President Obama recently signed a multibillion-dollar stimulus package, so it seems so fitting that our My Two Cents question for this month is: If you had an extra $100,000 added to your budget, what would you do with it?
In addition to the responses printed in the March/April issue of Principal, here are what others had to say:
Tutors, additional teachers, and paraprofessionals have all served us well and they would be my number choice to add to our school. Number two would be high-quality staff development by professionals who are available for follow-up after the training. Catherine Prentis, PrincipalCockrill Elementary Nashville, Tennessee
Our school has attempted to consistently upgrade technology. I have heard and seen so many uses in the classroom for the new iPod touch. Since our building is wireless, I would purchase an iPod touch for students and staff. Knowing how to use the technology that is available is just as important as having it. I would also use a portion of the funds for staff professional development designed around the use of the iPod touch in the classroom.
Paul WengerPrincipalEdgewood-Colesburg ElementaryColesburg, Iowa
We are a small rural district in eastern Washington State, about 665 students K-12. Our special needs population continues to grow in number of students and severity of needs. Our staff would want to hire two paraprofessionals to provide greater support to our high-needs and medically fragile students. We’d also want to purchase smart boards, more digital cameras, and projectors. Dwight C. CooperPrincipal, Reardan Elementary Reardan, Washington
In what ways would your school benefit from an additional $100,000?