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Board of Education Meeting; Monday, October 30, 2006
Topic Started: Oct 30 2006, 01:59 PM (2,789 Views)
NFarquharson
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Principal
What are they going to do to assess the resaons for the losses?
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f11
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LPS, transportation for all
mega millions
Oct 31 2006, 01:25 PM
f11
Oct 31 2006, 01:14 PM
All they budgeted for was around 160, so if its as high as 400, they are absolutely doing something wrong!!...and need to be fired!!

160 is a blended number. If you don't understand this concept you really missed your opportunity last night to find out how it is calculated and how it was budgeted.

so are u confirming 160 is close to the #?
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mega millions
Principal
f11
Oct 31 2006, 01:33 PM
mega millions
Oct 31 2006, 01:25 PM
f11
Oct 31 2006, 01:14 PM
All they budgeted for was around 160, so if its as high as 400, they are absolutely doing something wrong!!...and need to be fired!!

160 is a blended number. If you don't understand this concept you really missed your opportunity last night to find out how it is calculated and how it was budgeted.

so are u confirming 160 is close to the #?

I don't work for the school district so I can't confirm anything for you. The blended number is smaller, but has the effect of a larger number.

I really don't understand why you would want someone fired for having an estimation off. If the estimation is within 1.5 -2% - I think that is pretty damn good. LPS has been within 1% many many times. To be off a little more this year is to be expected.
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f11
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LPS, transportation for all
mega millions
Oct 31 2006, 01:38 PM
f11
Oct 31 2006, 01:33 PM
mega millions
Oct 31 2006, 01:25 PM
f11
Oct 31 2006, 01:14 PM
All they budgeted for was around 160, so if its as high as 400, they are absolutely doing something wrong!!...and need to be fired!!

160 is a blended number. If you don't understand this concept you really missed your opportunity last night to find out how it is calculated and how it was budgeted.

so are u confirming 160 is close to the #?

I don't work for the school district so I can't confirm anything for you. The blended number is smaller, but has the effect of a larger number.

I really don't understand why you would want someone fired for having an estimation off. If the estimation is within 1.5 -2% - I think that is pretty damn good. LPS has been within 1% many many times. To be off a little more this year is to be expected.

If the estimation was for 160 and 400 ends up being the number, the estimation is off by 250%.

While its easy to say that 160-400 students falls within a small percentage range of our total students, it sure makes a lot of difference when multiplied by the foundation allowance.

The only reason I was asking if you could confirm the number, was that that you made it sound like you were at the meeting and were somehow "in the loop".

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bmom
Principal
mega millions
Oct 31 2006, 01:58 PM
bmom
Oct 31 2006, 12:14 PM
Jimid
Oct 31 2006, 01:08 PM
We can piss and moan about the numbers and how we got hear all day long. The fact is 2.5% is a very significant number. Way, way more than any year in the  past 10. That is 453 students! 453! I want to know what we are going to do about it.

453 x 8000=====3.6 MILLION DOLLARS

I think I need heartburn medication and a drink!! This makes me so sad.

To get the right answer, you have to ask the right questions. Did we lose 453 kids because of the LI? The answer is clearly no. Yes, some portion of whatever the final decrease is will be attributed to unsatisfied "customers"

Obviously, you only see the number 453 --- you ought to be concerned about how that number was attained and it surely isn't all attributed to the LI.

I don't believe I said all 453 was due to the LI. It comes down to the bottom line. It sure sounds like LPS did not plan very well for whatever reason the count dropped. This district is out of a ton of money however you want to look at it. The LI is definitely to blame for some of it. If there is some silver lining in all this, maybe you should enlighten us.
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2tots
Principal
mega millions
Oct 31 2006, 01:38 PM
f11
Oct 31 2006, 01:33 PM
mega millions
Oct 31 2006, 01:25 PM
f11
Oct 31 2006, 01:14 PM
All they budgeted for was around 160, so if its as high as 400, they are absolutely doing something wrong!!...and need to be fired!!

160 is a blended number. If you don't understand this concept you really missed your opportunity last night to find out how it is calculated and how it was budgeted.

so are u confirming 160 is close to the #?

I don't work for the school district so I can't confirm anything for you. The blended number is smaller, but has the effect of a larger number.

I really don't understand why you would want someone fired for having an estimation off. If the estimation is within 1.5 -2% - I think that is pretty damn good. LPS has been within 1% many many times. To be off a little more this year is to be expected.

Actually, there is more to it than just an estimation. This administration was told many, many times that if they went forward with the LI people would be pulling their children. In all their arrogance, they refused to listen and budgeted for a loss of far less students. Liepa was asked, point blank, at one point "What will happen if more than 160 children leave the district. Is there a backup plan?" Liepa's response was "That won't happen." Well, it DID happen. Absolutely he deserves to be fired.
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Mrs.M
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Principal
maybe he meant the "backup plan" won't happen or there won't be a "backup plan"
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Recalla
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Principal
To say that student loss as a result of the LIe is minimal and not a significant factor in declining enrollment this year, is like saying the loss of men and women killed in Iraq due to NON COMBAT situations, is minimal and not a significant factor in the American death toll. :huh:
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2tots
Principal
mega millions
Oct 31 2006, 11:55 AM
Jimid: The 160 number is blended. There was discussion regarding as to why they used 160, but I don't have my notes with me and don't recall everything that was said. But my feelings on that are it is a guess --- maybe like connected math. You don't know the number until long after the budget is set. LPS historically has done very well at getting that number right. It is off this year.

2-Tots: I understand what you are saying, but it doesn't change the fact that you start with a loss of 400. Additions and substractions at every grade level are taken from there. Are you saying that we did not lose 400 kids from declining enrollment? Math tells me 1500 graduating seniors - 1100 incoming kindergartners is a loss of 400 kids. Again, you will make additional additions and substractions from that 400 number. I am not ignoring any other variables. I am just giving you a place to start. I believe what you are looking for are the number of kids that left because of the LI. Well the CFLF did their survey and I am sure they have that number.

But I'm saying you can't look at the kindergarten figure alone and start with a loss of 400, because while there may be 400 fewer kindergarteners than graduating seniors, you're also ADDING all of those children who went to kindergarten elsewhere and are now starting first grade. That is probably a significant number. So to compare the class of '06 with the incoming kindergarteners only gives you part of the picture.
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ILIkeLI
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Principal
Mega...you are putting a huge spin on the numbers. Just FACE THE TRUTH. Many families left due to the LI. Many didn't even want to begin kindergarten in LPS. The spin that the admin. continues to put on info. is damaging the district. At some point, they and their group of supporters are going to have to admit that the LI drove money out of the district. If that fact isn't acknowledged, they are going to suffer even more next year when many parents of 4th graders plan to pull out. You can only make excuses for so long. FOR KIDS SAKE, Stop the spin, accept the loss for what it is and begin to work on ways to bring people back in.
Remember, many districts (aging districts) showed increases this year.
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ILIkeLI
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Principal
In any event, a loss of 2.5% is huge. I would challenge you to find evidence of another district in Michigan (other than Detroit due to the strike) that suffered such a huge loss. I am going to venture to say that LPS may have set the record on loss this year.
We have all read about the gains elsewhere. There is something drastically wrong in the administration.
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cmic
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Principal
mega millions
Oct 31 2006, 12:18 PM
Recalla
Oct 31 2006, 10:30 AM
Liepa stated that enrollment this year was down 2.5%!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

... But then OF COURSE he proceeded to try to soothe the wounds by citing other communities that also had enrollment decreases.  :huh:

Sir, many wrongs DO NOT MAKE A RIGHT!  :angry:

How convenient that you forgot to add the part where it was explained that graduating seniors in June 2006 totaled approximately 1500 kids. Incoming Kindergartners for September 2006 were 1100. 1500 - 1100 = 400. Right out of the gate, not LI effected is a student enrollment loss of 400. Interesting, a declining elementary loss of 400. Wow is that a surprise. If you are going to report on the meeting, report on the whole conversation with respect to student enrollment. Why rely on someone to report their version on the blog when the meeting was open to anyone and you could have heard it for your self and come to your own conclusion.

some of the other items discussed: Auditors, Pension costs, special education fund, steps in contracts, health care costs, insurance. All rather interesting topics.

Listen! You are just propogating the LPS bull crap. I am sick of Union representatives coming on here and putting their spin on the situation when we have over 200 people that posted on this site that left DUE to the LI. What will your response be when we read off the names and the numbers? Then is it Seniors to Kindergarteners? My kdg. isn't here because of this, does she count? So are many of my friends kids. We are gone and the part of it is due to the LI. Stop being a smoke screen for them.
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cmic
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Principal
As a side note, I am really unhappy that St. Mike's has to give any money for my kids to LPS. It feels like you are trying to rub it in, but I am just so glad to be out that I guess it doesn't really matter that some of the money goes to LPS. The blended figure that I "missed" the opportunity to find out more about, that is.
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ILIkeLI
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cmic
Oct 31 2006, 04:36 PM
As a side note, I am really unhappy that St. Mike's has to give any money for my kids to LPS.  It feels like you are trying to rub it in, but I am just so glad to be out that I guess it doesn't really matter that some of the money goes to LPS.  The blended figure that I "missed" the opportunity to find out more about, that is.

The "blended count" is as follows:

The Sept. 27 student count comprises 75 percent of the "blended count" on which the state bases per-pupil funding. The final figure combines the number of students in class on the fourth Wednesday of September with an enrollment count taken the previous February, which makes up the other 25 percent.


So, mega, the "blended count" will serve to partially soften the blow a little this year but could prove to be especailly devastating next year, don't you think? Blending sort of muddies the true picture of this years loss.
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NFarquharson
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If we actually lost over 400 students, then there is no way that the blended count is going to be only 162 less than last year or even close to that. It is simple math. If 400 actually left, then the "blended count" will be 300 less than last year.
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