Where have you been able save money or forced to make cuts?
I just came from a budget meeting, and we have to cut our budget by 10%. We’re looking at publishing our catalogue only once a year instead of once a semester as we usually do. That should save us $20,000; we will also Henrico County have to cut all of our travel. We’re watching our paper, how many pencils we give Adult Education out. We provide these to our clientele, but now we’re very conscious of how much we’re providing. Another example How has the present economic crisis affected of what’s impacting us is H1N1 intervention; we’ve been reallocating some of our county budget funds toward puryour program? We’re finding that we’ve really got to pay attention chasing hand sanitizer, etc., because they’ve told us to and to our part-time salaries, so we’re having to increase class because we don’t want to close down. size. Last year, we began an attendance policy requiring a minimum of 70% monthly student attendance for every When a class has to be cancelled, or another class. The days when we could run a class with four or five emergency requires a change to the budget, students are over. We had a huge in-service last year and followed up again at the beginning of this year, talking to- how do you re-allocate the funds? Well, if we had, for example, to close down because gether about how we’re all going to have to do more with of H1N1 for any substantial amount of time, we would less – all of us, not this class or that class. We didn’t go to reschedule our classes. So, instead of holding a class, say, VAACE this year, because we didn’t have the money. My leadership team and I have sat down and come up on Monday and Wednesday, we might hold it Mondaywith a plan, and we’ve put it out there to our teachers. We’ve Tuesday-Wednesday. We’re going to do everything we can let them know that we’re in this together; we’re going to do instructionally, and cut elsewhere if we have to cut. what we have to do together. All said, my staff have really stepped up to the plate to pick up wherever we’re lacking. Have you been able to find any additional Many paid their own way to VAACE this year. funding sources? form new partnerships? Our partnership with Cox radio and NBC 12 has really helped our recruitment. We also have a new site out at How has the crisis affected your enrollment? Noelle Apartments: they give us classrooms and the comHave you changed the way you recruit puters, and we provide a teacher and a classroom set of learners? books. We have the same arrangement with the Brookhill Our enrollment has increased; business closings and Goodwill. layoffs have had a real impact. For example, Viasystems Henrico County does give us a budget, and that makes and Qimonda just shut down. Most of those people don’t have a high school diploma or secondary credential, but a difference. I don’t have to pay rent, and I can also use many of them were making excellent money. Now, they’re resources within the county if I need to. We’ve found, too, finding that jobs they once could have gotten are going to that we do have some waste we can cut.
Elaine Callahan
people with college or sometimes Master’s degrees. Our enrollment hasn’t slacked off. Being inundated: that’s a good/bad problem to have. Again, our teachers have really stepped up. I haven’t heard any complaints about having more students in the classes. Recruitment-wise, since we’ve got plenty of new folks coming in, we’re shifting towards bringing non-completers back in, hunting them down, finding them, getting them back. We’ve been partnering with Cox radio and NBC 12, focusing on free GED testing, especially during GED Week, and paying for people who need partial testing.
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What tips do you have for other programs trying to do more with less?
I don’t think it hurts to go out and canvass for volunteers and supplies. Ask, “Are you willing to partner with us?” and say, for example, “We need a classroom set of books.” I think there are people out there who want to be a part of us. At the end of last year, we got a check from a woman none of us knew; she knew someone who went through our program and decided to make a donation. Outreach .: works, and word of mouth from clients works. Fall 2009 .:PROGRESS
