When senior Naima Wright walked to the podium to give her allotted 3 minute public comment at the May 22 board meeting, she was followed by 15 choir students who joined together to sing North’s alma mater. Wright was one of 93 Grosse Pointe community members, parents, faculty and students lined up to voice their opinions on the recent budget cuts proposed by school board Treasurer Sean Cotton, in response to Administration’s proposal. The main differences that were brought up at the meeting from Administration’s proposal to Cotton’s proposal are the additional cuts that include teachers, some central office positions, a counselor while adding a school resource officer at both high schools, virtual mental health, enrollment marketing study and branding. Cotton’s savings came to $618,520.00 more than the savings of the administration recommended budget proposal. 

Also included in this proposal were budget cuts made to teachers and Extra Pay for Extra Duty activities, which could potentially harm the arts programs in all buildings. Because of this, many North choir members, including Wright, who attended the meeting voiced their concerns for the budget cuts made to EPED. In her brief speech before leading the choir in song, Wright expressed the positive impact that the North teaching and administrative staff has had on students.

“We are here to support the teachers and administration that have helped us grow into the intelligent and passionate individuals that we are,” Wright said. 

At the meeting, Trustee David Brumbaugh proposed the idea for a strategic review of Treasurer Cotton’s proposed budget cuts, taking a long-term approach to the district’s financial restoration. One of the main components that school board and community members questioned was the student-teacher ratios at each high school. According to the proposal, North received the largest cut due to the present student-teacher ratio. Vice President Lisa Papas defended the increase in cuts by stating the necessity to refine the district budget. 

“Our fund equity has dropped,” Papas said. “This is the concern and why we feel it is really important to right size our budget, because we do have additional things coming down the pike next year. As we have just already spoken about, we have the [Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief fund] money that is going to go away, we have positions that will lose their funding, and we have six teacher coaches that their funding is going to be eliminated.” 

Though the board is in agreement about the need to balance the budget, Trustee Brumbaugh hopes to implement a strategic review for complete transparency with the community.  

“I think every trustee in some way in some venue has said that whatever we do over the next month is the beginning of a process, not a one time fix,” Brumbaugh said. “I think that’s true whether we talk about a $2 million cut, a $5 million cut, [or] a $10 million cut. We owe the community clarity about this reality that this is the beginning of a process and a long term discussion about the budget and district operations.” 

 A community member in favor of Cotton’s proposed cuts was Terrance Collins, who noted that when cuts were proposed in previous years, there were very few community members that took a stand against them. However, he claimed that the previous board and administration led the district to a place where such drastic cuts were, in his eyes, necessary to make. 

“We have had a school board over the last two years who have failed to take any actions when they should have taken actions,” Collins said. “We left it to the experts over the past two or three years, and the experts have failed us. We are here today with the budget cuts necessary because over the last two years, two and a half years really, we have missed our budget projections miserably, year after year. We are here because the board and the administration failed the community over the last three years.”

One of the major cut increases proposed by Cotton is the additional  7.2 FTE  cuts to the full time equivalent at both North and South when compared to the proposal previously recommended by the Administration. Principal Dr. Kate Murray emphasized the impact that the cuts will have on the North family and the community around it. She asked the school board to maintain that community, as she believes every member is essential, and every loss will outweigh any money saved. 

“I am the proud mom of 1,078 Norsemen,” Murray said. “Over the last few years, our staff has focused on the power of collective efficacy. The fact that each of us is in the work together is what makes the concept both powerful and beautiful. A 7.2 FTE cut will leave no department or program unscathed. There is no cost savings when what you give up diminishes our ability to educate our students well. North is our home, and this is our family. We know this home, and we also know what helps it, what harms it, what makes it less than and what makes it great. Please make budget decisions that help us. Protect our house, not destroy it.”