Accountability needed in Dist. 73

Hawthorne Elementary District 73 finds itself scrambling to come up with $2 million in savings for the 2011-2012 school year. Throughout the Daily Herald’s recounting of the steps taken by the school board and an advisory financial task force, I was impressed by the maturity shown by the various factions as the district investigated ways to alleviate the shortfall. That was until toward the end of the story, when it was reported that “teachers would remain on the current salary schedule for next year to save about $300,000. Teacher raises would average about 2.9 percent in that scenario rather than about 4.9 percent.”

Who’s doing the budgeting for this district — Gov. Quinn? Pay raises? It will be interesting to see what the teachers union does. If they do not accept renegotiating their contract, a “reduction in force notification would be sent to 80 to 100 first- through third-grade teachers.

Who are the people populating the school boards that dole out exorbitant superintendent compensation packages and negotiate teacher salaries and benefit packages that would be the envy of anyone else in the private sector, especially in today’s economy?

Steve Sarich

Grayslake