With budgets shrinking across the state, many students going back to school this fall will find fewer choices of classes and larger class sizes. And, some Seacoast parents worry that if we don’t properly fund schools now, we’ll all pay for it in the future.

Over the winter, the City of Portsmouth asked every department to come up with a fiscal year 2011 budget using 96 percent of the amount of the previous budget, essentially a cut of more than $4 million. This was part of a citywide effort to control taxes in the wake of increased costs and the economic downturn.

After seeing the potential impact of these cuts on the schools, the City Council recommended a 2.8 percent increase over the previous budget, the same as a cost of living adjustment. Still, the new budget reduced staffing by 13 full-time positions across the district.

Then, in June, the School Department was asked to cut another $259,000, to account for Portsmouth’s above-average cost per pupil and relatively high teacher salaries. This cut resulted in the loss of a music teacher and left two math aide positions unfilled.

During the budget discussion, a group of concerned citizens united in support of prioritizing school funding. The group goes by WAVE, which stands for “We All Value Education.” Chairman Scott McKee said cuts in recent years have pushed schools to the tipping point, little by little. “We think the city and school system could do better,” he said.

Often, McKee said, it’s the kids most at risk who are most deeply affected by losses in school staff and programs. Paraprofessionals who work with struggling students tend to be some of the first cuts from budgets.

“We don’t believe everything comes down to money,” McKee said. “But you get what you pay for, and we’re heading in the wrong direction.”

Isaac Brake, another member of WAVE, said the loss of a computer teacher at the elementary level was especially disappointing. “Computer skills are very important,” he said. “Imagine how much more important they’ll be in 15 years when my daughter graduates from college.”

Even though the new Portsmouth school budget is not an overall decrease from last year, WAVE is “not at all” pleased with it, said McKee, who has children in the public school system and volunteers at the elementary school, where his son is going into grade five. He said the group wants to be a part of the conversation in the future to make sure education is a “singular, top priority.”

WAVE supports a change in the budgeting process from an annual five-week rush to a long-term solution, something the Portsmouth School Board has committed to, according to the school administration. Recognizing that the year-to-year approach to the school budget is unsustainable, the Portsmouth School Board has indicated it will address long-term structural changes and begin a five-year strategic planning process to address these issues.

Ed McDonough, superintendent of the Portsmouth School District, said the administration sought to protect the instructional core by maintaining appropriate teacher-student ratios at all levels, and wanted to continue all arts and athletic activities for students.

“Any administrator doesn’t want to lose any resources,” he said. “All of the cuts have an impact in some way, shape or form, but we protected the core.”

Still, at Portsmouth High School, one technology integrator, one English instructor, one special education teacher, and four special education paraprofessionals were lost. At the Middle School, one behavior interventionist and two special education teachers were cut. At the elementary level, one computer teacher, one special education teacher, one paraprofessional and one part-time custodian were cut.

The district also lost funding for school resource officers, but the Police Department will provide one to be shared between all the schools.

When possible, the administration looked to reallocate resources or mitigate the impact of adjustments. “We tried to find other ways to deliver the same, rich programming,” McDonough said. For instance, a reading specialist may fill in for the English teacher that was lost. A behavior specialist was also lost, but there are three guidance councilors available.

In this economy, McDonough said, it was important to mitigate the impact on the local taxpayer, and the budget was under “severe scrutiny.” He expects to face the same circumstances in 2011.

Roughly 200 teachers were laid off across the state for the 2010-11 school year, but recently-passed federal legislation is expected to save at least as many jobs in the future. On Aug. 10, Congress passed an emergency jobs bill that sends $10 billion to school districts nationwide. New Hampshire is expected to receive about $41 million.

It’s not clear yet which schools will receive the federal funding to save teaching jobs. But McDonough said Portsmouth will be able to deliver its mission this year and, perhaps, could use any money to offset increases in next year’s budget.

State funding will also change for fiscal year 2012 when a new school funding formula takes effect. State Rep. Emma Rous (D-Durham) is chairwoman of the House education committee and was tasked to help define an adequate education and determine how to fund it.

The resulting formula, calculated on a per-student basis, considers the cost of teachers and curriculum, makes additions for English as a Second Language, Special Education and Free and Reduced Lunch programs, and takes into account low property value areas and lower median incomes, Rous said. About half the schools in the state will get more funding and half will get less, but only a few will be hit hard, she said.

On the Seacoast, Exeter will get about $1 million more, Portsmouth, Somersworth and Hampton will get about $2 million more, Dover will get about $4.5 million more, and Rochester will get almost $8 million. New Castle and Rye lose about $1 million each.

The Dover School District has also eliminated positions for the coming school year, including a part-time family consumer studies teacher at the Middle School and a district-wide music teacher. Also, the district did not fill the resignations of two high school teachers, one middle school reading teacher and one elementary school teacher. Secretarial positions were cut by $45,000 through reduction of hours of certain staff members. Hours were also reduced for a facilities coordinator position.

Middle school and high school athletes in Dover now must pay a fee at the beginning of the season for transportation. Also, there were no cost of living raises for district personnel, according to Robin LaFleur, human resources coordinator.

In Rochester, the school district lost a special education position at the William Allen School; a reading teacher and reading first coordinator at the Chamberlain Street School; a classroom teacher and a special education teacher at McClelland Elementary School; a counselor, family and consumer science teacher, and a special education teacher at Rochester Middle School; and a business teacher, special education teacher, student services counselor and safety team leader at Spaulding High School. A half-time curriculum coordinator will be grant funded.

However, a number of other positions were added to the 2011 budget, including elementary academic instructors to provide planning time for teachers, second grade positions at William Allen, a wellness instructor at Rochester Middle School, and English and social studies teachers at Spaulding High School. Two half-time kindergarten positions were increased to full-time.

In Somersworth, there is no longer a foreign language opportunity for students in Somersworth Middle School, and seven teachers will see more than 100 students per day. The school district has cut three paraprofessionals, a part-time physical education teacher and two part-time teachers in foreign languages. Also, some high school athletic supplies and equipment were eliminated and there was a reduction in regular education supplies.

But, Superintendent Karen Soule said schools are seeking other ways to provide resources, such as online classes for languages.

Maria Ayer, mother of two Somersworth students, said kids should be learning languages at a younger age, since it’s easier for them to retain it then. She said Spanish is especially important because Hispanics are projected to become the most populous demographic in the country. “It boggles my mind,” Ayer said.

Ayer’s biggest concern, though, is the loss of paraprofessionals who provide extra educational and emotional support to kids who need it.

At Somersworth High School and Career Technical Center, cuts were being considered to all classes with enrollments of less than 20 students, which would have significantly limited student options for courses and increase class sizes. However, Soule said, a large funding cut from capital improvements saved these advanced courses.

“It’s not the best, but we’ll do the best we can with the hand we’ve been dealt,” Soule said.