Miami-Dade School Board snubs McGruff

The Crime Dog won’t be making any more appearances at Miami-Dade County Public Schools this year. That’s because the school board eliminated $114,000 from the schools police budget set aside for youth crime prevention programs. The move means junior won’t be learning about “Stranger Danger” or “Stop the Violence,” as well as bully prevention and anger management presentations put on by Citizens’ Crime Watch of Miami-Dade County.

The non-profit group provides one of those alleged non-essential services the school district slashed due to budget cuts. Executive director Carmen Caldwell had to lay off three employees as a result. Yet the school district has money to advertise for an employee relations team leader who could earn between $78,000 to $130,000 a year and five analysts who could cost taxpayers $57,054 to $91,761 a pop on an annual basis. Listen to New Times’ interview with Caldwell about the cuts: