or it doesn't. Electoral success is dependent upon and secondary to that.

[defendandprotect]

20. Yes, I agree to a certain point . . .

however, even Obama has made clear that he is dealing with a situation he "inherited."

And Wasserman-Schultz the other day on Matthews made clear for a Repug that the GOP

took the nation from a huge Surplus to a Huge Deficit.

What I was saying, however, was somewhat "tongue in cheek."

I wasn't expecting bumper stickers saying "Bush Depression" --



:-)

[Two Americas]

23. it should not be a problem

It is not "Bush" - he was just a front man. It is the whole "free market" and "free trade" libertarianism and Reaganomics that are to blame.

The only reason that we would need to tie "Bush" to "Depression" would be if we were not going to go after the whole rotten structure of Reaganomics, and instead see this as merely a petty partisan feud, or as a contest of competing idols - our guy is cooler than your guy. If we do that, the public will reject us, and they should.

They cannot tie the Depression to the Democrats if the Democrats are seriously tackling the right wing and telling the truth about the situation. If they try to play conservative centrist neo-liberalism again, that will be fatal to the party.

We are so far past "Bush is a chimp" that it is not funny. FDR and his supporters had no need to worry about Hoover, they were too busy actually taking on and battling against the forces that Hoover represented. In that context, Bush will look as bad as Hoover without us saying anything.

[defendandprotect]

25. dupe

[defendandprotect]

26. Yes, from a higher perspective ... it's really about capitalism . . .corporatism . . .

which is corrupt unless regulated.
In fact, unregulated capitalism is merely organized crime.

"Welfare for the rich, free enterprise for the poor."

And elites . . . after the toppling of monarchies, they usually developed shadow
governments -- and I doubt anyone here would would suggest we don't have it
as well/?!

We also have a CIA founded by Nazis and it looks like they've been controlling
a lot of things --- some say they've been controlling the FBI thru the DOJ.
We know a lot, but there is still much to learn.

IMO, anything we've bailed out we own and should control/nationalize.

Capitalism, as far as I can see, is over -- except the corporate-media aren't
going to acknowledge that there's a funeral going on with no one mourning.
If the public can't see this at this point, they are deaf, dumb and blind!
From the turnouts the last election, I'm pretty much guessing they aren't.
But still many sitting out elections understanding corporate control of the parties.

If they try to play conservative centrist neo-liberalism again, that will be fatal to the party.

Haven't they been re-funding the wars for two years? Failing to move on torture for two years?
I haven't heard a word from Reid/Pelosi or Obama about Single Payer Health Care -- !
Who is comparing the $8.5 TRILLION, plus now another $2-3 TRILLION for capitalists with
the much begrudged -$800 BILLION bail out for "stimulus."

Though I'm not absolutely familiar with this period of time . . .

FDR and his supporters had no need to worry about Hoover, they were too busy actually taking on and battling against the forces that Hoover represented. In that context, Bush will look as bad as Hoover without us saying anything.

Edited response: I think the public took on the branding of Hoover -- wasn't he "a chicken
in every pot"/??

My apologies: JE Hoover has been on my mind and CIA, but you might like this response, anyway? . . .
Certainly, Eleanor was being spied upon by JEH and referred to the organization as a "Gestapo."
That was no exaggeration. Einstein's home was bugged. FDR dropped Henry Wallace in favor
of Truman. Rep. Hale Boggs/Warren Commission also came to the floor of the USHR to condemn JEH/FBI's
spying and blackmailing as "Gestapo."
Paperclip brought Nazis into America and used them to "found" the CIA.
Truman himself said he regretted having put the CIA in business and referred to them as "Gestapo."

I think whatever the period of time, as JFK noted "secret" government is something we have
to worry about and overturn.

We've had political violence that anyone could plainly see over the past 45+ years which is
the ONLY way that the right-wing can come to power.

And, IMO, once they passed the Voting Rights Act they began organized stealing of elections ---
with the large computers used by MSM coming in during the 1960's and the electronic voting
machines a bit later in the '60's. This didn't all begin in 2000 nor 2004. They were
simply the noiser ones.

[flvegan]

21. IIRC, off the top of my head, that's a 300k citizen county.

That's going to make a big impact.

[Irish Girl]

22. Skimping on education is self-defeating :'(

This makes me so sad. There are so many high school graduates who struggle with basic arithmetic or reading. Cutting educational resources will make a terrible situation even more dire.

:scared:

[madfloridian]

27. I have never seen teacher lay offs like this.

It's shocking.

But education has not been a priority for state Republicans for a very long time.

And they control everything.

[tavalon]

28. Is there any way for me to find out who lost their jobs?

I went to Lake Weir Junior and senior high school and a number of my classmates became teachers in the Marion county system.

[JCMach1]

29. My cousin's husband is probably one of the victims here...

:(

Shit!

[JCMach1]

30. Marion County School Board is solid Repug...

and some of the worst idiots in the state...

[madfloridian]

31. Isn't Baxley from Ocala?

Dennis Baxley who was/is on the education committee? Who doesn't think much of evolution?

He is the one who tried to get a law to sue professors if they were too liberal.

I think I associate him with that area.

[JCMach1]

34. Yes his district includes North Marion... and a good chunk

of Alachua.

[rainbow4321]

32. My city's school district meets tomorrow to discuss letting go over 100 teachers

4 weeks ago they said that no teachers would be let go and that they were focusing on laying off library staff.
Somehow, the fact that they are now going to be cutting ESOL staff is not surprising. We're a deep red repuke city in a red county...the general population is getting more and diverse but obviously the decision makers refuse to recognize that.


http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/education/stories/DN-planoisd_15met.ART.East.Edition1.4c4feeb.html

Plano ISD officials and trustees on Monday plan to discuss faculty cutbacks that would result in some larger elementary and secondary class sizes.

It's the district's latest attempt to reduce a projected budget deficit of over $17 million next school year.

The district would eliminate more than 100 teaching positions and about 14 assistant positions, according to documents to be presented at Monday night's board meeting.

Student-teacher ratios would increase in music, art and English-as-second-language classes at all elementary schools.

[L0oniX]

35. As if we don't have enough drop outs in this state and this move will eventually make that worse.

Of course that's what they (our rich enemies) want so they can hire (more educated) workers from India and other countries, and for less money too.

[dysfunctional press]

36. what are the property taxes in florida like?

i know there's no income tax- but what would the property taxes be on a $150K-$200K house...? :shrug:

it usually doesn't work out to try and have low taxes and good schools both.

[happygoluckytoyou]

37. go jeb...have a party...its your birthday...you da man...

go bush.... build another legacy for your family