9 Teaching Positions to Be Cut for Next Year

Declining double-digit student enrollment district-wide coupled with the budgetary need to cut $700,000 in staffing costs are the driving forces behind Hatboro-Horsham's intent to reduce its teaching staff, officials said. 

In reviewing the first draft of Hatboro-Horsham's staffing plan for 2013-2014, Superintendent Curtis Griffin told the school board Monday that the district would be down a total of nine teaching positions next school year. Of those cuts, Griffin said he expected two to three to come at the elementary level; two to three to come at the high school; and two to three and "potentially more" to come at the middle school as a result of schedule changes. 

"There’s no more money. This is it," Griffin said. "We have to do it within the resources that we’ve been allocated."

The hope, Griffin said, is for the district to reduce its staff through "natural attrition," not furloughs or demotions.

"That’s where the greatest cost savings are," Griffin said of retirements, adding that, with furloughs, "You're always releasing the lowest members of your staff."

Typically with furloughs, Griffin said unemployment and arbitration costs also come into play.

After the meeting, Griffin told Patch that he expected as many as 12 to 14 retirements to trickle in through June 30 under the retirement incentive offered in the new teacher contract, which was adopted last month. On Monday, the board accepted retirements for three teachers with more than 15 years in the district. 

During Hatboro-Horsham’s last contract adoption, in 2011, the retirement incentive saved the district from furloughing teachers to close a budget shortfall. Griffin said he expects the same outcome with this budget cycle. 

Currently, the district has 10 open positions, most of which are filled through a long-term substitute, or contracted staff. The goal, according to Griffin, is to reallocate teaching staff to cover the majority of those openings.

"Many of our teachers have multiple certifications," Griffin said.

While cutting and reallocating throughout the district is the plan, Griffin said an increase in the number of special education students may warrant the need to create four new in-house positions, as well as nine assistants and increase hours for existing employees. In all, those additions could cost more than $560,000 for next school year, based on projected salary and overtime costs that Griffin presented.

"It's a significant cost increase for us," Griffin said. "I’m trying to present to you today the worst case scenario."

Staff planning for the additional 25 special education students will continue, he said. 

Updates on staffing and potential board action is expected at the June 3 and June 17 meetings, as well as the Aug. 5 and Aug. 19 meetings, according to Griffin. 

"There is a significant amount of work that we need to continue to accomplish between now and the start of next year," Griffin said, adding that the staffing plan will be "finalized by the first day of school."