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Show f SEPTEMBER 7, 1983 LC?s Government Transition Told By TOM BUSSELBERG North County Editor - LAYTON Salt Lake City tries to let out its welcoming mat to all Utahns because it serves so many statewide roles, MayorTed Wilson says. NOT ONLY the capital of the state, its also the oldest city and stretches "long tentacles in many respects to the hinterlands, including those businessmen who heard his address at the Valley View Golf Course in Layton, Thursday. Centerving his remarks on the changes implemented in Salt Lake City government in the past four years, he recounted the transformation from a commission form of rule that now-SeJake Garn, and former SLC mayor said was like flying an airplane with five pilots" to the form. present mayor-counc- il ALTHOUGH the change was formed "on the heels of city gate a crisis in which he didnt put much significance when some of the commission members wrote clandestine letters to reorganize the city government, he said that did create the atmosphere, the feeling of something having to be done with city government. It brought the downfall, ter a af- voter approval five-on- e old margin, of the commission form er 66-ye- ar of government replaced with Mayor Wilson at the helm and seven councilmembers, each elected from a district precinct. TRACING the history be- hind formation of commission governments that spread throughout the country, he said the hurricane disaster that hit Galveston, Tex. in 1911, similar to the recent upheaval, brought five businessmen together who each had expertise in different problem areas, such as water, and their attempts at rebuilding a city were synthesized into a form of government. Salt Lake adopted that form two years later, with the commissioners acting as a legislature, working as a coordinating council. It apparently worked great, he said, although as the world became more com- plex, especially following World War II, many began to question the ability of such a group to effectively operate TODAY, ONLY a handful of major cities, such as Portland, Ore. and Biloxi, Miss., still follow that form, with no cities in Utah still utilizing it, Mr. Wilson explained. We could set policy at 10 a m. and itd be scuttled by 4 or p.m., he said, recalling numerous times when commissioners as a body would approve a measure and then turn around individually and fight it. ONE DAY the commission met, deciding 278 cars being driven home each night by city employees was too many, causing a real drain on resources. Only those needing them for emergencies, such as sprinkler repair or to carry necessary equipment, should keep them, it was decided. AS ITS set up now, the council sets policy with the mayor acting in an advisory role, apart from the council, in g role. He has the a power of veto-- an option hes used only once over a parking lot variance ordinance--bu- t can be overridden by a majority, or five votes, similar to legislative rules. two-thir- As mayor, he also has the power to manage city departments, which meant bringing together the various departments that formerly were split between the five commissioners. That first year he called himself a super commissioner and never wants to live through that again, Mayor Wilson said, noting that now the 16department heads meet with him as a cabinet. IN 1981, A1 Haines was County Commissioners set- approved a timetable for ting up the controversial vehicle emissions inspection and maintenance (I&M) program last week. THE PROGRAM is required by the Federal Environmental Protection Agency which could cut off millions of dollars in road funds for the state if Salt Lake and Davis Counties dont comply with their demands. In a written statement read before the program timetable was approved, Commissioner Harry Gerlach expressed the councils reluctance to participate in the program. SERIOUSLY contemno in protest when this I&M proposal appeared before us, he said. "I also believe, however, in honoring and sustaining state legislative law; even though it was created under duress. Com. Gerlach maintains that the EPAs national regulations and the computer model used to measure ozone levels are based on faulty research and advice. I plated to vote HE REFERRED to a former computer study that indicated 50 percent of the hydrocarbons in the area came from industry, fuel handling and other commercial entities. Using ozone as a barometer is faulty, he said. Geologically speaking, the EPAs computer model also didn't take into consideration all the natural hydrocarbons coming from the Great Salt Lake and the wetlands area. THE EPA considers an area in violation of the Clean Air Act if the minimum air quality standards are exceeded more than once in a years time. According to Davis County Environmental Health Director Richard Harvey, David County has reportedly exceeded the standards three times this year. In order to remove the violation status and reach attainment, Davis County must now go for three years straight without exceeding the standards. COMMENTING ON the re- quirements, Com. Gerlach said the minimum standards are too low for the Davis CounI&M ty area. Even with the in place, we could go programs years without reaching he said. He attainment, 20 added that the county had never been in violation for more than one hour at a time. Another reason for the com- mission's disappointment with the EPAs mandate deals with People have recourse through me, he added, noting a mayor should act as an arbit By TOM BUSSELBERG Sunset News - North Editor Journal, principal Jerry lems Year-roun- schools. d JUST THE mention of that to most students makes them turn purple as they envision offers quality education. way to take care of and still provide good education if there were no additional factors to take into account. over-crowdi- perspiration dripping down y their faces in during a boring dissertation from some ALL INDICATIONS hoarse teacher whos been weve had to date are that no going strong since last Sepreview is necessary for chiltember. dren. Teachers can pick up Of course, thats hardly right where they left off. what anyone has in mind, not But "a number of parents the least of which is Salt Lake voiced complaints about scheCity School Board Pres. duling for summer vacations, Wayne Evans, whos propfor example, and the principal osed another look at year-roun- d said further that some paschool, giving many rents who work have indicated mid-Jul- thoughtfully-researche- its d reasons behind it. (His proposal is outlined in another story in this issue.) schools are certainly an option and are being utilized in some districts around the country, notably the Denver, Colo., area and close to home in Preston, Ida. The Idaho district, holding the distinction of operating the YEAR-ROUN- states largest elementary d school, turned to last fall as a means to handle the overcrowding, accentuated when voters defeated a building bond election. ON AUG. 30, voters had another chance to decide if the authority should be given for a buildings bond sale, and this time, only 60 percent of a required 66 percent voted in favor, defeating it again. Quoting from an article in the Aug. 251 Logan Herald year-roun- difficult to keep children occupied during three-wee- k breaks in the winter. SOME TEACHERS there apparently really like it while others have opposite feelings. This reporter briefly discussed the issue with a teacher at the school, recently and she said it appeared parents and students had adjusted fairly well. The schools on whats cal5 led a plan that is, students attend for nine weeks and then have three weeks off 45-1- throughout the year. That means several weeks vacation during every season, summer and winter alike. IN THAT district, at least, teachers so far havent ceived extra pay for working longer although the option was given teachers to transfer, and 11 of 18 new teachers hired in re- the small district were assigned to the elementary Year-Roun- d begin until April 1st. By TOM BUSSELBERG Sunset News schools would answer Year-roun- d y crowding and problems while y teachers into the attracting public schools, Salt Lake City Board of Education Pres. Wayne Evans asserts. REACHING THOSE conclusions in a paper, The Facts of Life in Utahs Educaschool board tional System, the long-tim- e member outlines eight premisses supportd schools. ing He says in his conclusion: Keeping our schools open year round will make it possible to pay our good teachers better, attract mors able individuals to the teaching profession anf improve the quality of education in Utah. low-salar- high-qualit- year-roun- ALONG THOSE same lines he says furthallow use of school buildings 5 1 weeks a year, for 255 days, or 40 percent more than currently used. With students attending school the same 180 days per year, we will immediately obtain 40 percent er that would more school building capacity and save Mr. much of the cost of new buildings, Evans continues. Noting that if all students had Christmas week off and teachers worked 16 of 17 three-wee- k modules during each year, teachers would work 225 days a year or more than currently while nearly receiving a similar pay increase. HE OUTLINES 14 supportive points for d schools noting if stugoing to dents attended 12 of 17 modules, theyd go to class the same 80 days a year. But if their vacations could be broken from one three vacamonth block into four, three-wee- k tions theyd have greater opportunity for a variety of experience during all seasons of the year. It might complicate babysitting but would reduce problems with long summer vacations and keeping kids occupied. one-four- th year-roun- THE COMMISSION maintains that to meet even the later deadline will depend on the availability of adequate upfront funding help from the EPA. A proposed budget for the program calls for over the $60,000 (about one-haneeded revenue) to be contributed from the federal agency lf by Oct. 1. s Its a good should have no right to withhold road funds from the county since county residents contributed their fare share into those funds through the five cent per gallon gasoline tax. State legislation requires that the I&M program be in place by Jan. 1st. The Davis County timetable, however, doesnt call for the program to Wad-doup- said while a few probsurfaced, the program Board Pres. Says... said. HE SAID Salt Lake City has made many strides, such as building a downtown praised by many, but still has prob- lems, such as deterioration along 3rd-4t- City-Coun- ty h South west of the building. Yeas?-Rou- md Schools As?e Answer commented that the EPA in carbon monoxide levels (even though we are not in violation). COMMISSION Chairman Glen Saunders agreed that the I&M program will do little to improve the countys air quality, but blamed Congress, not the EPA, for failing to update and modify the Clean Air Act. Ruckleshaus (the national EPA Director) had no choice but to impose sanctions, he explained, admitting to being a a public politician-n- ot Pm Not Convinced the political aspects of the self-fund- Hike to think of a politician in a positive sense, of course, since I am one. It should be the art of bringing together public consensus," referring to the Greek roots of the world politics, of the people. to be in touch with legislators about policy and work out broader policy matters, he neighborhood homeowners about a 20 story apartment complex wanted next to singlefamily homes. I THINK its the mayors mayor. program. Com. Gerlach earlier THE DAVIS and Salt Lake County programs are a typical example of how federal money infiltrates, infects and dilutes the ability of state and local governments to govern and make decisions based on truth and fact, he said. Although Com. Gerlach is definitely opposed to the program, his written statement did list some positive aspects of the situation. He said the county run program would provide local control of present and future I&M events, 2) a meaningand cost effecful, tive program and 3) a reduction job to talk those things over, rator if arguments develop over, say, a fight between sponsibility rests with the 5 Sets Timetables In an FARMINGTON attitude of protest," Davis the city day by day has been vested in him although final re- In Toms Opinion cities. Go. Commission By MARK FOTHERINGHAM brought from Orem to act as chief administrative officer, a situation that has worked out very well, he said, noting most of the power to operate day by day has been vested in him although final responsibil- - 1 school. The teacher interviewed said she wasnt aware of why some of her colleagues had left. While she is single and realizes she can possibly afford to work for no extra pay, she he commented. Im not sure if its because they perceive problems or because its different. I think part of it is because parents are used to that summer vacation time. A Salt Lake School District Commission on Excellence is exploring the possibility along with a lot of others, Mr. Wakefield said further, emphasizing Mr. Evans proposal was his alone something hes been concerned about for a long I dont think anyone time. (in the district) would say theyre opposed to it. improve excellence and make greater use of existing facilities and limited tax dollars. SAVINGS WERE raised as a d but major hope for have been somewhat dashed in Davis, at least, as the district raised the problem some faced a potential $25 million a others are having, especially if year air conditioning bill not now incurred because district they formerly held down summer jobs. But she did echo her schools arent air conditioned. principals comment that the Its figured it would cost $3 million a year extra to pay for h traditional review after a the extra energy costs. break isnt necessary, year-roun- three-mont- Some felt academically, stu- now. schools YEAR-ROUN- were implemented in several Denver districts also faced with overcrowding 5 years ago as massive new subdivisions were created, almost overnight in some cases. Some have continued while others are no longer operating on that schedule. 10-1- And while dozens of school systems have implemented the program, its still a vast minority when compared with the thousands of school districts across the country. THIS REPORTER attended g d schools seminar held in Orem two summers ago. Educators, parents and students involved in the a day-lon- year-roun- d program shared their ideas. Some districts around the state were seriously considerd ing options, those such as Davis, Jordan and Alpine facing continued heavy growth. In the Davis District, at least, the issue has been put on the back burner while other means are studied to help year-roun- year-roun- , dents could be benefited, and at least one student proved as much at the seminar, but overall test scores failed to produce such dramatic results. Its also feared the best teachers would get fixed into one track BOTH SALT Lake and Davis districts have received legislative funds for ex- perimental productivity programs aimed at stretching dollars while striving to provide better educational opportunities. In Salt Lake, $46,000 was received and is being used in benefiting only those few stu- dents, as well. IN THE Salt Lake District, meanwhile, Public Information Officer Rob Wakefield said at this time when the public is strongly encouraging that we look at ways to improve education, we as educators have to answer that. At least its definitely worth looking into, he said d further referring to schools. "A Gallup Poll recently said the public doesnt d believe theyre ready for schools. In our district that was evidenced even more the Bryant Intermediate School Productivity Incentive Model where teachers voluntarily work longer hours, teaching seven periods a day vs. six, consolidating departmental staffs while participating teachers are compensated for extra time. Developed by a committee year-roun- at the school, the program proposes to take the quality year-roun- people we now have and assist them in their work by providing added compensation, better equipment and facilities and more effective backup systems. IN DAVIS, a similar productivity program is being formu- strongly when Parkview School actually wanted, asked to try They surveyed their public and came out overwhelmingly against year-roun- d. year-roun- lated to enhance student opportunities while effecting a I THINK society tends to be slow in any kind of change, It will have selected secondary teachers working an extended contract period at no reduction in hourly pay for the teacher but reduced maintenance and operation cost when considering ratio. It'll mean further use of classrooms and laboratories, for example, Public Information Officer Bonnie Durrance explains. Teachers will give up their preparation time on a paid basis, doing that instead on their "own time when students arent present, she explains. For every five senior high and six junior high teachers on the program it would mean one less teacher and teacher station needed, although she emphasizes no one has been or will be fired to savings in cost. pupil-teach- implement the program. ITLL BE tried on a limited during the current school year at North Davis Junior High in Clearfield, Bountiful, Viewmont and basis Woods Cross high schools, involving mathematics and science teachers, Mrs. Durrance says, adding plans call for ex- pansion to all secondary schools in 1984-8d idea While the should be raised again as food for thought, in my opinion, no one should be too hasty in 5. year-roun- jumping on its bandwagon. Lets continue aiming at ways to improve the educational package wherever possible, but step lightly before making an expensive, revolutionary change that may be regretted by many later. . , Schools: Problem Solver TEACHERS COULD teach the regular days or any number of additional modules, as desired and would be paid depending on modules worked, he writed. Since there will be no traditional year with its traditional get started period and its traditional wind down period, morethe time students spend in time will be productive, Mr. Evans says further. ADMITTING AIR conditioning would be needed in most schools, Mr. Evans terms that cost very small as compared to the additional schools which we would otherwise have to build. He admits that public opinion-paren- ts, students, teachers, administrators-woU- ld have to be molded to make such a program but he adds, this can be acceptable, 180 done. AFTER A period of attrition, the number of teachers needed may be reduced by as many as 23 percent. This will allow the districts to be more selective in the teachers hired, the Salt Lake businessman writes. Along those lines, he theorizes if no additional money were pumped into the schools, starting salaries could go from the current PRIOR TO presenting his arguments d schools, Mr. Evans favoring outlines the high value Utahns place on education, quoting figures that more Utahns over age 24 have completed high school except for Alaska, that the state is second only to Massachusetts in percentage of students receiving special education for handicapped while public school revenue is second only to Alaska as a percentage of personal income. Calling Utahs educational task horrendous in his second premise, Mr. Evans notes largest percentage of school-age- d at just under 24 percent, children aged of any state, a larger percentage in public schools than any other state-- at more than 98 percent and anticipation the states school-age- d population will grow by more h in the next seven years. than EDUCATORS UTAHS are asked to do a lot for a little, he says further, quoting ratios-- at 24.79 per the higher teacher vs. 1 to 19 nationally, more students in average daily attendance ler teacher and a 40th ranking in dollars spent per student in public schools, at $1,772. Mr. Evans asserts that Utahs school teachers do not make reasonable wages for full-tim- e employment, noting average elementary education salary offered to University of Utah graduates were $13,532 or the second lowest salary of the 30 academic areas, with recreation and leisure lowest. year-roun- $13,633 to $16,769 and the average teachers pay from $19,627 to $24,141. It follows, then, that a higher standard of person will be attracted to the $24,000 vs. $19,600 salary. FRINGE BENEFITS also could be reduced as part of total costs due to a smaller teacher force. In addition, the cost of building schools would be greatly reduced with saved dollars going to pay teachers more. Added to that, the long, hot summer with masses of students in the community without enough to do and too much time to get in trouble will no longer exist. 2, one-fourt- pupil-teach- e ASKING AT the end of his paper if it can work, Mr. Evans writes: Year-roun- d schools are already working in quite a few districts around the country. Some of them are already on three-wee- k modular programs and they work just fine. five-pag- He blames tradition of students working on the farm for keeping the month school program going, while communities that have become accustomed to the year-roun- d school have learned to embrace it. er HE SAYS that while some teachers like three months off, nearly four in 10 have other jobs with 70 percent of those in order to stay in the teaching year-roun- d, pro- fession. We do not get reasonable use of our teachers or our school buildings, he writes further, noting teachers average only 182 days of work vs. 235 for most e employees. Schools are used 182 days a year for regular educational activities vs. 260 days for most business offices and more than 300days for many commercial operations. INSISTING UTAH cannot afford this inefficient use of its educational facilities, Mr. Evans notes its estimated to cost $426 million to build, replace and repair school buildings for public schools in the next five years based on current patterns. That is happening as Utah ranks growing in percentage population growth. We need to attract and keep a higher level of teacher than we are now receiving from the colleges of education, Mr. Evans continues, noting the average ACT scores for those entering education was clearly in the lower half of all taking the tests in Utah and lagred behind most other academic areas. full-tim- fifth-faste- st ON TOP OF that, he notes a significant number of our best teachers are leaving education to take higher paying jobs in business and industry. His eighth premise states that, while some attempts will be made to raise the amount of money available for education in the state, it is my opinion that neither the legislators nor the people of Utah will be willing to put up significantly more money for education in Utah in the forseeable future. I SEE A column outlining year-roun- d schools, including some recently-receive- d information with opinions by News Editor Tom Busselberg, also appearing in this issue. Im ImtteiFsst Home Health list Hospitals report to the county board of health. After news reports were cirBoth FARMINGTON Davis County hospitals have culated last month outlining the health departments conexpressed at least preliminabout continuing the in cerns a interest assuming ary service or seeking home health care program. other providers, she said much THOSE SENIOR citizens interest has been generated By TOM BUSSELBERG and others receiving care under the currently-provide- d Council on Aging service neednt worry it wont be provided, Health Nursing Director Dolleen Jewett emphasized, Tuesday morning, in a and indicated someone will offer the service. SHE INDICATED further only a small core of clients are receiving the service on a basis while most long-ter- I others are treated for only a short time after being released from hospitalization, for example. Lakeview Hospital Administrator Lindel Carriger and Humana Davis North Hospitals William C. Rees, associate executive director, indicated interest in possibly picking up the ball and providing the service although both added they were only in preliminary stages of developing possible program plans. WHILE THE Lakeview board of directors has already discussed the matter and given positive support to pursuing further details Mr. Rees said his board has not yet discussed the issue. talization, where possible, is indicative of more out- patient care programs, Mr. Carriger noted. USING HIS hospital as an example he said the level of surgery, where a patient visits the hospital for out-patie- nt The program, which provides a variety of regular health services to clients in their homes as part of an effort to minimize medical costs only a matter of hours vs. staying at least one night after receiving surgery, has grown from 5 percent of surgery to at least double. As noted last month when the issue was first raised, Mrs. 10-1- while also giving the client a chance to live at home vs. receiving nursing home or hospi 1 Jewett said changes in govern- ment regulations and in- creased home health care services provided in the region have rought greater competition and difficulty for the county to provide services at equivalent costs. I SHE SAID some action should be taken soon because the budget must be prepared for the coming year, running from Jan. 1 by state law for county agencies, although the $105,000 or so budgeted could be transferred if another agency picks up the service, she emphasized. County Com. Harry Gerlach emphasized the county health department can contract with anyone for the service and noted that while a willing participant is ready to go in south county more details have to be worked out in north county, with the health board asking for more definite information possibly leading to action at its Oct. 4 meeting. t K ! 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