FAHS Music Suffers Budget Cuts

Have you noticed that most of the school budgets around America have been cut? Believe it or not, it has happened to the Fleetwood Area School District as well. It is a complete shock, but it also raises the question…

…Why?

Over the past several years, we have heard that several schools across the nation have had their budgets cut. Unfortunately, Fleetwood has suffered the same problem. Mr. DeAntonio says that the budget was cut because the district is not getting as much money from Harrisburg as it has in the past. Harrisburg sends a check to Fleetwood Area School District every year to fund the school, but this year it decreased. DeAntonio said that there are other ways to get money, such as raising local taxes, but he personally cannot raise the taxes any higher than they are. DeAntonio is hoping to spend less in the future so that money can be allocated for other activities.

“People are hoping that we don’t have to cut the budget again next year, and maybe with a new governor we can accomplish that,” says. DeAntonio.

Although the school budget has been cut drastically, the faculty and administrators are adapting. Mrs. Williamson, high school music and chorus teacher, commented on the state of the FAHS budget. “I was very surprised when I found out that the budget had been cut, “says Williamson. “But we are going to do our best with the situation we have.”

The budget for the music department of Fleetwood High was cut by 50%, and many other teachers and students think that it will be cut again during the subsequent school year. Mrs. Williamson plans to help with the finances by using pre-purchased music and borrowing music from other schools in the county. Even though the budget was cut for music, the band trips will not be affected by the cut because they are funded by the students and the booster club—not by the school.

Everything in the school has a budget to maintain. Even though the situation currently appears dismal, the best course of action is to do something about it. Challenge friends and family to find out new ways that the district can save money so that all of the important components of education can be amply funded.