To the editor:
Did you know you can go to the Hamilton town hall and see for yourself the financial report listing all the people and their pay scale? It is presented by the Hamilton-Wenham Regional School District. If you examine the report, you must be aware that a portion of the current raises are not reflected in these figures. It covers the 2007 calendar year.
Where should we look to make the budget more palliative to all citizens?
We should first inventory all material and expensive equipment. This was done at one time in the school system. At year's end, the teachers would take an inventory of their room. This could save duplication of expensive materials. I asked the superintendent about this in an open meeting, and she said, "We do not do inventories." Any business that spends $27 million a year should know where the taxpayers' money is going.
We could save money if we stopped giving large raises to administrators that do the same work each year. Our 15 administrators cost $1,287,529-plus each year. This does not include perks. Some raises were in the 14 percent range. The paper stated teachers were in the 7.8 percent area.
Near the end of a school year, the public should be informed of how much money is left in the budget of each school. A couple of years ago, I checked the figures in the town report. The total left over was about $600,000.
Maybe we have a good sum left over this year. In that year, the schools still went for an override. The totals are presented in the town report by percentage. I asked the town to see if we could get the schools to report in figures, rather than percentage. The schools did this for one year. That was when the figures were easy to understand.
I met with the chairman of the School Committee because he wanted to know where I got my figures. I showed them to him from the town reports. That was the end of the conversation.
Hard to believe that we once ran the regional system with only six administrators and 2,700 students. We should pressure Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in South Hamilton to meet the cost they put on Hamilton taxpayers. Each student costs the towns about $13,000 to educate. The college does not seem to be responsible to our town. When we have 20 or 30 students from Gordon-Conwell, the cost can be high. Thirty students would cost $390,000.
Do we really need 91 teaching assistants? That is the total in 2007. These positions cost $1,335,582. According to the state, the average teacher's pay in Hamilton is $55,000. The number of clerical workers is 24. There are about 535 people taking some pay from the school system.
Times are hard for a number of people. Goods are expensive — gas, house payments, taxes — but it seems that some elected officials have a one-track mind or they are too deeply in the buddy system of politics. Enough is enough!
Bill Heitz
Hamilton
Man Killed in Courthouse Shootout
Video of Ga. Man Who Killed Girl Released
Air Force Airlines: Leaders Get Polished Service
Ga Girl Fights Off Kidnapper at Walmart
Nevada Highway Patrol, City Settle Beating Case
White House Attacks Romney on Birth Control
Homs Bombardment Continues, Global Outcry Grows
Mo. Teen Gets Life Sentence for Killing Girl, 9
Lower-hassle Screening to Be Tested at Airports
Raw Video: Dog Rescued From Icy Colo. Water
Helmet Camera Captures Calif. Fire Rescue
Worker Tells 911: Powell 'exploded the House'
Triple Win: Santorum Takes Minn., Mo., Colo.
Injured Marine Inspired by Homecoming
No Rape Charges Against Son of NYPD Commissioner
Egypt's Ruling Generals Play Risky Game With US
Former Komen Exec Defends Funding Cut
Skip the Coffee Cup and Inhale Your Caffeine Fix
Calif. Gay Marriage Ban Ruled Unconstitutional
Jury Selection for Ex-UVa Athlete Enters 2nd Day
