Energy costs spurring school spending cuts

WASHINGTON, July 29 (UPI) -- A report released Tuesday said spending cuts affecting virtually every school district in the United States are coming this fall due to higher energy prices.

The American Association of School Administrators (AASA) said 99 percent of school superintendents were feeling a budget squeeze because of higher costs for transportation and heating fuels.

Another 77 percent of superintendents said they were getting no new assistance from their state governments, and nearly one in seven districts were considering going to a four-day school week to save money.

"If it's for a prolonged period of time, it'll change the way we do business," Superintendent Steven Crawford of the Byng, Okla., public schools told USA Today.

The AASA survey of 546 superintendents pegged fuel costs at around 40 percent above last year. Many districts are making cuts in bus routes, field trips and even teaching positions.