[Seattle Conservative]

While I hate to see anyone lose their job, fine by me. How is it that Catholic schools can operate on far less $$s than public schools ? I don’t have it at hand but remembering reading an article in IIRC a St. Louis newspaper some years ago in which the Catholic schools were operating on far less a budget that the public schools and with better test and graduation results - one reason was because of the cost of all the Ass’t Admins at public schools. Businesses have had to trim down the past few years; and, public orgs, such as schools and all the alphabet orgs in DC and states spending our money should as well.

[old and tired]

Well, for starters, Catholic schools by and large pay their teachers dirt. That's ok - as long as decent people are willing to consider teaching in them a form of missionary work, we don't need to pay them more. I know several of the teachers in our parish school where the husband earns an excellent income. Most of these women have grown children.

Furthermore, our Catholic schools use government funds for kids who need extra instruction via their county's or school district's intermediate unit.

Finally, Catholic schools do not teach kids who are too far out of the mainstream learning. Kids with special needs have to go to the public school where they are obligated to teach them.

All that said, there is a ton of waste in public schools. Just not as much as you might think in a straight comparison between public and parochial schools.

[nascarnation]

I’m a Catholic grad and big fan of Catholic schools however

1) All your expensive “special education” is still covered by the public system (at least here in Indiana). That’s become a huge part of budgets, for better or worse.

2) They have the ability to terminate students that the public schools don’t have.

3) Most Catholic school kids have motivated parents trying to divorce themselves from a failed public system.