Quantifying success in College Station

What qualities make a successful College Station school district student?

It's a question the school board believes warrants further discussion as the district grapples with maintaining student services while making necessary budget cuts.

School Board president Valerie Jochen said talks must focus on more than the responsible use of taxpayer money in a time of reduced resources. Administrators must evaluate both faculty and student success when deciding what can be cut from the 2012-13 budget, and that includes programs.

But Jochen cautioned that programs should be carefully evaluated.

"Some of the stuff that could be considered not-core subject matter is what provides the student we're trying to put out in the global marketplace the skills to do that," Jochen said. "Some of the stuff that could be considered fluff in a different community isn't in College Station."

Board member Kimberly McAdams noted that the district must cut about $1.8 million from its upcoming budget. Even with those cuts, she said, the district will still have a $4.6 million deficit.

"The cuts would only be worse if we didn't have the savings account," she said.

McAdams said she's concerned some of the reductions being proposed by administration are going to create a greater burden on teachers.

Possible large reductions included increasing elementary school class sizes by reducing 10 teaching positions through attrition and reassignment, having high school core teachers instruct an additional class a day, having fewer instructional aides and combining central office positions.

School board members agreed that, for the most part, students and parents haven't felt the effects of the reductions in the funding that the state supplies the district.

"The administration and teachers and staff have absorbed a lot of shock, and it's maybe caused a lot of stress in their lives," Jochen said.

McAdams said the budget cuts aren't going to be easy and will require a lot of tough decisions.

"While of course we do value the academic side of education, there is more to educating our students than just reading and writing," she said.

However, the definition of a "successful student" is different for each individual, she said.

"That's the real tough thing: How can we engage and motivate every student to do their best when that may be a different thing to different students?" she said.

Board secretary Jeff Harris said he's noticed the dynamic has shifted in the way parents, employees and students talk about the district. Previously, those discussions usually focused on suggestions about things the district could do better. Now, Harris said, they center on what the district should cut and what it should retain.

"People are concerned about what's going to happen," Harris said.