Letters sent to Robert Taylor regarding questions that were unanswered at Forum #1

During the course of the first TOWN forum, "Where the Money Comes From, Where the Money Goes", there were several questions Waukegan Public School District Board of Education President Robert Taylor was unable to answer. Each time he encountered such a question, he offered to "get back to us with the answer". The questions were typed and forwarded to Mr. Taylor to assist him in this process. Per his request, a second copy of the questions was sent to Mr. Taylor. To date, we have not received his answers.

Robert Taylor Letter #1

August 25, 2001
Dear Mr. Taylor,

Enclosed is a list of questions from the 8/12/01 T.O.W.N. meeting for your further consideration; these are the remaining questions which were submitted at the time of the meeting, but time constraints prevented us from being able to ask all of them. Thank you for taking time out of your schedule to participate on the panel; we have received a lot of positive feedback regarding our last meeting; you were extremely helpful.

Would you be so kind as to return the completed questions at your earliest opportunity? Please submit your responses to our headquarters at 128 N. West Street, Waukegan, IL 60085.

Thank you for your continued input and cooperation with our education study. Sincerely,
 
Roxanne Swanson
T.O.W.N. Education Committee
Cc; Geo-Karis, Garrett

Robert Taylor Letter #2

October 1, 2001

Mr. Robert Taylor
School Board President
2312 Northern Avenue
Waukegan, IL 60085

Dear Mr. Taylor,

Enclosed is a copy of the original questions sent to you late this past August. Please submit your answers to T.O.W.N. c/o 128 N. West St. Waukegan, IL 60085 as soon as possible. Thank you for your prompt attention to this matter.

At this time, I'd like to inform you that T.O.W.N.'s focus on educational issues pertaining to District 60 is continuing with a forum devoted to the topic of Bilingual Education, being held on October 21,2001 at 7:00p.m., again at the First Baptist Church on Genessee St.

We would like very much to have you attend and participate as a member of the panel. Would you let us know at your earliest opportunity whether or not you can be present?

Our phone number is 599-1531

Thanks for your time and attention.

Roxanne Swanson
T.O.W.N. education Committee

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Questions Unanswered from Forum #1

• How much money do we get for each student in Special ed. Vs Regular ed. Vs Bilingual ed. And do Gifted/Magnet kids get more money than Regular ed.?
• The handout indicates expenditures for Bilingual ed. But does not address receipts for Bilingual ed. from state and federal sources. -How much of local revenues go to fund Bilingual ed.?
• How much does the Superintendent and Administration (Lincoln Center, & Principals) account for in salaries?
• Has the school Board or school administration met with our city government to explore what the city is doing to address the overcrowding issues affecting our schools?
• Why must there be 6-10 squad cars at the High School when it is dismissal time? Does the city charge the school district for these services?
• How is the general state aid for public schools calculated for District 60? What does the district provide to the formula per pupil?
• How many Waukegan students attend Carmel H.S., St. Joseph's or other private schools rather than attend W.H.S.?
• Is there any possibility that fiscal mismanagement or perhaps misappropriation of funds played a part in the current financial crisis? In other words, are all the monies accounted for?
• The voters turned down the last school referendum by a substantial margin. What plans are in place to adequately fund education in Dist. 60 without running up a huge deficit if the voters continue the reject school referenda? In other words, isn't it imperative that the school Board come up with a 'plan B' and not hinge the viability of the school district on a referendum?
• Please break down the funding of District 60's Bilingual education: %District, % State, % Federal.
• Illinois ranks 49th in state based expenditures for public education. What legislation is being considered for property tax reform that would compel the state to pay its fair share of funding schools?
• Why didn't the School Board see this financial crisis years ago and take steps to prevent this catastrophe?
• Waukegan has always had Merit Finalists? What has happened in recent years?
• Substantial cuts have been made to try to overcome a 9 - 10M-dollar deficit. Could you give a list of these cuts, and answer what was cut and by how much?
• Has the School Board met with our city government to see of the city would be willing to help finance the schools?
• Is it true that Waukegan Public School District 60 cannot fill all of its teacher slots with certified teachers but must fill them with individuals that may not be certified?
• I've seen data that suggests some school districts spend less per pupil but still achieve good academic results. Is money the ultimate answer to the problem of so many districts? If you had two times as much money to spend, for example, would our test scores significantly improve?
• One of the problems in a failing school is a lower attendance rate. Why is the Average Daily Attendance used to calculate the money the state gives to schools when this would seem to penalize failing schools?
• Materials and supplies account for $5,330,735.00, but fess and textbooks account for $750,000. - Should we be raising fees and have students pay for their own textbooks?
• To The State Reps. - Is there any way for the state to distribute the monies to the school districts more equitably?
• How much would we save by getting rid of busing?
• Do we receive any impact aid from the Federal Government for educating the children of people serving in the Navy who are training/working at Great Lakes Navy Base but reside off-base here in Waukegan?
• Isn't it a case of lax Waukegan code enforcement, which has resulted in overcrowded housing conditions, which in turn funneled hundreds and hundreds of students into the Waukegan school system? That is the root of the problem with Waukegan's schools - student populations skyrocketing.
• Why have you waited so long to bring this up? I've heard that the schools have been adding deficit to deficit each year.
• What can Waukegan do to stop the flight of its middle class citizens, which further shrinks its tax base?
• How do we change the funding?
• How about stopping Driver's Ed.?
• The programs in the district for academically gifted and talented students don't get much press - would making their test scores more public garner some more support for the district, financial and otherwise?
• I suspect that there are some households in Waukegan that do not pay taxes but send children to our schools. Is this true? If so, does anyone have an estimate of the numbers?
• Does District 60 intend to press our legislators for education funding reform?
• If other district can sufficiently cover their enrollment fees, why isn't more state funding targeted to Waukegan schools? Why don't other more well-off districts help Waukegan out more?
• How much additional funding did the state provide for special education programs this year?
• Can you show a balance sheet for the Free Lunch Program? Cost of Free Lunch Program ($)? Cost of Salaries associated with Federal Aid given to this program ($)? Is it cost effective? Is the balance positive or negative? Total?
• Can you show a balance sheet for Bilingual education; Cost of the program ($)? Cost of Salaries associated with the program ($)? Revenue granted from the State ($) ? Revenue granted from the Federal Gov't. ($) ? Revenue from tax payers ($) ? Is the balance positive or negative? Does it pay?

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