Sussex Tech: Goals first, taxes later

Administrators at Sussex Tech say without a tax increase, the school will have to cut 48 positions. Yet while it’s been seeking a tax increase, Tech has also been enrolling more students.

Two task forces are studying an array of problems – one is focused on a tax increase to fund operating expenses, and a second is working on admissions policies at vocationaltechnical, charter and magnet schools.

A recent property tax review committee report developed several scenarios, based on the future number of students at Sussex Tech. But the report does not really address the underlying issues raised when citizens are asked to pay higher taxes.

Sussex Tech serves 17 percent of Sussex County’s high school population, but the school set a goal of increasing enrollment to 20 percent of the total; it also requested to more than double its property tax ceiling, from 23.5 to 50.5 cents over a six-year period.

That’s just for operating expenses – Tech also hopes to build a new building, requiring an additional tax increase. The problem is that increasing taxes to pay for education at Sussex Tech does not reduce taxes in districts that send students to Tech. Sending districts also say Sussex Tech focuses on college-bound students, not the vocationally oriented students it was expected to serve.

Legislators also point out Tech pays its teachers as much as 50 percent more than other county districts. In some categories, Tech teachers are the highest paid in the state – meaning it’s likely some districts are losing not only their top students but also their top teachers to Sussex Tech. And that does not address administrative costs.

Providing the best education we can afford to our young people should be a top priority for all Delawareans. But Sussex Tech has left itself open to serious questions about whether tax dollars are spent wisely and whether it’s serving a critical need for more highly skilled tradespeople.

Instead of a new task force, it’s time for a new policy clarifying the goals of vo-tech education and setting a reasonable budget for meeting those goals.