District 202 Elimination Strategy

Please read the following important information effecting the PEHS Choral Program:

As you may already be aware, our district has created a Debt Elimination Strategy to address the large deficit that we are facing for next school year. In the proposal that was presented at the Board of Education meeting last night, Dr. Harper outlined the specific cuts that the district is considering. Among the positions that were proposed to be cut was the Assistant Choir Director.

As the leader of the Choral Program at PEHS, I wanted to inform you of this proposal and give you a chance to hear how this may affect the program and your child. I also want to give you a few points to think about regarding the decision.

1. First of all, this cut in no way reflects upon the quality of the work that our Assistant Choir Director has done. This is purely a money saving decision. Having the Assistant Choir Director this year at East has been an extremely beneficial to our rapidly growing program.

2. Although the rationale for the decision is largely numbers-based (student-to-teacher-ratio), many people fail to see the "behind the scenes" work or the impact that the Assistant Choir Director has when she is not specifically in the classroom. Obviously, the Assistant Choir Director in very important in the actual choir classroom (especially considering Mixed Choir has around 50 students this year). Additionally though, this position aids tremendously in the overall functionality of the Choir Program and completes numerous administrative tasks such as organizing events, running sectional rehearsals, meeting with students who need additional help outside of class, preparing students for contests/clinics, etc. etc. This is a big part of the job, and it definitely impacts our choirs.

3. If this change goes forward, we will most likely witness a reduction in the amount of co-curricular choirs we are able to offer here at East. Currently, we offer four after-school opportunities for the students (Madrigal Singers, Vocal Jazz Ensemble, Men's Ensemble, and Les Jolie Voix). Without assistance, no one person can effectively run all of these ensembles. The sheer amount of time for rehearsals just is not feasible for one individual. I am only human and the strain vocally, mentally, and physically this would put on me would diminish the standard of excellence so many have been working to establish at East.

4. In the grand scheme of things, this cut only saves the district 2 FTEs (or two teacher salaries). ALL of the district's high schools are affected, however, since the directors are already teaching at two schools each. If the schools board sees that the community values this position, there is definitely a chance that they may choose to keep the position considering 2 FTEs represent such a small piece of this big puzzle.

Overall, this letter is intended to inform you so that you can make a decision regarding what steps you personally would like to make at this point. The Board will meet again in special session to vote on the proposed deficit elimination plan at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, January 28, 2010 in the auditorium at Plainfield High School -- Central Campus. If you feel that you would like to voice your opinion regarding the elimination for the Assistant Choir Director position, the district has set up an online form for you to post your comments. They WILL be read, and they WILL be considered. To access this forum, go to the district web site under the District Deficit Elimination Strategy link and click on "Public Input/Questions/Comments: Click here" at the very bottom of that page. http://www.psd202.org/departments/budget_deficit.htm In addition, any school board member would be happy to listen to your comments via email. Although the decision will most likely be made by the time of Thursday's meeting, it is open to the community.

Thank you for your continued support of the PEHS Choir Program! Please feel free to contact me directly if you have any questions.

Aubrey Dunham
Director of Choirs
Plainfield East High School
ADunham1@psd202.org
(815) 577-0324