The crowd was less boisterous at Monday night’s budget work session for Cranston schools, but that didn’t stop representatives from the Cranston Area Career and Technical Center from speaking out against the elimination of technical assistants from their program.

“By eliminating technical assistants, programs will not be able to function or provide the services they now do,” said Harold Winstanley Jr., a technical assistant who has worked in multiple areas of construction, including electricity and cabinetmaking.

He is one of five positions slated to be eliminated if the School Committee approves the proposed budget of Superintendent Peter Nero. The cut would result in $193,973 in savings for the district.

This is not the first time technical assistants have been on the chopping block. Last year, safety concerns took center stage when the positions were in jeopardy. In certain classrooms, the physical layout means that the instructor cannot see all students at one time. In those instances, technical assistants oversee sometimes dangerous tasks such as operating construction equipment. It was indicated by CACTC Director Suzanne Coutu that the cut would only lead to her approaching the committee next year for money to replace technical assistants with teacher assistants.

For that reason, School Committee member Janice Ruggieri said she would not be supporting that proposal in Nero’s budget.

“One of the main reasons why I can’t support cutting these technical assistants is the safety issues that were brought up last year are still the same this year,” she said.

“I can say from experience that four eyes are a heck of a lot better than two,” Winstanley added.

Like his fellow assistants, Winstanley is required to have at least five years experience in his chosen field. In his spare time, he has also taught at the Community College of Rhode Island for 12 years.

Pointing out the achievements of his colleagues, he noted that the technical assistant in the culinary program has a degree and has worked as a pastry chef for years. In health occupations, the assistant is a registered nurse and holds a Bachelor of Arts degree.

“What I’m trying to point out is the expertise and the experience that technical assistants are bringing to the table,” Winstanley said.

Each assistant is paid $15.66 per hour, which amounts to the near $194,000 line item.

But Director Coutu says the district stands to lose much more if the technical assistants are removed. Though last year’s testimonies were heartfelt and focused on the support provided by the assistants, she said it is logic that motivates her this time around. By cutting assistants, programs will suffer and could therefore reduce the number of students attending the center – especially those from out-of-district.

“The Career and Technical Center has been cut to the bare bonds already,” Coutu said. “We already meet the requirements of the Commissioner [of Education], but we will regress without those assistants in place.”

The anticipated revenue for 2009-2010 through the vocational school tuitions is $1.7 million. In addition, some programs generate revenue, such as child development. In that program, 90 students oversee the care of 17 pre-school students, who pay $50 per week in tuition. That is projected to add up to more than $27,000 for the district. Without a technical assistant, however, the program will be capped at 12 pre-school students based on regulations by the Department of Children, Youth and Families, reducing the revenue by more than $8,000.

While that should be taken into consideration, Coutu did say that should not be the sole consideration when making cuts to programs, as other programs in the public schools are not maintained based on their self-sufficiency.

With the audit report ordered by the courts after Caruolo serving as the foundation for the committee’s support of various cuts, Coutu pointed out that the source of their argument says nothing about efficiencies in CACTC staffing.

“The technical assistants are not a ‘nice to have,’ they are a ‘must have.’ At no time in the audit was it suggested that the technical assistants be eliminated,” Coutu said.

As a teacher at CACTC, Bill Carcieri agreed that the assistants are crucial in the work he does.

“For sixteen bucks an hour, what a bargain you guys are getting,” he said.

The CACTC program is heavily based on real-world experience, and Carcieri said without a technical assistant he could not bring his classes on job sites. Generally, he drives the bus while the assistant drives a van containing the necessary tools.

Those experiences, Winstanley said, are important.

“Not all kids can sit behind a desk all day,” he said.

Student Gianna Velino also spoke at Monday’s budget work session in defense of CACTC. As a student in the graphic design program there, she says technical assistants are able to give students one-on-one attention while the teacher focuses on the overall curriculum.

“Our programs are a success because of everyone that works here, including our technical assistants,” she said.

School Committee member Steve Stycos said he believes the assistants are an asset to the classroom, but has a problem keeping them in place when they have been unable to negotiate an agreement with them in the same way they have been able to with the teachers union and other school workers.

“We don’t have a lot of options. At this point it’s very difficult to see why we should make an exception,” he said.

Defending the technical assistants, Cranston Teachers Alliance President Frank Flynn said that the two sides have not been able to find a time to sit down that works for both parties. He said the assistants were ready and willing to come to the table, but as discussions move forward, urged the committee to provide the same treatment as they have for other union bargaining.

“The sticking point is that up to this point, the administration hasn’t been willing to give them the same consideration as other unions, such as the custodians, in respect to layoffs,” Flynn said.

The committee will decide the fate of the technical assistants in the coming weeks, as they approach their March 1 deadline to present a final budget.