Whitfield Schools officials say scaling back on electives will help curb spending for the coming fiscal year.
But a local education association official says the cuts go too deep and have too much impact on instruction.
Dwindling state revenues -- a $13.5 million drop for Whitfield for 2010-11 -- forced the county to scale back on the number of classes offered in electives such as chorus, music, drama, foreign language, culinary arts and videography, officials said.
The reductions also stem partly from student interest and the elimination of 113 full-time positions throughout the system.
The county's five middle schools take the biggest hit with elimination of electives such as chorus, drama or Spanish at some sites.
"Our principals have the flexibility to assess their students' needs regarding electives and try to offer the courses they want to take," system spokesman Eric Beavers said.
"If enough students sign up to take one of the offered electives, we strive to provide that course of instruction," Mr. Beavers said.
Demand will drive course offerings and the money saved on less popular electives can be spent on the ones more students want, he said.
But Fred Gould, county representative for the Georgia Association of Educators and Uniserve director of the Whitfield Education Association, said school officials didn't seek enough input from educators and the public on funding ideas and didn't seek public support for a tax increase to help fund programs and positions.
"It's counterintuitive to what's in the best interest of the students," Mr. Gould said.
"We often hear football coaches and administrators say that, 'We keep the football programs because they keep a certain group of kids in school,'" he said. "The same holds true for these electives."
Middle school electives are stepping stones to related subjects in high school and beyond, but instruction suffers if electives are shortened to an hourlong, daily class, or if they're relegated to an after-school program, he said.
"Our biggest frustration really is the fact that the school system refused ... to sit down with representatives of the teachers," he said. "The public, who pays the freight, was never given the opportunity to have input into that."
But Mr. Beavers said talks with staff began in the fall with a call to all employees for budget suggestions.
"We got e-mails and phone calls. Some sent the information in by courier and some submitted their ideas through our internal electronic forms manager," he said.
He said administrators initially met with more than 40 employees to review submitted ideas, divided the ideas up for review by five work teams, then reconvened with about 60 staff members in March for a public presentation on budget options.
ELECTIVES OFFERED
The following list shows available electives and changes at certain Whitfield County schools under the current plan to scale back offerings.
MIDDLE SCHOOLS
Eastbrook Middle
Offered: Heath/fitness, art, chorus, band, computer applications
Eliminated: None
New Hope Middle
Offered: Health/fitness, band, music, art, technology, family & consumer science
Eliminated: Spanish, chorus and drama, but offered as after-school, non-credit classes
North Whitfield Middle
Offered: Health/fitness, band, music, study skills, art, technology
Eliminated: Chorus and drama, but offered as after-school non-credit classes
Valley Point Middle
Offered: Health/fitness, art, band, chorus, pre-engineering
Eliminated: Spanish
Westside Middle
Offered: Health/fitness, art, band, chorus, agriculture, videography
Eliminated: Spanish
NOTE: Three teachers will rotate among the middle schools to lead classes in videography, health and fitness, and family & consumer science.
HIGH SCHOOLS
Career Academy
Offered: Early childhood, future educators, health care and health occupations, personal care/cosmetology, law enforcement, automotive, art 2D/3D, graphic arts, manufacturing, digital photography/filmmaking, virtual multi-languages
Reduced: The number of culinary, manufacturing and health care sections
Eliminated: None
Northwest High
Offered: Mythology, creative writing, writing lab, journalism, U.S. history in film, modern U.S. military history, physical education, weight training, chorus, band, art, drama, agricultural sections, business sections, family and consumer science sections, health care sciences, engineering, education and career prep
Reduced: To be determined
Eliminated: Guitar, Spanish III and Spanish IV, but both language classes are offered online
Southeast High
Offered: Art, chorus, band, drama, physical education, technology, agriculture, family and consumer science, business education, computers, success/CVAE
Reduced: Chorus becomes one section; animation and 3D design scaled back to three sections
Eliminated: None
Source: Whitfield County Schools