Board of Ed – Budget Recommendations

By Robert E. Jensen
The Desert Independent

January 31, 2010

BLYTHE, Calif – The BAC – Budget Advisory Committee – met this past Wednesday at 3:45 in the Palo Verde District Office for a protracted meeting with disparate individuals representing teachers, classified workers, administrators, parents and board members to hash out and recommend budget cuts that the majority of those involved could live with. Board members Wellman, Ulmer and Underwood were present and noted the mood and wishes of the audience as Budget Tsarina Richardson explained the need for the cuts and ways in which they could be made. Personnel Director Bob Bilek was also present, Dr. Whitney was absent and Jacob Jensen stood in the doorway for a few minutes.

The mood was tense as the majority of the teachers were from Blythe Middle School; the site that Tsarina Richardson indicated she would recommend closure along with the Community Day School and Childhood Development Center if she were “Queen”. When the subject came up of the possibility of all teachers taking a severe pay cut in order to spare BMS, Principal Lois Shaffer discounted such generosity as “Teachers tend to eat their own.’ Rather than go for a 5% pay cut, the group viewed a 5-day unpaid “furlough” for all employees from the top down as more acceptable with salaries remaining the same and step and column advancements being honored. The Childhood Development Center was spared as Principal Suzi Kuykendal downgraded the threat of looming bankruptcy for the site from the dire numbers presented to the board back in December. The CDC will be funded for this year and the next. The Community Day School spares the district from not only losing ADA for kids that normally would be expelled but also from having to pay $3,500 per head to the County for taking on the onerous task of educating them and; as such, was found to be self-supporting and taken off the chopping block.

The Board of Education will have a Special Meeting on Wednesday, Feb. 3 to consider the recommendations of this group or to go with the previously stated wishes of Tsarina Richardson and/or the Cabinet. In brief, the budget cuts are as follows:

1. Shorten the School Year by five “furlough” days. As the Governor has already approved such a truncated school year, the kids will get an extra week of vacation and all employees will end up short one week’s pay. Savings: $450,000.

2. Transform Kindergarten from a full-day model to a half-day model. The kids only come to school for ½ day. The losers in this may well be the aides in each classroom, but Mr. Bilek was confident that they could be transferred by way of attrition to other areas. In this model, two teachers would share a classroom with one acting as an aide to the other teacher for half of the day. Marty Braden stated that the extra cost of transporting students at noon would be “minimal”. Savings: $230,000

3. Eliminate the Academic “Coaches”. These were positions created two years ago for experienced, master teachers in Language Arts and Math to be exempt from classroom duties to confer, monitor and “coach” their peers in the classroom. This “cut” may well be picked up by DAIT funds as this activity was one of the team’s recommendations. Savings: $320,000

4. Revamp bus routes. This comes on the recommendation from parent Alice Dean as she is a local advocate of Walk to School Day every year. She states that other school districts have cut back on all bus services altogether and wants the district to increase the walking distances students need to get to school as not only a health benefit but fiscal one as well. Savings: $100,000

5. “Sweep” the Professional Development Block Grant. “Sweeping” is a term used in which various categorical funds can be freed from their strictures and “swept” into the General Fund for unrestricted usage. This practice is only meant for “Tier III” categorical funds and cannot be used for Federal entitlement programs such as Title One. Much of the Professional Development for staff under DAIT will no doubt also be funded by the same program. Thus, no loss.

  Savings: $90,000.

6. Reorganize Administrative Positions. This may well have to come from Classified Management positions as – in truth – the amount of “fat” cut from Site and District Administration is now at near-amputation status. Nevertheless, the salaries of same could certainly be downgraded. Savings: $150,000

7. Reduce/Reorganize Sports Department. According to Football Coach George Dagnino, this probably happen anyways as a result of CIF or League cutbacks. All schools are under the same budgetary knife and low-participating or Freshman-level sports may be eliminated. Savings: $20,000

8. Reduce the Deferred Maintenance Budget. Savings: $60,000

9. Reduce extra-duty assignments and stipends. These are the “extras” that teachers can earn by advising clubs, doing lunch supervision, running Saturday Schools, tutoring, etc. Savings: $24,000.

10. “Sweep” the Class-Size Reduction monies. This would include the amount that would have been given to Appleby with the QEIA Grant. Savings: $250,000

11. “Sweep” the Pupil Retention Block Grant. This is the fund that pays for the SB 65 Outreach Consultants at every site except for the High School. While the entire grant amounts to over $250,000 to pay for the five consultants, the cut of $100,000 would probably mean that two sites will no longer have their services. This may backfire as these people are dedicated to tracking and improving student attendance. Without a Child Welfare and Attendance officer citing parents to District Attorney Mediation and loss of two of these hands-on positions, attendance could further spiral downwards. Savings: $100,000

12. “Sweep” SLIP – the School Library Improvement Program. This grant allows for the purchase of new materials, books and technology for libraries at each site. Savings: $99,000

13. “Sweep” the Garden Grant. This grant is made possible by the California Women for Agriculture for classrooms in the elementary schools to experience the wonder of growing their own vegetables. One parent has made note that her child comes home every day excited about being able to go outside and see this “living laboratory” take shape. This is one that ought to be able to remain untouched as it enriches each student’s day and the Budget Tsarina seems to forget that this is a very agricultural community. Potential savings: $9,000.

Other programs were spared the knife. Ruth Brown Principal Jeff Blansett advocated “sweeping” the Gifted and Talented Education funds of $25,000 as well; causing more than a few heads to turn. This suggestion, which would deprive the “best and brightest” of enriching activities such as the “Battle of Blythe”, was quickly shouted down by saner folks. The prospect of the Board finally approving a State Waiver for classroom sizes was also shouted down. Most elementary teachers stated that they already had wall-to-wall classes and a BMS Math teacher told of the horrors when she had to teach a class of 41 students and only one was needed to bring pandemonium to the room.

What is needed to balance the budget for next year? $1,500,000. The Budget Advisory Committee went beyond that shortfall with its recommendations to bring the total savings to the district at $1,900,000 – sparing BMS, the CDC and Community Day School. While most in the room felt that these were cuts that they could live with, it may well remain for the members of the collective bargaining groups to chip in and the Supt. to make his recommendations. The Board may also wish to pick and choose from the recommended cuts as well. While all are painful, there is enough room left to retain the Garden Grant, spare the Bus Drivers and leave the SB 65 Outreach program alone for the next year. Should the Supt. recommend the closing of any of the schools, the Board must make a decision so that layoff notices to teachers can be issued prior to the March 15th cutoff date. Everything is still on the plate until the Board makes its decision known on Wednesday. All stakeholders in the schools and community would be well advised to attend.