Deciding to save money is easier than keeping it in your pocket.
School board members in DeKalb County learned that last week when they couldn't will themselves to stick to their budget.
Last month, the board voted to trim nearly $80 million in fiscal 2013, which started July 1. Last week, though, the board faltered when asked to lay off employees whose payroll and benefits comprise a quarter of the budgeted cuts.
Without the elimination of 250 teachers and 120 paraprofessionals, Superintendent Cheryl Atkinson said, the budget won't work. The frustration was evident in board member Jay Cunningham's voice during Wednesday's meeting. School board Chairman Eugene Walker had just announced that he couldn't bring himself to vote for layoffs even though he voted for a budget predicated on them. Walker said he wanted to honor the teachers' recently issued contracts.
"I guess I'm speechless right now," Cunningham responded. "Give me a solution. Anybody, give me a solution."
When it was apparent there was none, Walker ended the meeting. The board will reconvene at 1 p.m. Monday.
Uncertainty has undermined morale, said David Schutten, president of the Organization of DeKalb Educators. The district held a job fair Thursday for teachers slated for layoffs. Some openings have been created by retirements and other voluntary departures, so scores showed up.
"People are starting to panic," Schutten said. The employees don't know whether they'll get paychecks when school starts Aug. 13, he said. "Everything's in limbo until they make a decision. It's just so frustrating."
If the board doesn't follow through and cull their jobs, Schutten added, "where are they going to get the money to pay people?"
Walker dismissed such concerns, saying they are based on projections. He wants to hold off on layoffs until fall when, he said, officials will know exactly how many teachers are needed. "This is too important to cause this sort of disruption based on somebody's forecast," he said.
Lisa Lake, a parent in south DeKalb, was outraged that the board had targeted teaching positions at her children's Montessori program in Midway Elementary School but heartened by the reluctance to actually swing the axe. Her principal told her the Montessori program is closing.
"If we don't have teachers then we can't have teaching," Lake said. "Teachers are the lifeblood of the school system."
Gordon Elkins, however, was disturbed by the board's inaction.
"It really is upsetting because there's no fiscal responsibility at all," said Elkins, a business owner in Dunwoody. "It just seems like they're going back on their word."
Monday's meeting will be at school district headquarters, 1701 Mountain Industrial Blvd., Stone Mountain.
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