City School Board members and Superintendent Jean-Claude Brizard listened to another round of protests last night from about 30 parents, students, and teachers regarding the 2009-2010 budget.

The budget, which has already been approved by the School Board in a 4 to 3 vote and by City Council in a 7 to 3 vote, will eliminate about 190 teaching positions. Brizard has stated repeatedly that most of the positions will be eliminated through retirement and attrition.

But as many as 88 teachers may not be rehired in the fall.

Parents and students are concerned that fewer teachers will lead to larger classes; School of the Arts students have been particularly vocal.

"The School Board doesn't seem to understand exactly what these cuts will mean," said Katy Rebholz said.

Rebholz, 17, has been a student at SOTA since she was in sixth grade.

"One of the cuts is our social worker," she said. "It is a major loss because she is the only person in the school who can step in and help students in the way that she does."

School Board members, like members of City Council, received a petition with signatures from more than 1,000 people.

Yesterday, Brizard wrote an e-mail to "friends, colleagues and partners of Rochester City Schools" expressing his gratitude to City Council for passing the district's budget.

Concerned about being described as "anti-art," he said that he is creating a steering committee to help rethink and bring rigor to art and music education throughout the district.

He has also frozen the Superintendent's Employee Group's salaries, as well as his own salary, through 2010.

It does not appear, despite this latest round of protests over the budget, that Brizard intends to back away from cutting teaching positions.

To a teaching staff that exceeds 3,000 professionals, the cuts, Brizard said, are minimal and necessary.