PLEASANT HILL (AP) — The superintendent of a suburban Des Moines school district said Monday that new dollars for teacher leadership training benefit schools, but that other school funding is still needed for basic expenses such as books.
Southeast Polk Community School District Superintendent Craig Menozzi spoke Monday at a press conference with Gov. Terry Branstad. The event highlighted the progress since the governor’s plan to boost funding for teacher training was approved two years ago.
Branstad says the program will “transform education all across Iowa.”
Menozzi praised the new program, saying it has been exciting to see teachers grow in new leadership roles. He said 120 of the district’s roughly 492 teachers hold some kind of leadership position, including mentoring other teachers.
Still, Menozzi expressed concern over how much new basic funding schools will get for the upcoming school year. The issue is unresolved, with lawmakers at odds over the amount. Menozzi said the funding level supported by Branstad and Republican leaders in the state House would force cuts. They want about $100 million in new dollars, although some of that money would go to teacher leadership purposes.
“We need that money. That’s day-to-day money and operational money,” said Menozzi. He said they would not need to lay off teachers, if cuts were required, but it would mean the district would have to cut the budget for classroom materials and delay updating some textbooks. He said some of the social studies texts used in the schools date back to the 1990s.
The conflict over school funding is the key issue holding up lawmakers as they try to agree a budget plan for the fiscal year that begins July 1. The Democratic-controlled Senate wants to provide more new money than Branstad or lawmakers in the Republican-majority House.
Branstad said he was trying to balance the budget in a year with limited new dollars, but that his administration was investing in education in a variety of ways, including the teacher leadership program and basic state aid.
“K-12 public education is the top priority in terms of state appropriations,” Branstad said.