South Carolina will be subjected to another round of cuts for 2010-11 education budget.

The state has already seen a 7% drop in its education budget, but the new legislation will bump it up to 15%. This will mean a reduction of approximately $363 million.

As of now, education is funded in part by state sales taxes. While this has worked well in the past, the recession over the last two years has led to a vast reduction in spending and less sales tax revenue.

The unfortunate economic climate has taken a toll on the state education budget, leading to the new proposals.

Students and teachers of Chapin High School already know what it is like to work on a tight budget. Cuts range from staff reduction with over ten teachers losing their jobs in 08-09 to a stricter monitoring of teacher paper usage.

 “We have cut back on our instructional budget to help the district save money,” says Principal Mike Satterfield.

New  budget cuts could mean a reduction in End of Course Testing and a five day furlough for all teachers. “The good thing about End of Course tests is that they are a common standard for all schools,” says Mr. Satterfield.

Mr. Satterfield  said teachers of CHS are having mixed reactions to the five days without students and without pay.

“There aren’t too many teachers who would be happy to lose a week’s pay; however the in-service days are a way for them to catch a breath and get caught up on their work.”

Another arugument within state legislature is limitting the amount of credits students need to graduate. The current twenty-four credits would be reduced to twenty. Student schedules would be more core class driven with less opportunities for electives.

The new budget cuts will not impact the Chapin HS renovations.

“We’re looking forward to renovating this school to be like new. Money from the referendum has already been set aside for renovations to Chapin High and for the new high school coming to Springhill next year,” says Satterfield.

South Carolina Superintendant of Education Jim Rex has proposed a law raising the tax on cigarettes to help pay for education and to curb budget cuts.

“The tax on cigarettes in the state of South Carolina is the lowest in the country,” says Rex. “We merely want to raise it to the national average.”