Save by reducing duplication
Published 2:04 pm Saturday, May 15, 2010
Public school superintendents in Snohomish County are well-paid. The salary chart that appeared on the front page of Thursday’s Herald left no doubt of that. The 13 full-time school district chiefs here average $191,433 a year — more than any elected official in the state.
That doesn’t necessarily mean they’re overpaid. These are talented, hard-working professionals, and the market for their services is competitive.
But seeing all those six-figure salaries begs a question: With education dollars tight, and school budgets being cut, is all that overhead necessary? Especially considering all the other administrative jobs that exist in most of the state’s 295 independent school districts?
It’s a question that deserves thorough examination, but it’s not on the front burner in Washington. The Legislature tried to put it there this year by creating a commission to study school district reorganization (another word for consolidation), but Gov. Chris Gregoire vetoed it.
Her veto message underscored the controversial nature of the topic in education circles. Gregoire wrote that she wants school districts to focus “on the immediate priorities of improving student learning and successfully implementing the next phase of education reforms.” A consolidation commission, she implied, would be a major distraction.
She also said that the commission’s charge was too broad, and its funding ($250,000) inadequate. Once the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Committee has finished its current study of the relationship between school district costs and their enrollment size, she wrote, a more focused review of school district organization should be explored.
Well, that committee issued a preliminary report last week. Among its conclusions: Current research doesn’t identify an optimal size for school districts. Not very enlightening.
When it comes to cost, efficiency and student success, is the Seattle School District (about 46,000 students) too big? Are Sultan, Granite Falls and Lakewood (ranging from 2,147 to 2,534) too small? Are Everett (18,967) or Mukilteo (14,529) about right?
Private industry often undergoes consolidation to save money by reducing duplication. There’s no reason government, including public education, can’t benefit similarly.
Of course, schools are at the heart of most communities, and local control is something few are eager to surrender. Recognizing that, state schools chief Randy Dorn has said he’d like to find ways to encourage districts to consolidate voluntarily where it makes sense. Indeed, carrots are preferable to sticks, especially given the importance of morale and community spirit to educational success.
But education dollars are finite. School budgets are being cut in ways that affect learning. Can money be saved by eliminating some administrative duplication, and spent more productively in classrooms?
Students and taxpayers deserve careful, thorough answers.
