EASLEY — Do not cut teachers. That was the message conveyed by several members of the public speaking out at Monday night’s school board meeting.

The concerns came following last week’s announcement of potential cuts to whittle down a deficit between $5 million and $10 million the school district faces in the coming year.

Among the areas staff suggested for saving money were cutting an individualized reading program, as well as increasing class sizes.

But those speaking out said the school board needs to look in other places first.

Mary Kelley said she has three grandchildren in Pickens County schools, and she urged the board to do everything possible to keep the student/teacher ratios as they are.

“I realize we’re in a crisis, but look everywhere else,” she said. “Don’t reduce the teaching staff and increase classroom sizes. Make sure all the fat is trimmed first.”

Kelley suggested removing all duplications of efforts within the district, as well as asking employees at all levels to take a voluntary pay cut - $30,000 for the higher paid employees and 5 percent for those on the lower end of the pay scale.

“Let’s share the pain as well as the wealth,” she said.

John Wager of Six Mile said he moved here from California, much in part because of the county’s good education reputation.

But he said he was concerned with the district’s strategy for cutting expenses. He also spoke out against cutting teachers.

“There are few successful generals who win battles by decreasing the front-line troops,” he said.

Jenny Gibbon, another mother from the Six Mile area, urged the school board to spare the individualized reading recovery program, citing how helpful it had been to her son who is struggling.

“He’s starting to see the light come on and school not to be such a disappointing, hard place to be,” she said.

“This program is dear to my heart,” she added. “It’s the last shot for kids not able to figure it out in the classroom setting.”

Board member Alex Saitta, who represents the Pickens area, said he had received a lot of e-mails in support of the reading program, but he needs data showing its effectiveness – like how students were doing before enrolling, how they were performing afterward, and how they were doing a couple of years later.

Saitta said the funding for the program was being cut, and he needed to be convinced that funding should be taken from another area in order to save it.

“That’s the decision we have to make,” he said. “We can’t just save the program and print $6 million in money.”

He said the school district faces three options for dealing with the large deficit: raising taxes, using the district’s fund balance, or cutting expenses.

Saitta said he is not in favor of using the savings account or raising taxes, calling those short-term solutions to a long-term problem.

He said the state, which provides a large amount of funding to school districts, is facing a $560 million budget this year and a predicted $1.3 billion deficit the next year.

However, Saitta, as well as other board members, have spoken out against the staff’s proposal to increase class sizes.

“We need to focus on non-classroom expenditures first,” he said.

Board member Shirley Jones thanked teachers and administrators for continuing to do their jobs during these times of “duress.”