Cambridge School Superintendent Discusses Budget Deficit

Cambridge School Superintendent Bobbie D'Alessandro discussed the school system's $3.6 million budget deficit last night with around 40 parents at a meeting of Cambridge United for Education (CUE).

D'Alessandro told the parents gathered at the Cambridge Rindge and Latin School that the Cambridge school district is facing rising expenses and declining student enrollments, and is projected to lose 187 more students next year.

D'Alessandro, who is in her first year as Cambridge school superintendent, said the city is not to blame for the schools' budget predicament.

"I want you to know that the city has been good to us," D'Alessandro said. "I don't want to complain about the money."

D'Alessandro said she was exploring several solutions to the school's budget woes, but did not present a specific plan.

Unassigned teachers, who are paid by the city but do not have classrooms of their own because of declining enrollments, are high on D'Alessandro's list of potential cuts. These teachers cost the city about half a million dollars a year.

D'Alessandro said other cuts for the district, which currently serves 8000 students and has a budget of around $90 million, will be difficult but not impossible.

"No cuts are easy, but I really believe some can be made," she said.

Cambridge presently spends an average of $11,500 per student, well above the national average.

D'Alessandro said she will ask the City Manager, Robert W. Healy, who sets the school system's budget, to allow her to phase in budget cuts, rather than make them all in a single year.

Despite the budget situation, D'Alessandro is optimistic about the future of the school district.

"I think we can be the absolutely stellar school in the area, if not the nation," she said.

D'Alessandro praised Harvard and other local universities for sharing their resources with Cambridge schools.

She said that Harvard offered the advice of education reform expert and former Dean of the Graduate School of Education Theodore R. Sizer.

Harvard will also be the site of a meeting of all Cambridge public high school teachers, who will hear a Harvard professor speak about the role of music in high school education.

In addition, D'Alessandro spoke aboutstrategies for achieving the recently developedmission statement and set of eleven goalsestablished by the school system.

The goals set standards for educationalachievement and for curricular content.

A list of the goals, along with specificstrategies for achieving them, was distributed atthe meeting.

Attendees expressed concern that the goalsrelating to standardized tests will lead teachersto tailor their instruction to the test material.

They also asked questions about language andmusic programs, as well as the potential for cutsat the administrative level.

Some parents asked D'Alessandro about theprogress of her plan to restructure the highschool, which she said will be completed by the1999-2000 school year.

After D'Alessandro left, other attendees,including State Representative Alice K. Wolf(D-North Cambridge), stayed to discuss the budgetsituation and strategies for improving the qualityof schooling.

CUE members presented statistics on educationalspending, class sizes, enrollment, and othertopics, although they said the Cambridge schooldistrict does not make such information easy tocome by.

The Cambridge School Committee hold a meetingto discuss similar issues next Tuesday evening.CrimsonDaniel L. CendanUNSTRUCTURED Abercrombie & Fitch willbe moving into the space currently occupied byExpress and Structure at One Brattle Square.

In addition, D'Alessandro spoke aboutstrategies for achieving the recently developedmission statement and set of eleven goalsestablished by the school system.

The goals set standards for educationalachievement and for curricular content.

A list of the goals, along with specificstrategies for achieving them, was distributed atthe meeting.

Attendees expressed concern that the goalsrelating to standardized tests will lead teachersto tailor their instruction to the test material.

They also asked questions about language andmusic programs, as well as the potential for cutsat the administrative level.

Some parents asked D'Alessandro about theprogress of her plan to restructure the highschool, which she said will be completed by the1999-2000 school year.

After D'Alessandro left, other attendees,including State Representative Alice K. Wolf(D-North Cambridge), stayed to discuss the budgetsituation and strategies for improving the qualityof schooling.

CUE members presented statistics on educationalspending, class sizes, enrollment, and othertopics, although they said the Cambridge schooldistrict does not make such information easy tocome by.

The Cambridge School Committee hold a meetingto discuss similar issues next Tuesday evening.CrimsonDaniel L. CendanUNSTRUCTURED Abercrombie & Fitch willbe moving into the space currently occupied byExpress and Structure at One Brattle Square.