Hard times are tumultuous times for education, a lesson writ large in Elkhart schools now that a fourth "R" – recession – has been added to the curriculum.
Elkhart Community Schools Superintendent Mark Mow is at the helm of a district that is being buffeted by forces far beyond his control. Among other things, he's facing possible budget cuts, wrestling with fallout from the No Child Left Behind Act and trying to figure out how to erase a $1 million deficit in the district's transportation budget.
It's a collision between high expectations and economic reality that is being played out with countless variations across the nation.
In Elkhart's case, Mow is nervously following the action in Indianapolis, where state lawmakers are working to reconcile two widely differing versions of the budget passed by the Democratic-controlled House and the Republican-controlled Senate. Both bills would increase spending on education by about 2 percent, but the Senate version would hurt Elkhart and other school districts that are losing students by changing the per-student reimbursement formula.
"We've lost over 400 out of 13,500 kids, or roughly 3 percent," Mow said. "… The school funding formula has been that if you lost kids, it phased them out in terms of funding five years. But there's been some talk of making that take effect in full the first year. If it passes, that could have a significant financial impact for us."
At the same time, the district is confronted with a $1 million shortfall in the transportation budget that may force cuts in bus routes. (Click here to read an Elkhart Truth story about the deficit.)
The rising expectations part of the equation is a result of the Bush administration's No Child Left Behind Act, which in Indiana is manifested through the state Department of Education's Adequate Yearly Progress evaluations. Four of Elkhart County's seven public school districts – including Elkhart Community Schools – did not achieve the benchmarks required by the act and now could face consequences, such as forced reorganization of faculty, if they do not show sufficient improvement. In other words, Mow and his teachers are being asked to do more at the same time they are being given less. (Click here for a Truth story about what lays ahead for the districts.)
The solution, Mow said, is increased training for teachers.
"It has to be ongoing training and it has to be training that focuses on helping educators identify needs for individual kids," he said. "To the degree we begin to differentiate our instruction and become sophisticated in the use of student performance data to inform our future instruction ... then we begin to see some significant gains. We've engaged in a systematic strategic staff development plan over the past five or six years ... and we're beginning to see returns from that."
As if that challenge wasn't daunting enough, Mow said the financial malaise gripping the city is increasingly stressing his students.
"Our free and reduced lunch percentage continues to grow," Mow said. "We started the year at 62 percent and I think we're at 66 percent now. I wouldn't be surprised if that hit 70 percent next fall." (Click here to read a previous blog post about how individuals are stepping in to supplement the school lunch programs.)
There are a few bright spots on the learning landscape.
As msnbc.com's JoNel Aleccia reported Wednesday, the poor economy may be helping educators put a dent in Elkhart County's historically lofty high school dropout rate, as more students opt to stay in – or return to school.
And the district has an active cadre of volunteers involved in the CARES program (Communities Actively Relating to Elkhart Schools), which brings community mentors into schools to work with kids.
"We've had over 2,000 active volunteers over the years," said Mow. "The beauty of that program is it was not a school initiative. It started in one of our local churches and grew from there."
Such programs can make a huge difference down the road, according to Jay P. Greene, a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute and endowed chair and head of the Department of Education Reform at the University of Arkansas.
"Programs that get at kids at much earlier ages to improve their reading skills have a much bigger impact," he said.
The challenges faced by Elkhart's schools in the midst of a recession are hardly unique. Please share how the public schools in your hometown are dealing with the economic downturn and what your community is doing to help them through this difficult period by leaving a comment below.
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This article was of interest to me because I am currently attending a Graduate credential program at Fresno State in CA. To finish my credential I am looking for a job as an intern so that I can finish my schooling and at the same time get paid for the work that I am putting in as a teacher. It seems that many students in my position are opting to go for this option because of the state of our economy. Unfortunately its not easy for everyone applying. I am lucky because I am going to teach chemistry, a very in demand field in teaching. Others are not as lucky though.There are many in subjects like english, music and social science that are not finding any opeinings.
Things are only just now opening up in California due to our states failure to pass a budget until very recently. I saddens me to see that schools are always the first to suffer when it comes to budgets. Its hard to believe that as a nation we still haven't figured out that education is the key to our sucess. Not only as individuals but as a whole. We have to do more to support our school. I think that the community around Elkhart has it right. They saw that the schools needed help and people volunteered their time to assist. It makes such a big difference in a classroom when you can have some help. Even just having some one work with students one on one for part of a period can make a big impact on those students. I hope more communities try to create more programs like this.
Actually, I'm now living in Georgia. I relocated here to find better job & housing opportunities. Unfortunately, the job market is worst here in Georgia than in Virginia. I feel the pain of the school and their surrounding communities. There is no money for most things. Gov't, city & state, have frozen quite a few jobs. It is so rough out here now. I am getting so bewildered that I just don't know what to do next. Any pointers, please give me feedback.
Actually, I drive from TN to teach. I make $17,000 more per year teaching in GA than I would in TN. GA schools, compared to TN schools, have everything they need and most of what they want. Sonny Purdue has done wonders for the schools in GA. While the carpet industry is suffering, other industries are doing quite well. Keep looking.......there are jobs in GA even since the economy has put constraints on the job mkt.
I live between Elkhart and Kokomo. Kokomo has a Delphi plant in bankruptcy and Chrysler (also big in Kokomo) is about to.
Fortunately our schools are not as bad off yet as Elkhart, but with no new business to support the lost employment (people drive both directions) we have no growth to look forward to.Â
Our zoning has a policy, stated in an open public meeting, of "weeding out under-capitalized development" (business) by a Commissioner and the Purdue Extension agent (who is the Plan Commission President , although he does not live in the county). The county collects economic development tax and have every other local  tax that can possibly be enacted. To make sure they have control, these individuals are on every board or "leadership" position that has anything to do with ED.Â
To keep those terrible "under-funded" businesses from starting here, the zoning department staff was increased from 2 to 5 and since they sell few permits, are now assessing fines for "violations" to support their profitable operation. I think the zoning director makes in the $60k range which is more than the Sheriff. In a county of less than 20,000, we have amongst the highest paid zoning "professionals" in the state of Indiana.Â
To put up a windmill, I have to pay a $600 fee, notify about 15 neighbors, have a public hearing and pray that the whims of the zoning board are in my favor. I've been denied one already, but that was prior to the $600 fee and public hearing requirement.  Zoning said because I wanted to generate electricity, that it was "not farm related". Seems to me most farms use electricity.
We're 40% below the national average on wages/person in this county. That includes all professionals and persons working, but not the unemployed.  High school dropouts nationally earn 45% below that average.Â
But were gaining on them, and before long can look forward to absolute poverty, thanks to our local elected authorities.Â
I'm a school board member in a small rural northern Michigan town and we recently voted to close two elementary schools and move everyone into a centralized campus. We've lost 50 students to surrounding areas due to schools of choice and another 300 relocated downstate or out of the state all together. It was a tough decision that opened old wounds but one that had to be made. At the tune of $7,800 per student lost, the cuts we've had to make over the last few years have got us down to bear bones. As for the community, the parents of the students understand it is better to cut bricks and mortar then to cut  program. Unfortunately there is a faction that is bent on keeping the schools open at any cost which could jeopardize the district from its very survival. When small communities start fighting amongst themselves and lose faith in their elected leaders, it's a Sad Day In Mudville......
When school board members can't even use proper grammar in a national forum, it is INDEED a sad day in mudville.
I have wached the news daily for quite a while, staying updated, on the world economic crises. In California, the state polititions seem to be getting a substantial pay raise, several workers that repair our levees are getting a 100,000$ raise in thier pay, this was mentioned in one news broadcast, right after these stories were told the third story started about how northern California is getting ready to close down several public schools.
I wondered why noone could see what was wrong with this picture, peoples greed is now over powering concern for our youth. I hope I am not the only one who sees what is wrong here, where are our priorities?
The broadcast was on kovr 13 news in sacromento, look into this if you do not believe me, I also worked on a job for the U.C. Merced in California, i could not believe the free and careless spending on this job, there was and still is enough paperwork to fill a three bedroom family home. Every paper that is filed is copied nine times, I hope nine people are not getting paid for the same job, that would be careless managing. well thank you for reading this.
I'm an Elkhart resident and I have very mixed feelings about these articles. I must say is is rather interesting to open the msnbc news page and see our towns name, but I'm not sure this is the kind of exposure we needed.
I think this recession is hitting almost everyone and if information about what one town is going through will help I think that's great, but if it keeps people away or makes it look like Elkhart isn't a good place to live that is my concern.
I really feel that this recession is more about turning the country back around, Americans have gotten so "me" and "money" obsessed that somthing major needed to happen to turn things around.
Hopefully it won't take long for things to even out, but I think this is going to be a long haul. We didn't get into all this debt mess over night and it is going to take a while to get out and really Elkhart's not a bad place to weather the storm.
Yo! i met a kid on xbox 360 and he lives in elkhart.... his name is drew and he plays soccer.
To anyone that attended public schools in Elkhart over the years...This is a great time to offer your help, time or money. Great schools lead towards better communities.
i dont get it everyone that gets a pay check pays taxes. i dont go to school but i pay for it and everyone else so how can there be no money with everyone paying into it? but there seems to be alot of money to fund a "war" in a place where we have no buiness being. so again why do the schools have no money when everyones pays for education?
In theory everyone pays taxes. However in this recession people avoid paying certain taxes or they simply cannot afford their tax levels. Another issue is illegal immigrants, whose children have the right to a fair and safe eduction while the families avoid paying taxes because they are not registered citizens. Taxes from businesses such as sales tax, occupancy taxes, and normal business tax are down because people are spending less money. Then, you have property tax. The housing market burst so people's property taxes have gone done as the value of their house declines (that is, if they pay the tax at all). As for the money to fund the war, that is up to Congress. When Congress approves funds, those funds are marked for a specific use and it is illegal to use them for anything else. That applies for taxes as well.
Also, you might want to look into some grammar lessons.
I taught first and second grade at Beardsley Elementary in urban Elkhart, Indiana from 2004 to 2008 and was involved in the staff development mentioned in the article. The steps Mr. Mow is referring to when he says, "[teachers will] begin to differentiate...instruction and become sophisticated in the use of student performance data" are the right steps and will work with total staff buy-in. The missing piece is parent accountability. Elkhart Community Schools is making all the right moves, and parents, no matter what socio-economic status, have to be even more involved in their child's education with a "whatever it takes" attitude. Then and only then will ECS be able reach NCLB's nearly unattainable standards.
How can we leave our children with such a substantial national debt, and not give them the tools they need to be fiscally responsible for it. Putting money into education is our duty to our children and our future. Winston Churchill said it best," Give us the tools, we'll get the job done". We MUST give our children the tools.
These schools spend money that they don't have, expecting the state to come up with the money. Then when they lose kids they want the funds phased out over five years. When kids leave, expenses should go down... transportation, classroom materials, food... why should the stat have to pay for people that don't exist? Schools need to wake up and spend money in the bank, not what they think they will be receiving.
I agree that Elkhart is in very bad shape along with thousands of other cities!! I've lived in Elkhart all of my life and have never seen it this bad. We used to be a "booming" city with companies like Miles, Whitehall, Selmers, ETS, Emerson....just to name a few. Jobs were plentiful and pocketbooks ( & people)were happy! Now the unemployment rate is so high and the pocketbooks are so empty that it's pitiful. I feel very lucky that we were just able to sell our house after having it on the market for almost 2 years. We surely need to look at different industries to bring to Elkhart, or to re-juvinate the former industries since we have the experienced people in the area. God Bless all of the cities like Elkhart Indiana and the residents that live there.
First, let's clarify one point by the reporter. It is Elkhart city schools that have the historically high drop out rate, not Elkhart county schools.
Second, the funding changes pointed out concern two issues.
One is transportation, and Mr. Mow is trying to address that issue by using buses more effectively. One, I would hope, is by not stopping every house to pick up the students, but by having a bus stop every 2 blocks or so so that the bus does not have to accelerate 8 times a block as they do now. But if they do that, the citizens must get out when needed to clear the sidewalks for these kids!
The second funding issues is student "ghosting". If a student drops out or transfers in Indiana, the school continues to get paid for that student for 5 years. That is just overpaying, and double dipping as the new school also get paid for the student. Mr. Mow agrees that 5 years is too long. I think that 1 year is too long. If we get rid of that statewide, the state would save enough to then reallocate some of that savings to increase the amount each current student gets. So the 2 million Elkhart city schools would lose is actually overstated.
I believe it was said it was said in a song which I chose to change the lyrics,
"Good days bad days you know I've had my share, when I chose to elect government officals who don't seem to care."
It's time that individuals start taking personal responsibility for the mess were in and doing something about it. Wow!! You may even have to change profession or move somewhere else to work. You bunch of crying babies, did you forget that when times get tough the tough get going??
My husband was born and raised in Elkhart and I lived there for 26 years before moving back to FLA. He drove school bus for 16 years and worked for the City Fire Dept for 25 years. I drove school bus for the last 2 years that I lived there and our son went to school there all 12 years. I give you this history for one reason. Elkhart has been through the best and the worst that can come down the pike. They have always been fiscally responsible until Mayor Miller took over and broke the city. The school system was one of the best I was ever involved in with caring teachers and a good curriculum. You have a terrific mayor and good people running your school system. Take the bull by the horns and dig in. It will turn around for you. I know, I was there when it happened before. You folks live in a great city. Give it a chance to prove it to you with your help.
I was born, raised, and worked in Elkhart until 2001 (EMHS class of '84). I now reside in Loveland, Colorado, but at the end of 2007 lost my job (that I had been working at since 2001) due to "fiscal cut-backs". My husband and I considered moving back to Elkhart at that point in time but were unable to since we were facing our own, personal "economic crisis".
I have been watching MSNBC's coverage of my hometown, and I have seen both positive and negative comments in all of these blogs. What I have not seen are very many suggestions of WHAT types of businesses that Elkhart could diversify into, (hey, perhaps I missed a section somewhere, I have never claimed to be perfect!). So, to that end, I DO have 2 suggestions:
1. How about textile mills? Right now, I work for a company that has costumes produced overseas in China & Taiwan, due to the exorbitant costs of fabrics, and sewing notions, (yes, and labor), in the USA. With all of the large and small manufacturing facilities in Elkhart County, couldn't some be re-furbished to produce fabrics, or other sewing notions, at a price that would be relatively competitive with the overseas producers. Don't forget, the importers of these products do have to pay import taxes on the items they have produced overseas. I am quite sure some business owner out there can do the math to hit better prices than overseas producers and still make a profit.
2. Next, when I was in Elkhart in 2005 to be with my family while my father underwent major surgery, I had also considered relocating back home, and looked into businesses in the area who worked in Traffic Control, (which was the field my husband and I worked in here in Colorado until 2007). I was disappointed to find only one small TC company in Granger, IN (again, maybe I missed some, my mind was on other things). With all of the Federal Government funds that are supposed to be earmarked for the rebuilding of roads & bridges across the country, Traffic Control personnel and equipment are going to be a hot commodity. So here you go Elkhart, do some research and manufacture traffic control equipment: aluminum warning signs, fabric roll-up signs, stands to hold the signs, street signs, cones, barrels, vests, hard hats, strobe lights, night-time safety equipment, etc. (The list goes on, trust me!) TC personnel is going to be in shortage if/when the roads and bridges begin being rebuild. So start a training facility for Traffic Control Supervisors, Traffice Control Technicians, and Flaggers. Remember, where there are roads and people to drive on them, there will be road construction, and hence the need for Traffic Control Safety Equipment and the people to properly set it up!!
3. Yes, I said 2 suggestions above, this one is for the rest of the country to fill in.....
So, please, have at it people!!!
I don't understand why government feels the need to spend thousands on a child's education every year. I give my sons a perfectly good education on around $1500 a year. Both are at, or well above, grade level in all required subjects and several of their own favorites (Astronomy in 3rd grade anyone?). I can't wait for the day when half of my property taxes goes to the local library and is not wasted in the local public schools.
It is very admirable that you homeschool your sons, however, one must keep in mind that not every parent/guardian has the time or the monetary means to do so. I live in the Elkhart vicinity and the majority of the parents of the school-aged children that I teach have parents that work overtime almost every day of the week to make ends meet. The government gives schools money in order to create effective and knowledgeable citizens, not to "waste" your money.
One of the ideas to help the transportation budget shortage is to enforce walk zones for Elkhart Community Schools. They are expecting my seven year old to walk in the street through two sub-divisions (in the dark for a major portion of the school year) just to get to the sidewalk that leads to the school on a county road. She woud have to remember six different streets and walk almost a mile. We do not have sidewalks in these sub-divisions and the streets are never plowed until later, so in the winter, she would be wading in snow alongside cars or wading through people's yards.
My husband leaves for work much earlier than the start of school and I have medical issues and cannot drive some days.
I realize that the budget shortage must be fixed, but we should not be putting our children at risk for money's sake or any other reason. This is unacceptable!
Seriously the Federal government needs to enforce the state governments and county governments to start caring about the long term solutions for the people in this country and start having some compassion for anyone who is trying to help others out now. I don't live near Elkhart, but I had to let me house go into foreclosure. I signed it a paper stating I had no intentions of saving the house.
Come winter a family friend and another family that didn't have work asked if they could live there. I told them they could take over the utilities and stay until the bank took it away.
Now after being unemployed for 3 months myself and finally finding a job I have to goto court for not having a renters certificate. It's up to a 1000 fine. All I did was try to help a family out and this is what I get. I live 2 hours away from there now and I have to take time off my new job to deal with a snob county government that doesn't care about anyone else but themselves.
I was notified in March about needing to get a renters certificate and we did some research and found the house would not pass, so I called the building safety dept and told them I was evicting the people living there. Luckily they had recently found some work themselves.
I'm extremely glad for this exposure to the state of education in America, especially Elkhart. Even though there may be some who feel that this exposure is a double-edged sword, keeping the eye on education is better than watching the crime wave increase and the welfare roles become depleted.
I am a teacher of these students, some wonderful with great potential and some who just need someone to pay attention to their plight. Although the news shone a dreary light on our school this past year, there are many educators who go above and beyond their salaries, job descriptions, and community expectations to be effective leaders of change. This year has been difficult, but it has cemented in my mind that I am in the career of a lifetime and these kids want me to care.
Although I have been ill, I recently went to a local festival in our town and had so many kids come up to me and hug me. Those hugs and conversations I had with former students made me smile and reaffirmed in me that many have been called, but very few are willing to accept the challenge to be changed to become one of the chosen.
Thanks to all of those who have read these articles and have sent gifts to our students, staff, and school. Thanks to our Governor who has demanded an increase in the Education budget, when all others are going to be cut. Thanks to all of the students who - even though they complain - know that they miss being in school because it's better than where they are now. And a final thanks for the authors who have come to our community and exposed the scab of recession.