Ufomadu and Hicks voted to close the schools.

Powell, Obamanu and Chestnut voted against closing the schools.

During Tuesday night’s public hearing at J.A. Pickard Auditorium several questions were asked of the school board members. But they all fell under the same category, why?

As school board members continue to look toward consolidating Byrd Elementary and the School of Discovery into others in the area, parents facing the possible relocation of their children continue to wonder why other schools aren’t being considered as well.

Margaret Reaves, who has two children enrolled at Byrd Elementary School, said she also needs answers to her children’s questions.

“What do I tell my 9-year-old that keeps reading that his school is about to close?” she said. “I don’t know what we are supposed to tell him when he might have to go somewhere else.”

A number of factors are going into the decision of whether to close the schools, Selma Superintendent Don Jefferson said.

“We’re not just looking at one thing, we’re looking at any number of things,” he said. “That’s why we want to hear from you. We want to hear everyone’s ideas and we encourage you to come to our work sessions.”

Some of the factors in the case of Byrd are the age of the building and declining student population. Byrd, Jefferson said, will have only 133 students enrolled in the next school year. This population only allows for two cafeteria workers, which makes it harder to function effectively.

Others felt there were additional factors at work. Byrd School PTO president Dorothy Reeves said she has heard race discussed in the community.

“If that’s the reason then shame on the school board for not teaching us to work together,” she said.

Others who attended said they don’t feel these schools are being targeted unjustly.

“I don’t feel like we are just picking on Byrd School,” audience member Patrice Walker said. “Everybody knows about the economy. Selma isn’t the only school system talking about this. Let’s get with it and start working with the school board.”

Consolidations within the school system would not become a reality until the 2013-2014 school year. However, District 1 Representative Holland Powell said changes might become necessary much sooner.

“If you look at the shortfalls you will see we’re not going to be able to wait that long,” he said.

The next public hearing will be held March 29 at 6 p.m. at the School of Discovery, however, school board members encouraged citizens to attend work sessions the first Tuesday of each month in the central office.

Story republished with the approval of The Selma Times-Journal.

Why is it that while we are discussing the possible closure of several local schools to cut costs the superintendent is proposing the board approve the expense of $231,000 in repairs to an out building at an elementary school that is operating at 66 percent of capacity?

Five classrooms at Clark Elementary have rotten floors and have not been used since the first of the year. These rooms were used for pre-K (children have been relocated to another part of the campus) and have facilities that meet the needs of this grade level, but the building is rotten. Considering the school without this building has a capacity of 495 students (per the report from the superintendent) and only 360 +/- students attend this school, why is this space needed; especially so at a cost of nearly $50,000 per classroom? Couldn’t the facilities they are using now be modified to meet the needs of the students for considerably less? One would think so, but the principal at Clark Elementary says he is using all of the current space and cannot operate without these five classrooms.

If in fact a school is operating at 66 percent of capacity and is completely utilizing all of the space, then how does Dr. Donald Jefferson plan to close an elementary school? Currently the school system is utilizing over 70 percent of total available elementary space. So where would the children displaced by the school closing be placed?

Keep in mind the $231,000 Jefferson is recommending be spent equals 32 months of utilities, services and janitorial supplies at Byrd Elementary. One has to wonder what the real motivating factors are in his recommendations.

Also of concern is the gifting of funds to not-for-profit organizations. While this is required by the State of Alabama the rules surrounding the disbursement of these funds are run rather loosely. After considerable discussion Jefferson is recommending that 57 percent of the funds be given to a firm that has not filed a tax return for 2008 or 2009 and provides services for battering, recidivism and negative trends. In addition the person who operates a private foundation announced on the radio [along with what I consider to be repeated racist remarks] that she runs a tax service and legal referral center that also has no record of a tax return on file has been suggested to receive 19 percent of these funds. Realizing the city schools represent the largest public budget in Dallas County, it is easy to see why I feel these funds are being raided regularly for political means.

Lastly in response to the column written by my esteemed colleague Dr. Udo Ufomadu, he is correct the system has a current cash position of $5 million. What he has failed to mention is that there is nearly $4 million of unbudgeted items, which includes the September payment for the new high school loan, and the recent proration of 3 percent. Should there be any cost overruns on the new building it will wipe out any remaining funds leaving the system with zero in reserves and unable to make payroll without borrowing additional funds.

It is not just what we have today but where we will be at the end of the fiscal year that matters to me and should matter to all who live in Selma.

I have more faith in the taxpaying citizens of this fair city than most and acknowledge that people are demanding accountability of public funds now more than ever. The only pathway out of poverty is education and those who put political gain before the children should certainly be removed from their positions of power; using the children as political pawns for personal gain is a great sin.

I encourage citizens who want to put the children first to come to the school board meetings and make your voice heard.

Story republished with the approval of The Selma Times-Journal.

By Udo Ufomadu

In my capacity as a Selma City School Board member, I have lately been confronted with two questions that deserve clarifications for my district and the entire city of Selma. The two questions are: Is our school district broke? Why is it that you do not vehemently challenge the financial health of our school system at every turn? The truth is that we as board members approach our roles differently, particularly when it comes to school financial management.

The management of school finance and that of other organizations may appear similar in its entirety but to a large extent, they are dissimilar. In funding a business outfit, one bank or another financial institution can be your sole financier; but a public school district relies on so many sources for funding. In most cases it must be spent as designated or you are out of line. For instance, the oldest, if not the most stable source of school funds in Alabama is called the Public School Fund.

In order not to appear irrational in questioning, this board very well comprehends what constitutes the total units, total foundation program, total state funds, and total local funds. As board members, we understand that our expenditures include instructional services, instructional support services, operation and maintenance services, auxillary services, general administration, capital outlay, debt services and other expenditures. In our meetings, and when necessary, we have the expertise of the superintendent, chief financial school officer, and our board attorney, in the case we need explanation on the legal ramifications of our expenditures or other moves. As a team,we all ask questions when needed and without biases.

There are questions that are important to me. I will continue to confront the superintendent and the CSFO with these questions. The questions are not limited to: Do we have one month operating reserve? Are we broke? I have asked these questions in less than 48 hours and the superintendent showed me a record that indicates that we have $4.9 million in reserve for almost two months. Apparently, we are not broke my friends. Furthermore, the last balance sheet that I reviewed depicts a healthy net worth.

Story republished with the approval of The Selma Times-Journal.

The Selma City School Board is hosting another Town Hall Meeting to discuss the proposed school closings. It’s important for Byrd to have a strong vocal presence at the meeting tonight and we would love to see you there.

Town Hall Meeting Tonight!

Where: School of Discovery

400 Washington Street

Selma, AL 36703

When: Thursday 6-7 pm