Military educationBudget cuts lead to uncertainty for military schools
The sequestration has hit many federal agencies, but Defense Department schools and other military education programs have more questions than answers as to how the federal budget cuts will affect them.
The sequestration has hit many federal agencies, but Defense Department schools and other military education programs have more questions than answers as to how the federal budget cuts will affect them.
A 31 January memo signed by Marilee Fitzgerald, director of Department of Defense Education Activities (DODEA), said that military institutions would consider “a furlough of up to 30 calendar days or 22 discontinuous workdays along with other actions,” which would come during the current school year.
The Huffington Post reports that the Federal Education Association, a national union of Defense Department Teachers, is looking for ways to avoid the furloughs. Michael Priser, the group’s president, said that the furlough days could be reduced because having too many days off may cost schools their accreditation, which could jeopardize students getting into college.
Commander Leslie Hull-Ryde a spokeswoman for the Defense Department, told the Huffington Post in an e-mail that the “DoDEA’s goal is to preserve the accreditation of its schools and insure a quality education for all of its students.”
According to Hull-Ryde, summer school will continue as planned, but spring and sport schedules could be changed. AP exams will also be given and schools will close on furlough days as long as it does not interfere with standardized testing. New curricular programs will also be delayed.
Teachers who work at the Defense Department’s 126 international schools and sixty-eight U.S. schools are still in the dark, but are trying to remain optimistic.
“The teachers are putting on a brave face for the kids because we know that it’s stressing them out as well,” BettyLou Cummins who teaches at Ramstein High School on Ramstein Air Base in Germany, told the Post. “We’re worried because if our year is shortened, what are we going to leave out? I have my syllabus, and I have certain authors I teach. Do I have to leave out subjects or verbs?”
Furloughs are not the only way to accommodate a reduced budget. According to Cummins, the military school’s transfer program for teachers and administrators has already been cut, and Ramstein Air Base is in the midst of closing a school, with 250 teachers in danger of losing their jobs.
