News Impacting CA School Districts Through February 5
Federal News
As part of its commitment to transparency in governance, the Department of Education is providing the public with the applications it received from states applying to the Race to the Top program.
Sacramento News
The Legislative Analyst Office issued a report Education Mandates: Overhauling a Broken System. The report recommends eliminating the remaining mandates either in whole or part. By relieving schools from performing the vast majority of Kâ14 mandate requirements, resulting in more than $350 million in annual savings.
State Controller John Chiang issued a stern warning about California’s cash reserves, telling legislative leaders and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger they must act on nearly $9 billion in budget cuts the governor is seeking by March â or the state will run out of cash to pay its bills.
The San Diego Unified School District is working to eliminate the costly state penalties that come with raising class sizes past 20 students in the earliest grades. District administrators are working to help establish legislation that would suspend the fines at a time when the state is slashing funding to public education. San Diego Unified is working with local lawmakers to carry a bill.
Reforming State and Local Governance
Californians haven’t a clue where the state gets its money or how it spends it — basic essentials for people who want to run the show.
The California Teachers Association plans to begin gathering signatures for an initiative to repeal corporate tax benefits that lawmakers approved in the past two years. The tax changes are worth an estimated $1.7 billion annually and scheduled to begin in 2011-12. CTA wants to qualify the initiative for the November 2010 ballot.
School District Impacts
Riverside
The Riverside school board voted to lay off 160 elementary school teachers and heard recommendations to close Hyatt Elementary and stop busing to middle and high schools. The elementary teachers who will be given layoff notices include 124 teaching kindergarten through third grade. Those classes will be larger next year, up to 30 students. Those layoffs will save almost $6 million.
Vista
School officials in Vista voted Thursday to accept more than $15 million in spending cuts next year, including more than $8 million worth of items that now need to be negotiated with employee unions. The $8.2 million in “items requiring negotiations,” gave no specifics of what employees will have to give up to reach that amount. It also included laying off support staff, eliminating music in elementary schools, cutting some administrative positions, reducing some school site money and eliminating middle school sports.
Long Beach USD
Although the Long Beach school board unanimously voted to cut $32.6 million from the district’s budget. Class sizes in kindergarten and third grades are expected to increase this fall from 20 to 30 students-per-teacher.
Murrieta Schools
A 7.25 percent salary reduction for all employees is among the options being considered as the Murrieta school district looks to cut into a $14 million budget shortfall for next year. Other options include the combination of furlough days and paycuts or freezing of wages combined with paycuts. Without employees agreeing to some kind of pay cut, more than 225 employees could be laid off and class sizes increased.
Paradise USD
To balance its budget for the upcoming academic year, the Paradise Unified School District will not consider a school closure or cuts to counselors, library specialists and high school athletics. The board did approve a sequence of reductions and savings that will trim $194,267 off expenses of $20.4 million for 2010-11. However, that total represents less than 10 percent of the $2 million goal. Renewed calls for a parcel tax to supplement state and federal funding were discussed.
South Pasadena USD
After passing a parcel tax in June, 2009, South Pasadena is scrambling to cover a new deficit caused by reduced state funding. The problem is compounded by parcel tax language regarding class sizes in grades K-3.
Acalanes High School District
The school board voted to approve a May 4 mail election to ask voters to approve an additional, temporary parcel tax to help the district close a $4.8 million budget gap officials fear could grow even larger. The new parcel tax would be in addition to the district’s current $189 parcel tax, which voters extended indefinitely in November, 2009.
Alvord USD
The Alvord school board discussed at its meeting whether to proceed with layoff notices that may affect 128 jobs for teachers, counselors, school nurses and librarians in 2010-11. Balancing the budget for next year solely by laying off teachers would require 199 layoffs. However, the district couldn’t cut more than 128 teachers without raising class sizes higher than allowed by the California Education Code.
San Ramon Valley USD
The San Ramon Valley school district has released two budget recommendations reflecting expected cutbacks â one with increased class sizes and another with even larger classes and bigger cuts if the district cannot negotiate concessions with its employee unions.
Related posts:
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- News Impacting CA School Districts Through February 12 Federal efforts to address childhood obesity, good Janaury tax reciepts...
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