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Parents and educators urge Hawthorne board to restore fourth‑grade band after budget cuts
Summary
Parents, PTO leaders and former students urged the Hawthorne Board of Education to reverse a proposed cut to curricular fourth‑grade band and instead preserve access, saying moving the program after school would reduce equity and participation; the superintendent said rising health‑care and special‑education costs forced difficult choices and proposed an after‑school option while pledging to seek restoration if finances allow.
Parents, PTO leaders and alumni pressed the Hawthorne Board of Education during the public‑comment portion of Monday’s meeting to preserve fourth‑grade band as a curricular offering, saying the program provides broad access and a pipeline into middle‑ and high‑school arts.
"I respectfully ask that this board rethink this cut and table it for further discussion," said Kiara Garry, who identified herself as Washington Elementary’s PTO president and spoke for families and educators at the school. Garry and other speakers said that moving band after school would "not create equal access," raising concerns about transportation, work schedules and uneven participation.
The superintendent acknowledged the community’s concerns but said the district faces unprecedented cost pressures. "Health‑care cost increases alone consumed a significant portion of the district's available financial flexibility," the superintendent said, describing combined inflationary pressures, transportation increases and rising special‑education costs. The superintendent repeated the district estimate discussed in the meeting that the benefits increase amounted to multi‑million dollars and said administrators sought to protect classroom instruction while using attrition and other measures to reduce headcount where possible.
Speakers pressed for concrete details on the district’s proposed backfill. "If we can provide an opportunity for our fourth‑grade students to have access to an instrumental program that will take place after school, then we will put that into place," the superintendent said, but acknowledged an exact plan had not yet been finalized and said administrators would work to ensure the after‑school model is equitable.
Several parents described the program’s outsized impact on students who otherwise would lack access. "When band is a part of the school day, every child has the opportunity to participate," one parent said, stressing that curricular instruction is not a substitute for optional clubs. Others described petitions and community outreach: one speaker said more than 600 residents had signed a petition urging restoration of fourth‑grade band.
Opponents of the cuts also questioned whether administrative spending could be reduced instead. "Why cut into teacher staffing and academic programs when there is a clear bloat at the highest levels?" one public commenter asked, citing district salary ranges and arguing for administrative efficiencies. The superintendent replied that the administration had considered cuts across areas — instructional and non‑instructional — and that some reductions had already targeted administrative positions, custodial and non‑instructional staff.
The meeting did not include a formal vote specifically restoring fourth‑grade band. Board members encouraged parents to stay engaged and to provide ideas, and the superintendent said the district would continue to explore whether the position can be restored in future budgets.
What happens next: the district will post any personnel vacancies and program details publicly; the superintendent invited parents to follow up individually and said the administration would publish more specifics about an after‑school option if the position is reallocated internally or rehired.
