By David Harry
Staff Writer

The announcement this week that Scarborough schools will likely lose $1.12 million in state subsidies is one element to what could be a winter of discontent for local education.
As Maine Department of Education officials passed on $38 million in budget cuts ordered by Gov. John Baldacci to help balance the state budget, Board of Education members are negotiating a contract with the union representing local teachers.
The reductions are part of a $63 million curtailment ordered by Baldacci on Nov. 20. According to Maine Department of Administrative and Financial Services Commissioner Ryan Low, the Maine Legislature could approve the curtailment, make changes of its own, or not act at all, meaning the curtailment will take effect next spring.
Meanwhile, a group of parents and teachers have formed Saving Excellence in Scarborough Schools. Member Christine Kukka said the group would like to create a wider discussion of priorities and spending in local education.
Scarborough averages below surrounding towns and the state in per-pupil spending and has seen curriculum reductions, Kukka said.  The parent of two students, she said she wants to open eyes to declines in school quality and teacher morale.
Work by Kukka and SESS was welcomed by Town Council Chairman Carole Rancourt, but she warned this week that tough economic times are not going away soon. She said she also hears from residents worried about increasing property taxes from the current $12.15 per $1,000 of assessed value.
Paul Ledman, a teacher at Scarborough High School and negotiator for the Scarborough Education Association, and Board of Education member Jackie Perry agree contract negotiations have been cordial. But the contract expired June 1 and Ledman insists town leaders need to be aware that economizing has its costs.
“You have to invest in it or it doesn’t happen any longer,” he said.
As town officials begin to consider the 2011 budget, Perry has asked for more communication between the Board of Education and Town Council to determine priorities and goals.
Rancourt said she has heard the request and will ask Town Manager Tom Hall to set up at least one workshop between board members and councilors.
The loss of subsidies complicates present matters, Rancourt said, and the near future is troubling as well.
Rancourt said she anticipates at least a three-year downturn that would affect the state and local economy and would not be surprised if it lasts longer.
Last week, Low said $50 million in DOE budget reductions already have been made for the 2011 portion of the biennial state budget and another $38 million could be pared.
Before the current expected reductions, state subsidies funded $7 million of the current $35 million Scarborough education budget, according to Board of Education Chairman Brian Dell’Olio.
Although not a member of SESS, Stuart Axelrod said he is sensitive to the effect of tax hikes but worried about a decline in local education quality.
“We moved to town for a number of reasons. One was a large bouquet of learning opportunities,” Axelrod said. “But the enthusiasm for funding the bouquet is disappearing.”
Axelrod, whose daughter attends Scarborough High School, said he sees cuts most evident in arts programs.
Rancourt and Perry said other cuts include eliminating technological courses and not introducing foreign language instruction to younger students. But Rancourt said the technological cuts were made almost a decade ago when she served on the board.
While serving on the board, Rancourt said she also heard from parents worried about cuts to athletics, but in her experience, any cuts were made as equitably as possible.
An additional problem has been a reduction in state reimbursements for buying buses and special education services, which led to allocation shifts in the local education budget.
“When you start putting it all together over the years, it gets substantial,” said Perry, who has served on the board since 1977, although not in consecutive terms.
Perry anticipates the most immediate effect of the subsidy reductions could be an increase in class sizes. She said over the last decade the budgets have allowed the schools to maintain operations with little room for expanding courses or services.
“We have run very fast to maintain the status quo,” Rancourt said.

Staff writer David Harry can be reached at 282-4337, ext. 219