School Supplies

[Cyclone62]

I didn't mean to come off like a jerk, but it's getting more ridiculous every year. And I don't blame the teachers one bit.

I think from now on, when the kids bring home a fundraiser, I'm going to go to their school and just give them $20 instead? If I buy $20 worth of junk food from my own kid... how much of that does the school actually get? I guess if I'm going to spend $20, I'd rather have ALL of it go to the school, not a portion of it.

One thing to add... my kid's school spends money like crazy on extravagant improvements to the school that go WAY beyond what is needed. Their new middle school has a brand new huge weightroom, fitness room, wrestling only room, etc.... for a MIDDLE SCHOOL! I didn't have one single piece of weightroom equipment in my middle school... we used the HS weightroom if we had to? They also have a top of the line computer lab as well. All of that stuff is great, and we pay a lot in taxes for it, but you'd think they could also afford teacher supplies then too?

To be honest, this happens more often in districts that have well-to-do constituents. (ie: Urbandale, Johnston, Ankeny...) than in most districts. For example, the school I teach at won't be able to watch major current events anymore because of the digital transition. Rural districts tend to be extremely underfunded while others tend to be overfunded based on who lives there.

I'm also willing to bet that the one thing (dry erase markers) that seems odd could potentially be because the classroom that your kid is in has individual dry erase boards (instead of chalk boards) for each desk.

 

[Cycofan1]

To be honest, this happens more often in districts that have well-to-do constituents. (ie: Urbandale, Johnston, Ankeny...) than in most districts. For example, the school I teach at won't be able to watch major current events anymore because of the digital transition. Rural districts tend to be extremely underfunded while others tend to be overfunded based on who lives there.

I'm also willing to bet that the one thing (dry erase markers) that seems odd could potentially be because the classroom that your kid is in has individual dry erase boards (instead of chalk boards) for each desk.

That's were I go.

 

[tigershoops31]

One thing to add... my kid's school spends money like crazy on extravagant improvements to the school that go WAY beyond what is needed. Their new middle school has a brand new huge weightroom, fitness room, wrestling only room, etc.... for a MIDDLE SCHOOL! I didn't have one single piece of weightroom equipment in my middle school... we used the HS weightroom if we had to? They also have a top of the line computer lab as well. All of that stuff is great, and we pay a lot in taxes for it, but you'd think they could also afford teacher supplies then too?

Different budgets...there is a separate building budget and then a personnel/supply/building operations budget. Seems kind of ridiculous but those funds can't cross over. From what I've understood of it schools are able to use things like the sales tax for certain things like buildings and the permanent fixtures inside of them (such as weights/computers/etc). My school district had to cut a crazy amount of staff last year, and at the same time were building a new track, adding on to the new middle school, etc. A ton of people (teachers that didn't understand school budgeting included) that were irrate about it, but their hands are tied on what they can and can't do with different money. Hopefully that makes sense and clears it up a little...

 

[tigershoops31]

I'm also willing to bet that the one thing (dry erase markers) that seems odd could potentially be because the classroom that your kid is in has individual dry erase boards (instead of chalk boards) for each desk.

That's what mine are for...I teach math for all the sections so we use those a lot. I also get some of the dry-erase markers from other sections because the students come up to the board a lot to work out math problems so we go through a lot more in my classroom...