Ahhh! People of Westfield…when will you learn? Mismanagement of the school department is driving up the cost to live in this city. Last week the superintendent was on the radio with the Westfield News and stated that the department has less administration, less teachers and some buildings are more energy efficient than ever, and they still want an increase to the spending they had last year. How is that possible? She also went on to say that adding the new school would reduce staffing even more by consolidating positions but are we really expected to believe that the budget will ever go down or stay flat? Oh wait. One of the teacher contracts was just approved at 1.5%, 2.5% and 2.5% increases over the next three years. Compounded this equates to more than $4 MILLION DOLLARS in 3 years added to their budget. Let’s take a look back just a few years: in 2012 the School Dept spent $51,253,867 and now in 2017 they are requesting a budget of $58,900,000 and that’s supposedly with reduced administration and teachers and other efficiencies. Oh, and don’t forget there are less kids in the district now than there was in 2012. So basically, they want more money for a smaller department. I must mention a recent exchange on social media this past weekend with Councilor Flaherty and a person who claims he’s a teacher and says other nearby districts are paying higher salaries. Hey teachers here’s a bit of news for you…you don’t live in the real world. You have unions and union shills pushing your agenda and screwing everyone else in town. No private business employees get the raises you get. You want to earn more in Springfield or Holyoke? Knock yourself out. Let me get some boxes to help you pack your desk.
