Layoffs are on the way for employees " whose positions are funded by grants " of Franklin County Public Schools and Frankfort Independent Schools.
Superintendents from both districts say the state budget, approved by the General Assembly last week, is forcing cuts to supplementary programs such as the Safe Schools Initiative and Extended School Services.
"We have people whose positions are funded by grants (for ESS and Safe Schools) and unfortunately a majority of those folks are going to receive non-renewal notices, pink slips, in the next few weeks," said FCPS Superintendent Harrie Lynne Buecker.
"I hate to even put that out there but it probably needs to be known."
ESS programs assist students having academic difficulties. The programs are usually held before or after school in small group sessions. Safe Schools provides funding for schools to combat alcohol and drug abuse among students, as well as prevent violence in schools.
FIS Superintendent Dianne Cobb said the district's Safe Schools program will lose some positions and the ESS program will face significant cuts.
"The funding will definitely cut our programs. Right now we're able to offer a lot of assistance after school and I know that's going to be cut down quite a bit," Cobb said.
Kentucky Education Commissioner Jon Draud said in his budget analysis that more than $30 million was spent on ESS throughout the Commonwealth during the 2007-08 school year. Only $13 million has been appropriated for the program next year.
Similarly, more than $10 million was used for Safe Schools programs last year; that money will be cut in half for the 2008-09 school year.
Draud said in his analysis it is hard to justify accountability from educators when the resources they need are not provided.
"The passage of House Bill 406 places a heavy burden on the state's public school administrators, teachers, staff, parents, students and local communities," Draud said.
ESS at FCPS will become an in-school activity, with less focus on extra instruction and more of a supplemental focus, according to FCPS Communications Coordinator Wayne Dominick.
"ESS has traditionally been a very small, almost one to one type tutoring work," said Dominick.
"Now it's going to become, just because of the numbers, it will be more of a classroom type thing, it won't be as individualized any more."
Professional development, which provides continued education for teachers, will be forced to function with $10 million less than last year.
FIS will try to survive the cuts in professional development by drawing from resources within the district, such as experienced teachers assisting others, Cobb said. Longer than that will require additional revenue.
"We're expected to produce a world-class product but we need world-class teachers to do that. In order to have that standard, we have to continue with our on-going learning, and that's what professional development provides for us," Cobb said.
Buecker said her teachers need more professional development in order to reach the federal goals of proficiency by 2014, but she is confident her staff will adjust.
"We're very fortunate to have very dedicated teachers who I know will do what they need to do on their own time and after school or whatever, but that makes me very sad that we have to ask people to make those kinds of sacrifices. But again, we don't have a lot of other options," Buecker said.
Superintendents from both districts agreed the 1 percent raises their teachers will receive are not enough.
"Four percent is the inflation rate. Everybody says we're getting a 1 percent raise but actually we're taking a 3 percent cut," Cobb said.
Buecker said with health insurance, rising energy costs and inflation, the numbers don't add up.
"It seems like the demands for what we do in schools continues to mount at exponential rates while the funding to do what we need to do to reach those goals continues to dwindle," Buecker said.
Cobb put it another way.
"You ask us to build a rocket but you give us the material and the resources to build a go-kart," she said.
Neither superintendent gave specific numbers on how many staff members would lose jobs or what would happen during the 2009-10 school year.
Both superintendents said they are not looking to increase class sizes at this point. Buecker said the county's goal is for the students not see any impact of the cutbacks.
"The sacrifices will hopefully be invisible to most of the public but it's important that people know we are making sacrifices, and major ones," Buecker said.