Broward County School Board Community Budget Task Force meeting at 5 p.m. Wednesday in downtown Fort Lauderdale: 600 S.E. Third Avenue.I won't be there.
Their web page is at: http://www.broward.k12.fl.us/budget/
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As you read this Carli Teproff story from the Herald below about the Broward School Board's myriad budget problems, and their positively uninspired 'ideas' to cut millions and millions of dollars, if you're at all like me, it's hard to read, knowing that at any moment, as she has since she first got elected to the Broward School Board posing as a 'reformer,' Robin Bartleman will say one thing, and then a few paragraphs later, equivocate and be quoted as either saying the exact opposite, or, walk back her initial statement to the middle of the road where it won't offend anyone.
With so much need for someone -multiple someones!- on that School Board to show some real character, vision and leadership, wow, is that dithering and equivocating nature of hers ever frustrating to read!
And don't shoot the messenger, since that equivocating is clear in news articles in both the Herald and the Sun-Sentinel.
It's NOT the reporters' fault when they accurately quote Bartleman and it makes your head hurt to later pick up the newspaper and read the predictable blather, sheer banality and self-serving contrivances coming out of her mouth.
Whether the story is true or not, I'm frequently reading and hearing from reliable, well-informed people that one of the reasons Bartleman seems to live a rather charmed political life here despite her fingerprints on so much that is uninspired and incompetent, is that her pal Debbie Wasserman-Schultz is a little rainmaking angel on her shoulder, ready to drown any challengers to her friend in money spent on campaign ads and the like.
If that's not 100% true, it almost doesn't matter, since so many smart people throughout South Florida already believe that it IS true.
In my opinion, even more than many other better-known female pols in this county that I have often taken to task here on the blog, perhaps in large part because on local TV at least, she has largely flown under-the-radar on unflattering stories for ethics and policy, unlike the other female 2010 incumbents on the School Board, Bartleman is the Queen of Broward County's two-faced pols.
To my way of thinking, Bartleman may be the single most over-rated politician in all of Broward County.
In story-after-story the past few years where I find her name mentioned, it's hard to NOT find an example of that equivocating nature I spoke of earlier, a damning personal and political characteristic to my way of thinking.
I've saved some of those stories that show this pattern and hope in the not-too-distant future to post some of them here -and some comments of mine- that I believe highlights some delicious examples of that two-faced nature of hers.
I can't help but wonder if Bartleman equivocates in her Tweets, but I can't say with any certainty since they are "protected," so I can't say who her 6 Followers are.
http://twitter.com/#!/rbartleman
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Miami Herald
http://www.miamiherald.com/
Broward schools using the “F” word: Furlough
By Carli Teproff
As the Broward School Board contemplates how to slash more than $100 million from next year’s budget, one word keeps resurfacing – furlough.On Monday, Superintendent Jim Notter gave the board a chart showing how the district could save millions by asking employees to take off — without pay.
If each of the 28,000 schools employees took one furlough day, the district would save $4.7 million.
And, if each employee took 20 furlough days, basically a month off, the district would save a whopping $93.6 million.
Although that extreme is unlikely to happen, it is possible all school district workers, including teachers, will be asked to sacrifice some of their pay in order to save jobs. But even furloughs won’t fix all of the district’s financial woes, said School Board member Robin Bartleman.
“It’s not going to solve all the problems,’’ Bartleman said, adding the decisions this year are going to be “brutal’’ for everyone. “But it will help.’’
Taking a furlough has been brought up at several of the board’s latest workshops where they are struggling to meet what could be a $115 million budget gap.
Notter has already said the district will likely cut about $25 million from the executive leadership, including the area offices that oversee the different schools.
Before a furlough could be implemented, it would have to be backed by the employees and the districts three school unions.
Broward Teacher’s Union President Pat Santeramo said imposing a furlough on employees – who have not received raises in several years — should be a last resort.
“Before we will proceed with any furloughs, we need to see corrections made to how the district is wasting money,’’ he said.
Santeramo said the union has already suggested areas where the district could cut spending, including shortening the year for principals, reducing the number of assistant principals and looking at consolidating bus routes.
“We are looking for equity here,’’ he said.
At a workshop last week, board members said they would be looking to cut everywhere but the classroom first.
“The goal is to minimize the impact on the students,’’ said Bartleman.
There have not yet been specific discussions of where else cuts will be made.
A preliminary budget, which will include what the cuts could mean to the school district, will be discussed next Tuesday, Notter said.
“I see us trying to drain an Olympic-size pool with an eyedropper,’’ said Board Member Dave Thomas at last week’s meeting, where the board looked at proposed cuts in different administrative departments. “We are continually asking [teachers] to do more with less and they are getting to the breaking point.’’
Board Member Nora Rupert said the district has to take another look at deeper cuts for management.
“The upper management charts have hardly changed,’’ she said. “I personally believe there should be changes.’’
This is not the first time the district is considering furloughs. Last year, the employees were asked to take a five-day furlough, but federal stimulus money came in and the board agreed to lift the request.
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Any guesses out there who this belong to? http://www.youtube.com/user/watches33021
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See also:
Broward Politics YouTube Channel:
http://www.youtube.com/user/BrowardPolitics
Website: http://weblogs.sun-sentinel.com/news/politics/broward/blog/
BrowardPalmBeach NewTimes YouTube Channel:
http://www.youtube.com/user/BrowardPalmBeach
Website: http://www.browardpalmbeach.com/
Broward Clean Sweep's YouTube Channel:
http://www.youtube.com/user/BrowardCleanSweep
