EDITOR’S NOTE: See related stories, and .
The Board of Trustees will consider a budget for 2012-13 which is dramatically smaller than the one for the school year that just ended.
This coming school year, the school district is expecting $323 million in revenues and $331 million in expenses. Compared to last year, total revenues are down 11.4 percent, while total expenses are down 13.4 percent.
The budget assumes voters reject the to help the state fill a budget gap of its own.
In January, Gov. Brown said if his temporary sales tax and income tax on those making more than $250,000 don’t pass, school districts would have to cut the academic year short by three weeks.
That is just what CUSD is proposing in its agreements with its various unions.
In addition, the budget proposes to reduce non-teachers’ salaries, freeze automatic salary increases for teachers and Teamster members and increase class size across all grade levels by 1.5 students per class.
Despite these cuts, the district will face a negative cash flow.
In a certification notice it must send to the Orange County Department of Education, the district answers the question, “Do cash flow projections show that the district will end the budget year with a negative cash balance in the general fund?” with a yes.
Last year, that question was answered with a no, but still the district did not make it through to the end of the school year without having to take and asking for the state .
Other features of the budget
It redirects – or in district parlance “sweeps” – $11 million targeted for specific programs into the general fund. , some of these moves may include the defunding of:
- Advanced Placement fee reimbursement
- PE teacher incentive grants
- Community-based English tutors
- Intensive instruction for students studying to take the California High School Exit Exam
- School counselor grants (for grades 7-12)
- Administrative training program
- Pupil retention block grants
In addition, many programs will be drastically reduced and offered on a “minimal basis,” including:
- Almost all of the summer school budget
- $1.2 of the $1.6 million for deferred maintenance
- $226,441 of the $333,730 for GATE students
- Most—$2 million of the $2.8 million—for textbook repair, replacement
The budget also redirects $1.2 million in deferred maintenance to the general fund.
Expenditures in a super category called “books and supplies” will increase slightly, but actual purchases of new books will be down, 25 percent for textbooks and core curricula material and 98.5 percent in books and other reference materials.
The additional spending comes from a 24.6-percent increase in “materials and supplies.” There's no notation explaining what these might be and why their price is going up.
While the required-by-law threshold of keeping 2 percent of the district’s cash in reserves is maintained in the proposed budget, the actual number has decreased by 13.1 percent to reflect the overall smaller budget. Last year, the district had $7.6 million in reserves. This year, it will have $1 million less.
The trustees meet 7 p.m. Wednesday at the district headquarters, 33122 Valle Road in San Juan Capistrano.
"I'm sorry, mathteacher, we don't allow personal attacks against other commentators." At best, this is selective memory, at worst, selective enforcement. But always, full of good intentions.
But in the end, this site runs 24-7, and I occasionally cover, you know, NEWS. And sleep.
Person B gets chastised. Person A ... nothing. Odd? Perhaps, but that fits the selective enforcement thingy. As fair as you are, this is a hard thing to moderate, I agree. But it is usually the second foul, (and only the second foul) that gets called.
And yeah, sometimes, I like to eat. Or take my kids to their various events.
The problem is as fact checker says there is less to spend.
In every profession there are underperformers, but when a union is involved, these underperformers are encouraged to continue their despicable ways. “Average” teachers need a performance plan that will put them in the “Great" category. I think Amazing teachers cannot be created. They come with a passion for educating those under their stewardship that is a gift they bring to humanity, but average teachers can be taught skills to become great. This is where our money should be going, and below average and “get out of my school I hate you” teachers should not be tolerated for one single day. Without a union this could happen.
We need to stop bashing the teachers and look at changes that will really make a difference. What about getting rid of the redundant County Dept of Education, getting rid of wasteful positions at the State Board of Education, demanding equalization in state funding, and demanding the federal portion of Special Education? There is no good reason that Laguna Beach Unified should be getting more tax money per pupil than CUSD based on an antiquated 30 year old formula, yet despite PTAs, parents, and others pulling for this, nothing happens in Sacramento. Additionally, demanding the federal funding of the federally mandated costs of Special needs children would halt the ever encroaching drain on the general fund.
Things can go ugly quick here, so if I see someone veering toward the personal, I gently nudge him back to the topic at hand. If something's actually a violation to Patch's Terms of Service (as I see fit, sorry, them's the rules), I delete it altogether. It can be an exhausting task because people are very emotional about their schools, and unfortunately, bad behavior has been exhibited by all sides. On a related note, if someone posts information I know to be inaccurate, I correct it. I don't take a stand myself, but I do present the information I have gathered in my reporting. I want Patch to be an open forum for ALL, but unfortunately, some factions believe if I allow others who disagree with them to post, that somehow, we're in "bed" with them. I don't shut down varying viewpoints on the issues, just personal attacks on private citizens.
Well written, but I do take exception to certain facts as you portray them. The strike was a concerted effort by CTA and CUEA to get control of or being in a position to greatly influence the board and how trustees are elected. CTA didn't put up $250,000 for nothing. Brilliant organization and strategy. CTA & CUEA won. Almost 2 years later we see the results. Even in the face of devastating cuts, the teachers union will not even considered modest pay cuts with no reduction in health benefits and possibly a slight reduction in pension benefits. Instead, it wants the maximum amount of furlough days in order to inflict the maximum amount of pain on the students & parents in CUSD in order to get the parents to get rid of furlough days ASAP. Nothing says it's all about the children - NOT, better. To make matters worse, there will be additional release days for teachers, meaning teachers get paid for not working in the class, and CUSD has to pay for subs, brilliant! To make matters even more damming, CUSD continues to pay roughly $225,000 for the salaries & benefits of the presidents of CUEA & CSEA even though neither does any work for CUSD! What has occurred was easily foreseeable. My message to the teachers union and its members, look at what has happened in WI, San Diego, San Jose, New Jersey & most recently, Stockton.
You misread the last part of my post. I was not advocating or suggesting that public employee unions be eliminated. Instead, it was a stark warning of what is happening, and the fact many (not all) public employee unions are not correctly reading the tea leaves and that they wrongful assume overwhelming public support for them on all issues. IMHO, the teachers union in CUSD falls in that category. Well see what happens in November.
I think whoever said that was, shall we say, a little intoxicated, because the appropriate thing to have blurted would have been "No good deed shall go unpunished" Otherwise, everyone would be trying to do a good deed, like doing some volunteer work, offer solutions that will be ridiculed, hum "Friday, Friday" in their spare time...
Local control is a great concept. While working for local control of funding it is also possible for teachers, parents, staff and trustees to work TOGETHER to make decisions about what they CAN control.
There are some great teachers in CUSD-but they are the exception, not the rule. The majority are pulled down to a lower level of practice by the fact that all they have to do is get by. Their lesson plans are in place, their class sizes are increasing. There is simply no incentive to do more. Some teachers will spend the summer trying to figure out how to fit their whole curriculum into 3 weeks less, but most will not. mathteacher asks how I'd react in a tenured position. The answer is; I wouldn't. I'd never embrace a career where my efforts and achievements wouldn't be recognized, where I wouldn't be accountable for my mistakes. I'd never choose to balance my livelihood on the backs on children.
What do you mean by "work TOGETHER" exactly? What is your suggestion?