Hundreds of school jobs in jeopardy

Facing a $16.8-million shortfall, the Pasco County School District might target 291 nonclassroom teachers and 598 support employees.

LAND O'LAKES - The Pasco County School District is bracing for what could be hundreds of layoffs should the Legislature approve one its leanest budgets in years.

In what he called a worse-case scenario, Chuck Rushe, the district's chief finance officer, said Pasco could eliminate 291 nonclassroom teachers or 598 support positions.

Nonclassroom teachers include guidance counselors, music instructors, and reading and computer specialists. Support positions include cafeteria workers, secretaries and bus drivers.

"We're not looking at one or the other," Rushe said of the two categories of school employees. "It's going to be a combination."

The number of layoffs presupposes the tight budget proposed by the state House of Representatives prevails, and Pasco is left with a $16.8-million shortfall. The projections also assume employees would bear the full brunt of the cuts.

One group of jobs seems secure, those of classroom teachers. That's because of the county's enrollment growth and the staffing demands of the class-size reduction amendment.

Cutting support jobs shouldn't be taken lightly, said union president Lynn Webb of the United School Employees of Pasco.

Secretaries, bus drivers, cafeteria workers and mechanics are critical in a district that projects 2,000 new students a year, Webb said.

"Those are not expendable positions," she said. "The school has to be clean. Kids have to get to school."

Webb said the layoff predictions are overly pessimistic. Growth required the hiring of 87 new teachers last year, and some skilled employees faced with layoffs could switch to classroom teaching.

"I'm not going to dispute that the numbers are correct or incorrect," Webb said. "But I don't want to leave the impression that's the only way the crisis will be addressed."

The Legislature meets again Monday to try to approve a new budget, and Rushe hopes the House and Senate compromise and insert more money for schools.

Still, employees are likely to absorb the bulk of any shortfalls. Rushe notes that 89 percent of the school district's $580-million budget pays for people.

"You can't get that money out of the remaining 11 percent," Rushe said of the non-employee part of the district's budget.

If it comes to layoffs, the union generally follows a last-hired, first-fired policy for each job category. For teachers, yearly contract employees are let go first.

Cutting administrators, including assistant principals, isn't out of the question, although even Webb said that the when it comes to administration: "It's not like there's a whole lot of fat to trim."

"At $16-million, you look at everyone," Rushe said.

In other business, the School Board plans to let high schools decide for themselves whether to sell carbonated Pepsi products from vending machines during the whole school day.

Since 1999, an exclusive contract with Pepsi has paid the district $3.3-million, but sales of fizzy drinks aren't allowed until an hour after the last lunch period.

Principals complain students flout the system by deactivating timers on vending machines. They suggest letting kids buy soda in the morning, provided Pepsi provides a fruit juice option.

At a meeting Tuesday, most School Board members supported letting parent advisory councils at high schools okay the expansion of soft drink sales.