BEWARE THE IDES & SEQUESTRATIONS OF MARCH: Nothing in this looks pretty. On Valentine's Day, Arne Duncan told the Senate legislators that it would be "...economically foolish and morally indefensible...” to hurt vulnerable students by imposing sequestration which would:
"...cut Title I by $725 million, affecting 1.2 million disadvantaged students, and risk the jobs of about 10,000 teachers and aides. Other cuts include $600 million in special education, requiring states and districts to cover the cost of approximately 7,200 teachers, aides, and other staff. In Head Start, some 70,000 students could be kicked out."
Conservative pundits argue that it won't all be that bad. According to USA Today: "Mike Petrilli of the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, a right-leaning Washington think-tank, said the scale of possible cuts would actually be smaller than what recession-weary districts have already experienced. Federal funding accounts for only about 10% of most budgets, so 5% of that is "pretty small" on an individual school basis," wrote staff wroter Greg Toppo.
We'll find out soon, won't we?
