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anymore. She said that this level of funding basically keeps the lights on. The Manager's recommendation would not permit the expansion of services to their growing student population, and would even jeopardize a continuation of some of their programs. She said that the workshops and professional development and support services taught her how to be an excellent teacher. Last week she was named as CHCCS Teach of the Year for the district. She said that she was a product of the CHCCS and all the extra services that they provided her. She asked the Board to fully fund their school system and to fund their children first. Dennis Whitling has been a County resident for 18 years and is currently running for the Orange County School Board. He spoke in support of additional funding for the Orange County school system. He made reference to appendix E of the merger study, which is the merger study done in 1986. In that report, the district tax was $522. It is now $1,078, according to the recommendation. In 1986, the district tax was 15°~ of the total CHCCS budget. In today's funding level, it is 31 %. This has the affect of reducing, or at least limiting, the funding level for the Orange County system. He said that there is a lot of discussion about equitable funding. He proposes to go back to the 15°~ figure and reduce the district tax over athree-year period, which would result in a funding increase in the OCS. This would be neutral for CHCCS. The County tax could be applied to increase funding for both school systems. Conrad Weidan is a Chapel Hill resident. His youngest child is getting ready to start kindergarten. He spoke in support of the funding for Chapel Hill schools. One of the reasons he lives here is because this area is pro-school. He has no problems paying additional taxes for school programs. Pam Anderson is Director at Chapel Hill Daycare Center. She said that there is money set aside in case there is a crisis in human services, and childcare is facing a crisis in human services. It is good for the County when childcare centers are fully staffed, because it means that people are out working. The cost of childcare for infants is $1,000 per month and childcare teachers at her center are only making $23-24,000 a year. These teachers cannot afford childcare for their own children. This affects her classrooms because she is losing teachers. Her center operates strictly off of tuition and the subsidy dollars far parents who cannot pay the tuition. She said that elementary school teachers across the street are facing the same thing because they cannot afford childcare. She asked for the help of the County Commissioners to consider putting money toward childcare subsidies. Anne Lutes has daughters at Grady Brown Elementary School. She said that she heard a lot of talk at the merger forums about getting rid of inequities in the two school systems. She said that it was constantly said that it could be done without merger. She had really high hopes far this budget. Not raising the district tax is a step in the right direction, but the budget does not do enough for OCS. She would rather pay higher taxes and have better schools. This budget does not strike her that it is better funding. She is afraid that it was rhetoric to stave off the merger monster. She asked what the parents of Orange County had to do to get better funding for the Orange County schools. She challenged all candidates for County Commissioner to make public their stand for the Orange County Schools and what they plan to do to get rid of the inequity. Melissa Bostrom -not here Julie Dermoty is a Literacy Specialist at Mary Scroggs Elementary School. She said that she does not agree with the recommended budget. She said that the proposed budget provides the bare minimum to the personnel, programs, and resources. They cannot do more with less. She