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District budget survey: parents and staff flag classroom resources, safety and facilities as top needs
Summary
Gadsden ISD reported results of a budget survey with 955 responses; top-identified needs were classroom resources/technology, safety and security measures, and facility improvements. Respondents frequently prioritized teacher pay and retention and academic supports.
Gadsden ISD staff presented results from a district budget survey conducted Feb. 18–March 14; the survey gathered 955 responses from parents, teachers, staff and students and highlighted priorities district stakeholders want the board to consider during the budget process.
District staff said the survey received 532 parent responses, 256 teacher responses and about 100 support-staff responses; 87 students also completed the survey. The top needs identified were classroom resources and technology (430 mentions), safety and security measures (394), and facilities work such as repairs and renovations (369). When asked to name priorities, respondents most often cited teacher salaries and retention (279 mentions), student academic supports/tutoring/intervention (133), and art/music/physical education (76).
On several scaled questions about current funding or program quality, a plurality of respondents selected the middle option (a “3” on a 1–5 scale). For example, 76 percent rated academic-program funding a 3–5; similar proportions rated academic program quality and academic outcomes in the mid-to-high range.
Board members used the presentation to press for more detail. Board Member Flores emphasized academic-intervention investments for middle and high schools, and asked for additional attention to safety and security in rural campuses. Staff said they will bring the open-ended responses to the Equity Council for prioritization and will return to the board with any recommended uses of the survey feedback in the budget process.
Quote: “What are we gonna do to improve our reading scores? Because if they can't read… when it comes to word problems and that type of reasoning, you've got to be able to know how to read in order to reason and to figure that out,” Board Member Flores said while urging attention to interventions beyond early grades.
