Decline In Students Causes Budget Problems by Ryan Sullivan

The administration has had to slash several of the schools department budgets because of a decrease in population of Mt. Abraham students and it is affecting staff members and students alike. Many departments are having to downsize their budgets because of lack of currency to support them. The school gains about $1,000 to $1,200 per Mt. Abe student (multiplied by approximately a 3.5% increase per student), and some staff members are troubled by the decrease in population. In order to save money the school is cutting student and staff members to bring the budget back in order. Students who worked in the school, through Horizons were cut as of January 2009, or any other department that had students under employment.

The senior and junior classes are the largest at the moment," says Steve Jarvis, a computer technician for the school, "and you take a look at the middle school classes and below... and they’re just tiny." Steve is part of the IT (Information Technology) department of Mt. Abraham, which provides the school with all of its computers and networks. Steve is only allowed to have two students work under him this summer to assist him with all of the computer work. This work requires moving all of the computers out of every room and computer lab and into designated destinations. When the school year comes around, he will move all of the computers back to their appropriate location. On top of that, there are computers in the school which are around 10 years old that are still in use and because of the IT’s budget, they are not able to provide and upgrade the schools computers.

I spoke with Bill Connor of the Horizons office. He told me that jobs would still be provided for students through Horizons, but would only be offered out in the community. "It’s a way for students to learn work ethics, customer service, respect, and responsibility. It’s also a job for them to make a little extra money doing," said Mr. Connor.

Reg Wedge, the head custodian of Mt. Abraham, shared Mr. Connor’s views on student work. Wedge had a student working under him that he was forced to let go, but luckily for that student the job will be back soon if he is interested. Several teachers may lose their jobs because of the budget cuts. It all comes down to the number of students enrolled and we won’t find out how it’s going to look until the next generations of Mt. Abraham students arrive in the future. Hopefully, it will be a larger class.