Commissioner Gist’s Budget: Consultants Cash In
Monday, August 15, 2011
The Rhode Island Department of Education’s (RIDE) consulting budget has ballooned to over $28 million for the 2012 fiscal year, nearly double what it was spending just two years ago, GoLocalProv has learned.
According to the agency, the sudden jump in consultants and vendor spending is directly related to a number of federal grants the department has received over the past several years, including the $75 million in Race To The Top funds secured last year. RIDE says the outside contractors are helping with curriculum development, data management and overseeing an inter-district transportation system for new teachers.
But others are questioning the timing of RIDE’s spending, claiming Education Commissioner Deborah Gist has been reckless with taxpayer funds since arriving in Rhode Island over two years ago.
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The consulting budget isn’t the only area where spending has been on the rise. The agency budget, which doesn’t include the state aid that goes directly to school districts or money for state-controlled schools like the Rhode Island School For The Deaf or the Central Falls school district, increased by nearly $100 million to $300,924,753 from 2009 to 2011. The 2012 agency budget has reduced that number to just over $257 million.
Gist says the majority of increased spending is coming from federal dollars –not state funds – and that she is committed to making sure taxpayer money is being spent in the right areas.
“I take very seriously my responsibility as a steward of taxpayer dollars,” Gist wrote in a statement to GoLocalProv. “An essential part of our strategic plan for transforming education in Rhode Island is our commitment to investing our resources wisely. We are accountable for every dollar we spend on the taxpayers’ behalf, and we must be sure that all of our expenditures are efficient, effective, and in the best interest of our students.”
Gist noted that expenditure of state funds on consultants and vendors declined by about 25 percent over the past four years. She said the year-to-year budget for consultants varies based on need.
NEA Official: Take A Look At The Contracts
But the Rhode Island chapter of the National Education Association (NEARI) is charging RIDE with overspending on consultants while lacking the correct amount of oversight abilities.
Pat Crowley, the NEARI’s Government Relations Director, said Commissioner Gist’s spending decisions should be paid more attention.
"The timing of the massive jump in consultant spending isn't a coincidence,” Crowley said. “The Education Reform Industry knew they had an ally in Deb Gist and without the necessary oversight tools in place there is no one making sure these contractors are providing a service to the students and taxpayers of Rhode Island or simply enriching themselves. Just like the Smart Staffing scam of the Carceri years, someone in power needs to take a close look at these contracts before it's too late.”
Smart Staffing was an out-of-state company that received a no-bid contract worth millions to hire state workers in 2006. Governor Carcieri came under fire and the company ultimately did not have its contract renewed.
$500-A-Day Consultants
Gist came under fire earlier this year when she defended a decision to hire up to 50 retired teachers or administrators as consultants for Race To The Top-related projects at up to $500 per day. At the time, Gist said hiring back veteran educators was vital to making sure the state followed through on the promise it made in order to acquire the federal money.
Governor Lincoln Chafee originally raised questions about the plan, but wound up supporting it despite plenty of opposition. The Senate ultimately passed the retiree-rehiring plan unanimously in June.
We Follow State Procedures
While RIDE was willing to provide a broad list of the work its consultants are doing, the agency did not provide a complete list of the projects. But Gist maintains she has followed all the necessary guidelines for handing out contracts to outside workers.
“All of our contracts – in fact, all work that this agency undertakes – have timelines, milestones, goals, and deliverables,” she said. “We monitor each contract closely to ensure that we spend taxpayer dollars wisely. Ultimately, I am responsible for all contracts that RIDE awards, and I expect and encourage Rhode Islanders to hold me accountable for results. I welcome that responsibility.”
Gist defended the practice of hiring consultants instead of full-time employees.
“Much of our work involves short-term or time-limited projects,” she said. “Our belief is that it would be unwise to add full-time (or part-time) employees to the state payroll for time-limited projects. The Race to the Top initiative is a great example. At the conclusion of the four-year grant, the work will be complete and the contracts with outside vendors will expire.
“Other work involves specialized knowledge, skills, or expertise far beyond our capacity at RIDE. For example, as part of our work toward improving mathematics achievement across the state, we have focused on a complete review of the mathematics curriculum in every district and on intensive training in mathematics instruction statewide. We have hired a team of experts to work with our schools and districts on this intensive curriculum review, which falls outside of our expertise. Similarly, we hire experts for such specialized tasks and responsibilities as managing our longitudinal data system, developing and maintaining our on-line reports (InfoWorks Live) for all schools and districts, managing the inter-district transportation system, working with districts to provide induction and orientation for new teachers, and providing translation services – to list just a few examples.”
Decisions Made At Highest Level Of Government
Still, as the rest of the state faces cutbacks and shortfalls, consultant spending is on the rise at RIDE.
In the end, the decision to hire outside workers is made at the highest level of government, according to RIDE spokesman Elliot Krieger.
“I think it’s fair to say that, ultimately, it comes down to how leadership wants government to operate: assuming that these services are necessary and beneficial to students, is it better to increase the state workforce and reduce the expenditure on outside vendors or to keep the state workforce as lean as possible and to hire vendors to work on specific projects on a contract basis? Either way can work fine, but these are decisions made at the highest levels of government,” Krieger said.
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