The Albert Lea School District may lose up to 22 positions, and other districts in the area and the state may also suffer after the reallocation of federal funds that help children struggling with math and reading skills.

&uot;I’m upset with the fact that we won’t be able to provide the same kinds of services we provided in the past,&uot; said Keith Erickson, director of special services for Albert Lea Schools.

In early June, districts across the state heard about changes in their funding for the 2003-2004 school year. The Albert Lea School system will lose $81,000, a 15 percent cut. It could mean up to 22 paraprofessionals &045; non-licensed tutors who assist and support teachers &045; losing their jobs, although Erickson said some of them are part time and some will be replaced by four full-time teachers.

The reallocation has upset many school employees. Many wonder how they will be able to give the same attention to children with trouble in reading and math. And they worry that the children will fall even farther behind.

Although Title I helps students of all backgrounds, funding is determined mainly by the amount of children who meet the Census Bureau’s definition of poor.

The reason for the losses is updated census data showing a drop in the number of poor children from 1990 to 1999, said Jessie Montano, director of federal title programs for the Minnesota Department of Education. Some states and districts had an increase and are receiving more money.

She said even though the data was taken before economy went downhill, it doesn’t mean the allotments are off.

&uot;Other states could have had larger increases (in poor children),&uot; she said. She said typically it takes a few years for census information to be prepared. When the Census Bureau updates the 2000 Census, she’ll said there could be bigger shifts.

She said she doesn’t blame school employees for being upset. &uot;We’ve been alerting them to the possibity of a decrease but when reality hits, it’s a little a hard to take.&uot;

Rick Herman, title one coordinator and elementary principal for the United South Central District, said his school will have to be creative and do more with less.

&uot;We have to figure if we can effectively put together a program that fits the needs of the kids,&uot; he said.

He said he doesn’t anticipate any job cuts this year but the school won’t have its normal two-week jumpstart program in August for students in grades 1-4.

&uot;It doesn’t make sense,&uot; he said. He said he hasn’t seen any drop in the amount of needy kids. He said he’s seen the same amount of free and reduced price lunches being given out by the school.

But other schools are not being affected as much. Rita Ussleman, Superintendent ofthe Alden-Conger district, said parents and students won’t be able tell the difference. She said they may only have to cut back on supplies.

New Richland-Hartland-Ellendale-Geneva’s elemntary school principal and Title I Coordinator, Paul Sparby, said his district’s loss is minimal.

Becky Schuhmacher, Title I coordinator for Glenville-Emmons School District, said they’ve had to lay off three of their four paraprofessionals who contribute to the program. &uot;We’re going to do our best. Any time you lose staff you’ve been using, it’s not good,&uot; she said. She said

she’ll still have money for the summer school for students they’re concerned about. But now the program will no longer affect students in grades 4-6.

Darci Sanderson is one of the para-professionals now out of a job. She tutored one-on-one with students who had trouble reading. She said often it takes only a semester for a child to improve.

She worries that children will become so far behind that they’ll give up and possibly deal with the consequences for the rest of their lives.

&uot;There’s a lot of children that need that one-on-one help. (These cuts are) going to put them farther behind&uot;

Renae Herr assisted teachers in the grades 4-6. She also worries that as grades get tougher, students will fall farther behind, without the extra help.

&uot;With all the cuts that have been made, (the students) are the ones who will feel it, as well as the (paraprofessionals) who lost their jobs,&uot; Herr said.