CUTTING DETROIT

1
CUTTING DETROITS PUBLIC SCHOOLS

• By Jenny Cameron

2
THE BUDGET DEFICIT

• The city of Detroit is facing a major budget
  deficit of about 230 million.
• In attempts to reduce this massive economic
  downfall, Mayor Kilpatrick has purposed a plan to
  cut jobs, pay and benefits for city employees,
  reduce city services, and increase taxes.
• Another aspect of the budget crisis is the Board
  of Education plan to cut 34 Detroit Public
  Schools.

3
THE PLAN

• In addition to cutting the 34 public schools in
  Detroit, the city is also cutting approximately
  5400 DPS staff members.
• The city is also planning on shutting down 20-30
  schools each year for the next 5 years.
• The projected amount of money saved will be about
  10 million for the first year and an estimated
  50 million for the whole 5 years.

4
THE KIDS LOST

• There are approximately 140,000 students enrolled
  in DPS, but a projected 10,000 each year for the
  next couple of years will be lost.
• These kids will either be unable to travel the
  extra distance to their relocated school, lose
  interest because of constantly moving from school
  to school, or in most cases relocate to charter
  schools outside of the city.
• The mind-set of city authorities in relation to
  the situation and its students is that the city
  population is declining, student enrollment is
  plummeting, school standards are failing,and the
  citys dwindling tax base cannot sustain the
  present school set-up,-so the schools must close.

5
SO WHAT HAPPENS?

• In the short run the cutting of these schools
  will save a substantial amount of money.
  However, in the long run because we are driving
  more kids out of the schools in the city to go to
  charter schools in the suburbs, the city will
  lose money.