On Monday, over 1000 demonstrators including students and parents marched from Avon Middle School to Avon High School in favor of a higher budget for the Avon Board of Education.  The Board of Finance was threatening to reject the B.O.E.’s proposed 6.91% budget increase. The increase only aims to meet the needs of staff contractual obligations and increased high school enrollment, and rejecting it would result in the cut of 40 staff members, several sports, electives, and clubs.  Wearing school colors and carrying signs telling people to “Save Avon Schools,” “Let the Town Decide,” and “6.9 or Avon Schools Die,” the opinions of the citizens seemed clear.

Wednesday, the Board of Finance met to decide on the new budget.  Despite the large demonstration, the Board decided to only allow a vote on a 4.4% increase in the budget, meaning that cuts will still be made even if the new budget passes.

Avon High School already offers less courses than high schools in neighboring towns and has the lowest cost per student in the Farmington Valley.  In the past 35 years, it has already lost many essential programs due to budget cuts including funded interscholastic sports, many electives such as piano, theater, and dance, and individualized conferences with students to improve writing skills.  Although student enrollment is increasing by 15.2% every five years, faster than any other town in the area, a net total of 4 staff have been lost since 1985.

Low taxes don’t seem to be the only problem, though.  During all of the cuts, the superintendent will be receiving a $25 thousand raise, bringing his salary to $181,000.  While Avon has less computers per student than West Hartford, Simsbury, Farmington, and Glastonbury, the walls of the hallways at Avon High School are plastered with plasma screen televisions paid for by the PTO.  Grants from the Avon Education Fund go towards buying dozens of rarely used e-books and iPods.  Regardless of whether the money is from taxpayers or donors, spending in Avon simply doesn’t seem to be prioritized for the benefit of the average student.  While the proposed budget aims to attempt to maintain the current state of affairs for Avon schools, perhaps the town needs to aim for change instead.