Students outnumber local FTEs

Students outnumber full time equivalents in the Public School System 12 to 1, according to PSS’ 13-year local budget history report, noting only a total of 793 local FTEs in the current fiscal year.

FTEs, who constitute the total number of people PSS has on board, is less today than it was nine years ago when it reached 811 despite a remarkably lower student population.

PSS is now 147 people short from its ideal 1,030 FTEs. The prevailing figure is barely enough to efficiently serve some 9,498 students in its total student enrollment.

In the years following 1991, FTEs in PSS rose and fell largely due to lack of funding.

“We are authorized by law to hire the 1,030 people but then are only given a certain amount for a certain number of people. So this is all we can afford,” said acting Fiscal Budget Officer William Matson.

In 1993, PSS’ FTEs was highest at 995 with a total student population of 7,731.

By far, FY 2000 is the year with FTEs at its lowest since 1991, a year after PSS became an autonomous agency.

In the next fiscal year, it is projected that local FTEs will soar to a total of 1,180.
This, if the government grants PSS a 10 percent budget increase from its current 15 percent allotment in the local appropriation.

Meanwhile, federally sourced FTEs also are all the more outnumbered by public school students an average of 200 to 1 in all fiscal years for 13 years.
Furthermore, education cost per student as it was seven years ago is only several dollars lower than the current rate it is at today.

PSS, which serves close to 10,000 students in the current school year, has pegged each student cost at $3,969.

In 1993 when student enrollment only totaled 7,731, education cost per child amounted to $3,776.

The $193 difference amid the rapid growth of student demands has not done much to direct remarkable changes in the school system, records show.

“We all know it costs more money to send a child to school these days,” said Mr. Matson.
In School Year 1996-97, PSS spent some $4,629 for each student with over 9,954 students to subsidize.

The following SY, PSS student enrollment recorded some 9, 246 where average cost per child lowered to $4,500.

With a total student enrollment of 9,496 during SY 1998-99, average spending per student further dipped to some $3,997. (MM)