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There IS a Better Way to Fund California Education

By Marty Hittelman
President
California Federation of Teachers

The governor’s proposed budget for schools and other vital public services will impede efforts to provide high-quality education. Our schools rank dead last in the nation for the number of teachers per student, as well as in the number of librarians, counselors and critical support staff, while having some of the largest class sizes in the nation. California is 46th in the nation in per-pupil spending.

The governor’s budget proposal keeps our schools and students at the bottom of those rankings, despite recent studies that show California needs to spend 40 percent more to ensure that all students meet the state’s rigorous standards.

The governor’s budget revision tries to protect education, but lacks the funding to do it. Continuing to balance this budget with a cuts-only approach hurts children, schools and the economic future of California. The final budget agreement must be built squarely on new progressive tax revenues to protect education funding.

The founders of this nation did not say, “No new taxes.” They said, “No taxation without representation.” We do have “representation.” We elect people to serve in government and to make decisions about the best way to address challenges of common liking, we can choose not to re-elect them. Any legislator who makes a blanket “no new taxes pledge” is abdicating his or her responsibility. Taxes are the price we pay for living in a civilized society.

Selling bonds based on future lottery proceeds is not the answer. It postpones some of the hurt that the governor’s budget proposal would inflict, but it also shifts the burden to adequately fund education and other vital services into the future. The lottery gamble would also undercut future revenue that already is currently targeted for education from lottery proceeds. Lotteries across the U.S. are heading downward in revenues, not upward. Whether this dip is due to the competition from Indian casinos, Internet poker or the economic slowdown, no one knows. But the lottery proposal adds up to a very bad gamble for education.

There is a better way to fund education and other vital services. It’s time to restore the top income tax brackets, close loopholes like the yacht owners’ tax break, and join the other twenty oil-producing states in imposing a severance tax on the giant oil corporations. Restoring the top income tax brackets makes good fiscal sense. That’s where the money is hiding. The top one per cent of the economic pyramid—people who make $300,000 per year and more—own more than one third of the wealth.

They can well afford to pay more than they are currently paying in order to educate California’s students and maintain the health care of our residents. Many wealthy individuals have expressed a willingness to help. Billionaire Warren Buffet, for instance, has been quoted forthrightly proclaiming that he is taxed too little for the amount of money he makes. Bill Gates Sr., co-founder of the group “Responsible Wealth,” has argued for the preservation of the estate tax. It is politicians that have lacked the political courage to reasonably tax those that can best afford it.

Shifting the bulk of the cuts to health and human services is a disguised cut to education. These programs aren’t isolated from schools. Our students need to come to school ready to learn, and they can’t do that when they are hungry or sick. That is why the California Federation of Teachers is fighting for adequate funding for all vital services, not just education. In short, the governor is proposing to take from those who can least afford it and refusing to ask for anything from those whom can best afford it.
This is not the route to a better California.

School kids did not cause this crisis. Their teachers and school staff are being confronted with uncertain futures. This year I have seen teachers crying as they describe their feelings upon receiving layoff notices, and possibly losing the careers they worked so hard to prepare for. Even though many of these notices have been rescinded for the time being, the faith of these teachers in their future careers has been shaken. Many of these really great teachers, recognizing for the first time the instability of public education financing in California, won’t be coming back. This will be a lasting loss for our future generations of students.

The people of California rely on their schools and other vital public services. A progressive tax policy that asks the people who have benefited the most from living in California to pay their fair share is the only reasonable alternative to massive program cuts.

Marty Hittelman is the elected President of the California Federation of Teachers (CFT) which is a member of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT). The CFT represents faculty and other school employees in public and private schools and colleges, from early childhood through higher education.

Posted on June 10, 2008

 

California Progress Report

 

 

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Budget shortfall forces L.A. Unified to cut 500 jobs
The school board approves $400 million in cuts while avoiding teacher layoffs. But the action also includes forcing employees to take a four-day unpaid leave.
By Jason Song and Howard Blume
Los Angeles Times Staff Writers

June 11, 2008

The Los Angeles Board of Education voted Tuesday to slash about $400 million from the state's largest school system by cutting 507 administrative staff and clerical workers and requiring that all employees take a four-day unpaid leave. The board's action avoids the heavy teacher layoffs and class-size increases that are facing smaller school districts throughout the state.

Based on the current state budget, the Los Angeles Unified School District would have to make more than $700 million in cuts over the next three years, barring restored state funding, and could be forced to pack more students in classrooms after next year, board members said.

"I'm concerned about the viability of doing business on a day-to-day basis" in the future, said Richard Vladovic, one of six board members who voted to approve the budget reductions.

Board member Marguerite Poindexter LaMotte abstained out of concern that programs targeting minority, low-achieving students would be adversely affected.

The cuts are a result of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's latest proposed budget, which provides a $193-million increase in state education funding over last year but does not provide a cost-of-living increase and does not fully fund certain programs, which will have to be paid for with unrestricted general fund money.

Last week, L.A. Unified estimated that it would still face a nearly $370-million shortfall in its $6-billion budget, but because of lower than expected revenues, the district had to cut $402.5 million Tuesday.

District administrators and board members said they wanted to keep cuts as far from classrooms as possible. As a result, the majority of reductions will come from such actions as reducing payments to injured workers and delaying textbook purchases.

The board voted to eliminate a total of 680 jobs, including 65 math and reading coaches, 19 school nurses and 19 counselors. One hundred and seventy-three of those positions are vacant, and many affected employees have "bumping" rights, meaning they could still be employed but would take pay cuts and displace less senior workers.

District officials did not issue preliminary layoff notices to any teachers earlier in the year, although the district is not legally required to notify probationary teachers that they could be let go. But Roger Buschmann, the district's chief human resources officer, said teachers are safe.

"I do not anticipate releasing any teachers. Zero," he said.

Districts throughout the state, including Santa Ana, San Diego and Rialto, have been issuing preliminary pink slips to balance their books.

The majority of non-classroom jobs targeted for layoffs -- about 240 -- come from the California School Employees Assn., which primarily represents clerical and technical employees.

"Some of the cuts made sense, but the ones in human resources and personnel are going to have devastating effects. . . . There will be a trickle-down effect to schools because people won't know who will answer their questions," said Connie Moreno, a union representative.

Supt. David Brewer acknowledged that "services that matter are being cut."

Three divisions were spared the budget ax, including the Innovation Division, Brewer's signature academic reform initiative.

The school police department will not be trimmed, and neither will the budget of recently hired Senior Deputy Supt. Ramon Cortines, who has made enhancing student safety a top priority.

The board also only trimmed $3 million from the janitorial program, about half the originally proposed amount. "Clean bathrooms were an important thing we needed to preserve," said Chief Financial Officer Megan K. Reilly.

The board also approved a mandatory four-day furlough that would save $54.4 million over the next year. Officials have not worked out details but Cortines said he hoped to target the district's best compensated employees for the unpaid leave program.

"The lowest paid are the ones who can least afford that kind of situation," he said.

United Teachers Los Angeles President A.J. Duffy vowed to fight any forced unpaid leaves. Over district objections, the union successfully staged an hourlong teacher protest last week during school hours and has threatened to schedule further actions.

"I don't care what they do, they can sell [headquarters] for all I care. If they impose furlough days, we will mobilize against that," he said.

If the district cuts more from their downtown offices on Beaudry Avenue, Duffy said the union would back down.

The board authorized nearly $55.4 million in cuts from central offices.

"That's just not enough," Duffy said.

The board could authorize further cuts this summer. "We've done a lot of shaving," Cortines said. "You can shave to a point where a program is no longer meaningful, which means you might have to look at elimination."

LaMotte said that some of the cuts would unfairly target programs that help minorities, including the Ten Schools Program aimed at the lowest-performing schools mostly in South Los Angeles, and said she was concerned that racism played a role in the decision.

"I hate to put the big 'r' word on the table . . . [but] the darker the skin, the deeper the cuts," said LaMotte, who is African American.

Board member Tamar Galatzan, whose San Fernando Valley district includes some affluent neighborhoods, took issue with the suggestion that schools serving poor students were unfairly targeted.

"This doesn't just have to do with some high-needs schools," Galatzan said. "This is kind of a lose-lose for everybody . . . regardless of the color of your skin and how much money your parents may have."

Brewer headed off a possible argument over whose schools fared worse. "This is a forced budget. Obviously, when a family comes under attack, it's time to pull together, not fall apart."

jason.song@latimes.com           howard.blume@latimes.com

 

From the Los Angeles Times

 

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State budget process crippled by chronic shortsightedness

By Leon E. Panetta and Thomas McKernan - Special to The Bee
Published 12:00 am PDT Sunday, June 22, 2008

Ask any cardiologist: By the time you are buckled over with chest pain – you think your heart is about to explode and you are terrified of dropping dead on the spot – it's too late for diet and exercise. When that moment arrives, your only choices are painful and expensive – and if you survive, recovery will take time.

Our state's fiscal pains are no different. We have long ignored the budget versions of "diet and exercise," and elected officials face painful budget surgery and politically lethal tax increases. Given the role of ballot initiatives and the churning caused by term limits, today's legislators for the most part inherited the difficult choices that confront them. And ironically, the most significant reforms they could make will benefit their successors much more than themselves. But that is the immediate peril of leadership and the delayed gratification of legacy.

In a Capitol where deficits have become routine and partisanship is a virtue, it is hard to see how a deal will be struck before the state runs out of cash in September. But history tells us that there is a deal to be had – and the question is which programs will be cut, who's taxes will be raised and how much will be added to the growing tab being left for the next generation of Californians.

What is less certain is whether California's leaders will do anything as part of that budget deal that will begin to put the state on the road to a healthy recovery. Even an honestly balanced budget, by itself, will not address the causes of chronic budget deficits, growing dissatisfaction with the performance of essential public programs and increasing distrust of government. Just as bypass surgery only buys time, unless long-term reforms are enacted, California's fiscal ills will quickly return.

Diagnosing the state's fiscal problems is not difficult. In recent years there have been more than a dozen thoughtful critiques of the dysfunctional fiscal relationship between the state and the thousands of local governments, of the volatile and antiquated state tax system, and the increasingly obscure process for allocating more than $140 billion each year through the state budget.

To begin a public dialogue on fiscal reforms, California Forward, a bipartisan organization, distilled the analyses of the budget process into a set of problems and principles. Those concepts were refined by examining the best practices in other states, then informed and validated by conversations with scores of community leaders and daylong meetings with randomly selected Californians.

Through this process, we identified five overarching issues:

• Out of control costs: The costs of operating state programs are growing faster than the revenue base supporting them. State leaders need better ways to identify and control costs and make sure the state doesn't commit to programs it cannot support.

• Volatile revenues: The revenue system is highly sensitive to changes in the economy, producing significant volatility. The state needs to better manage that revenue to stabilize budgets and make the tax systems more reliable.

• Short-term fixes: The single-year budgeting horizon encourages short-term fixes rather than long-term solutions. Multiyear planning can help ensure that policy choices are sound and programs are managed to reduce costs and deliver results.

• No performance standards: The budget does not take a strategic approach to ensure a return on public investments. Setting priorities and goals can focus the public and policy-makers on how the money gets spent, not just how much more will be spent than the year before.

• Little oversight: There is a lack of public and legislative review of how money is spent. Both legislators and the public think there should be a more thorough and consistent review of how effectively dollars are spent.

For each one of these problems, we identified conceptual solutions that have been recommended or implemented by other governments – from a "Pay-Go system" to make sure new programs don't run up future deficits, to multiyear fiscal plans that make sure budget deals really pencil out. Many of these reforms have been endorsed or enacted elsewhere by bipartisan organizations or through bipartisan agreements.

The assessment of California Forward's own bipartisan Leadership Council is that some of these solutions may be favored by Republicans or Democrats, but together a package of reforms with these elements would improve fiscal stability, the performance and accountability of public programs, and the public's understanding of how their money is spent. No one should disagree with those goals, and so we have no time to lose getting to work on the details.

It might help our besieged leaders to know that these are reforms that Californians would like to see. It is easy, by looking at the polling and listening to the interest groups, to see why elected officials have difficulty reaching a deal. Few Californians want to raise their own taxes or see cuts to the programs they cherish.

But from six daylong dialogues with Californians throughout the state, we know that there is broad belief that the budget process is irrational and – accurately or not – that poor decisions are being made about where their money gets spent. Making the budget process more rational and more responsive to the state's needs is clearly a top priority of Californians.

The participants supported taking two concrete reform steps as soon as possible to restore public trust in the system:

• First, they want to be able to see where their money is going and whether programs are working.

• And second, they want to get off this roller coaster of boom-and-bust budget cycles. They acknowledge the weakness of our current system, where budget decisions are made in a single year and revenue volatility makes spending decisions exponentially more painful every year. But they want long-term budgeting and planning, where the system is flexible enough to respond to changing circumstances. They want the government to explain the impacts of their budget decisions beyond the current year and make visible improvements for future generations.

California Forward heard similar concerns from community leaders in regional forums last winter and spring. In Los Angeles and Fresno, San Jose and San Francisco, community leaders argued less about the size of government and emphasized instead the effectiveness of government. Business leaders in particular seemed perplexed that state leaders don't set priorities or goals when allocating billions of dollars, or track results. Some local government leaders – such as in San Mateo and San Diego – have been doing this for years and are waiting for the state to get on board.

These are changes our Legislature and governor can implement this year. To the extent that new revenue will be used to balance the budget, these reforms could bring comfort to Republicans that the money will be better spent. To the extent that Democrats want to protect vulnerable Californians, stable and steady improvement in outcomes is a far better strategy than boom and bust.

That was part of the deal that was struck in Virginia, which consistently receives high marks from the Government Performance Project of the Pew Center on the States. Virginia's state budget does not focus on how much money will be spent, but what the state is doing with the money. A view of progress toward goals is readily available.

By comparison, in California we have long-running debates about whether we can even fairly track performance – as if we don't have to do a better job every year.

We know that putting these types of improvements in place will be difficult. Any change that will limit the influence of interest groups or increase the public scrutiny of public programs will have opponents concentrated in the Capitol, while the beneficiaries – taxpayers, parents, clients and patients – will be distributed in neighborhoods around the state.

For more than a generation, California's fiscal systems have continued to devolve into a complex mess under which it is difficult for officials to make good decisions and for the public to know whether their money is well spent.

In the 1990s, our country faced serious financial challenges, and the government's money problems were being felt on Wall Street and Main Street. At the federal level, we were running huge deficits and debt mounted during relative peace and prosperity. Fiscal decisions were not based on what was in the nation's long-term best interest, and we committed ourselves to making the public interest our lodestar. We entered into negotiations, Congress and the White House, Democrats and Republicans. We agreed to put everything on the table – and nothing was agreed to until everything was agreed to. When we were finished, we had brought the federal budget into balance, and established a "Pay-Go" policy that required elected leaders to make difficult decisions rather than push debt onto the next Congress and the next generation.

For just as long, smart Californians have recommended similar solutions, but reforms have not been put in place.

California Forward was created in part to make it easier for elected officials to take on the politically dangerous task of putting in place public-interest reforms. The budget principles were assembled to start a bipartisan discussion – and when we agree on the principles, we can work on the details. The more Californians are involved, the easier it will be for their elected representatives to find principled compromises.

We know that these types of reforms can find bipartisan support. They are a step in the right direction, and California Forward wants to contribute to their adoption and success. It will be challenging, but for California to achieve its economic, social and environmental goals, our leaders must make these comprehensive changes to how key decisions are made. The state has had enough of fiscal crisis. It is time for leadership.


Go to: Sacbee / Back to story

 

California Forward

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Treating Parents as Our Customers

Paul D. Houston
We are often told that we should act more like a business. Setting aside the obvious problem that children are not widgets, you still are left with the chore of sorting out who the customers are.

One of the greatest problems of American education is a confusion over who we serve. Some would argue that the children are the customers. They sit in the seat each day receiving instruction. Others believe the community, big business, colleges or even the military are the customer since they hire or place the student.

I believe the parent is the customer. Customers are the people who can choose to take their business elsewhere. Students are captive to the process and the broader community must live with the product regardless. Students should be considered the workers since it is their productivity that really counts. The broader community, business and the rest are the shareholders. They own stock in the operation. These distinctions become very important when you understand that shareholders have very different expectations and values than customers. Shareholders want return on investment. Customers want value and service.

Parental Savvy

With this in mind, AASA recently conducted a major poll of public school parents--our customers. And what we found out was fascinating.

First, we found that parents really get it. They have a very sophisticated understanding of their children's schools and what their children need.

Far too often educators, policymakers and the critics have underestimated parents and their knowledge of what makes a good school or how good their own child's school is. Our study showed us we underestimate them at our own peril. Parents can be and should be the school system leader's greatest ally. They want what is best for their children--so should you.

Our study gives us much to celebrate and some things to be concerned about. It provides a clear set of issues for the savvy school leader.

First the good news. Parents of public school children generally are very pleased with their child's education. They feel, overall, schools are doing pretty well. They see some things we could be doing better, but the general mood is positive and upbeat. They like the idea of public school choice, but a majority believe they already have choice and they don't see choice as something that would lead to big improvements in their school.

That tells us that years of rhetoric and millions of dollars have not created as much traction on the voucher issue as proponents would have liked. In fact, three out of four never have considered pulling their children out of public schools. They are very supportive of the values that underpin public education and see public schools as the place where common American values are taught and caught. However, that also tells us that one in four has had concerns and should cause us to wonder what we should be doing better.

The study offers clues. For example, the biggest issue for parents is student safety and they feel that disruptive students should be excluded from regular classrooms. But they also want to see that these students receive an education in alternative programs. They understand that learning cannot happen in an environment that is unsafe or disrupted. But they also understand that a society that tosses its problems on the street is a society that will pay a much higher price later on.

Parents want to have meaningful involvement in their children's education. And to the extent that they feel involved, they are more positive.

One way of making this happen is to provide parent centers and academies in schools. Parents who feel a strong sense of influence over their children's education are the ones least likely to have thought of removing their children from public school or supporting vouchers.

Good Business for All

While parents understand what many policymakers have not grasped--that tests are useful tools for assessing how well things are going--they don't think they are the goal. The most important thing for them is to see their children excited about learning. And they don't want to see the curriculum narrowed only to prepare kids for tests because they know that life is much more than a test. They think we are doing exactly that.

The highest value for parents is to have children who are safe and who are excited about their learning. If that happens they believe the tests will take care of themselves.

Despite the negative publicity schools get, good news resonates more powerfully with parents than does bad news. And the most trusted source of information for them is their own child.

Any good public relations program you have must start with the children. A good start would involve teachers asking children every afternoon to recap what they did in school today and then to ask them what they did that was most exciting. Children who can go home excited about what they did in school are worth more than gold.

Parents want smaller classes, particularly in the lower grades, a good teacher in their classroom who lights their children's fire, good principals who involve parents in the learning enterprise and up-to-date textbooks.

Superintendents who can design systems to produce these things have job security for life. And that would be good business for everyone.

Paul Houston is AASA executive director

 

American Association of School Administrators

 

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California classrooms feel the pinch

By Rajesh Mirchandani
BBC News, Los Angeles

As thousands of schoolchildren in California look forward to their summer break, the spectre of huge budget cuts has left many of their parents wondering what the next school year will bring.

"Pick on someone your own size," announces a fearless eight-year-old at Parthenia Elementary School in North Hills, California - a complex of single-storey buildings in the San Fernando Valley, where 85% of students are Hispanic, more than half of them learning to speak English.

The school is in a disadvantaged area: classrooms have metal security grilles on the windows; doors are kept locked; all 730 pupils qualify for free meals.

But that plucky eight-year-old was not facing down a bully. He was taking part in a classroom discussion about courage.

These second-graders have been learning about the Reverend Martin Luther King, and show a commitment to learning that is impressive.

Parthenia may not be a place of academic brilliance, but it is a place of achievement: an improving school or, as principal Marcia Jackman tells me, "an inspiring school".


Nobody wants to lose money, obviously, but they recognise without it people are going to lose jobs
Marcia Jackman
Principal, Parthenia Elementary

Yet she says her school faces budget cuts that will hurt.

"One of the things we're losing is professional development days - so that's 18 hours of teacher training that we won't have," she says.

"And teacher training is so important if you want to change classroom practice and improve student achievement."

In addition, she says class sizes could rise and teachers are being forced to take four days' unpaid leave.

"Nobody wants to lose money, obviously, but they recognise without it people are going to lose jobs."

Budget balancing

In fact earlier this year, when nearly $5bn (£2.5bn) of education cuts were first announced in California, 20,000 teachers were sent "pink slips" warning them their jobs were at risk. It led to demonstrations in several cities across the state.

Since then, state officials have revised their plans. They say core education funding is protected and that most teachers' jobs are safe.


But critics complain everything but the core is being slashed. And teachers' unions say cuts of more than $4bn are still looming.
Once the envy of the entire United States, California's public education system now ranks in the bottom five states for per-pupil funding.

Why is California proposing these cuts? Because with the economic slowdown and falling revenue from sales and property taxes, the state faces a budget deficit that could top $20bn this year.

In March, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger refused to rule out tax rises and deep cuts in services, including education - anything, he said, that could help make ends meet.

"This is not the way to bolster the budget," says Megan Reilly, chief financial officer of Los Angeles Unified School District, the largest single education authority in the state, running more than 1,100 schools.

It must save $400m next year and is slicing wherever it can, including shedding more than 500 clerical staff. The alternative, says Ms Reilly, would be drastic.

"[The proposed savings are] the equivalent of closing 22 high schools. That means displacing about 62,000 students, putting them and converging them in already overcrowded classes in schools. It's a huge cut to education here in Los Angeles," she says.

Parental funding

It is not just schools like Parthenia Elementary, in low-income areas, that feel they could lose out.

A few miles away in Valley Village is Riverside Drive Elementary School. It is in an upmarket neighbourhood, and parents are expected to contribute towards school facilities.

Barbara Bernato says she spends as much as $2,000 each year to provide the school with basics.


When I ask her what would happen if she did not contribute, she says: "The kids would not have pencils, they would not have paper. By a certain point in the year they would not have supplies."
She goes on, clearly exasperated: "They would not have physical education. They would not have a computer lab. They have a computer lab that's completely paid for by the parents. They've a computer teacher that's completely paid for by the parents."

Members of the Parent Teachers' Association (PTA) at Riverside Drive estimate they are looking at a 25% cut in the school's operating budget next year.

"We're a poor school in an affluent area," parent and PTA president Jane Pool tells me. She thinks funding cuts will oblige parents to dig even deeper.

"I've heard this directly from the superintendent of schools, because I'm an advocate and I've gone to them. [I said] we need help, we need a new Xerox machine, ours is broken. And his answer to me is 'Oh you'll make the money, you'll buy it'.

"No! I'm not having another cookie sale! You pay for this! How much do we have to cough up? It's unfair."

Some middle-class parents, like Jane and Barbara, feel they're discriminated against: while schools in poor areas get extra federal funding, theirs does not, and they feel the tax revenue they pay to the state is not allocated fairly.

But despite the differences with schools like Parthenia Elementary, it is clear many parents and teachers share similar concerns about the level of all-round education schools are able to provide.

State education budgets will not be finalised for a few weeks. But it is clear, as hundreds of thousands of pupils in California celebrate the end of the school year, many in this state wonder what the next one will bring.


Story from BBC NEWS

 

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Schools Chief Jack O'Connell Commends Senate for

Budget Plan That Prioritizes Public Education

SACRAMENTO — State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell today issued the following statement regarding a budget proposal passed today by the Senate Budget Subcommittee on Education:

"I commend the Senate Leadership and members of the Senate Budget Subcommittee on Education for approving a budget that prioritizes public education by rejecting the proposed across-the-board cuts to most categorical programs and including funding for a cost-of-living increase. In light of the magnitude of California's budget crisis, I applaud the Senate's efforts to protect funding for core instructional programs in our public schools.

"I am pleased by the Senate Subcommittee's action to develop an innovative program that combines our goals of growing the ‘green economy' and expanding the highly successful California Partnership Academy program. As this concept is considered through the legislative process, I look forward to working with members of the Budget Committee, the California Community Colleges, and the Governor to further develop the parameters of this project.

"As the Senate and Assembly budget proposals go to the Budget Conference Committee, the challenge ahead is to complete a timely, fair, and reasonable budget that continues to keep education as a priority and allows schools to maintain critical services as well as plan for the upcoming school year.

"I will continue to work with the Legislature and the Governor toward a final budget agreement that protects California public school students and schools."

 

Schools Chief Jack O'Connell

Comments on Assembly Budget Proposal

That Protects Public Education
SACRAMENTO — State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell today issued the following statement regarding the budget proposal passed today by the Assembly Budget Subcommittee for Education Finance:

"I congratulate the Assembly for crafting a responsible education budget that recognizes California's difficult fiscal situation. This is a fair, reasonable and rational approach that prioritizes our state's most precious resource: our children.

"This proposal rejects the shortsighted proposal to make across the board cuts to public education. It restores funding for important categorical programs and also provides a modest cost of living increase for our public schools.

"I encourage the Senate and the Governor to consider this proposal favorably."

 

  Jack O'Connell — State Superintendent of Public Instruction

 

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California Teachers Challenge Proposed Cuts
By REBECCA CATHCART

 

LOS ANGELES — Tens of thousands of teachers formed picket lines outside nearly 900 schools here Friday morning to protest cuts to education financing proposed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to help close California’s projected $17 billion budget gap.

If passed, the cuts would reduce financing for Los Angeles schools by $340 million next year, said A. J. Duffy, president of United Teachers of Los Angeles, the local teachers union.

Mr. Duffy said the union, which represents 48,000 teachers, had announced plans for the hourlong protest more a month ago, allowing principals and teachers in the Los Angeles Unified School District, the nation’s second-largest K-12 public school system, to work together to plan supervision of almost 700,000 students between 7:30 and 8:30 a.m. Substitute teachers and administrators from neighboring districts were brought in to sit with students in auditoriums, gymnasiums and on playgrounds, he said.

When the protest ended at 8:30 a.m., teachers reported to their classrooms for their regular duties. School district officials said they opposed the budget cuts, but denounced the protest as a disruption of the school day. The district failed to win a court injunction in early May to prevent teachers from leaving their classes to take part in the protest.

On Thursday night, Superintendent David Brewer sent an automated call to parents, notifying them of the protest and calling it “the wrong message” to send to legislators and to the community.

At 7:30 Friday morning, teachers wearing red T-shirts and carrying signs with slogans like “Honk for No Budget Cuts” were joined by some parents on sidewalks outside their schools. Many smiled and waved at morning commuters, some of whom sounded their horns.

 

The New York Times

 

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Budget protest takes L.A. teachers out of classrooms

In a one-hour demonstration at the beginning of the day, instructors picket outside schools. Many parents join in. The district reports no safety problems.
By Jason Song and Phil Willon
Los Angeles Times Staff Writers

June 7, 2008

Thousands of Los Angeles teachers protested proposed state budget cuts Friday in a morning job action that delayed the beginning of class for most students but caught the attention of state and local politicians and parents. The hourlong demonstrations were peaceful as students were supervised in gyms, athletic fields and auditoriums.

The district twice tried to stop the demonstration during the week because they were concerned about student safety. No injuries were reported and attendance throughout the district was typical for a Friday in June -- about 94%, Los Angeles Unified School District officials said.

The demonstration was intended to draw attention to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's latest budget, which provides a $193-million increase over last year's education funding but does not include a cost-of-living increase and cuts support to some programs. As a result, L.A. Unified estimates that it will face a $353-million shortfall. The district's Board of Education is preparing to vote on the district budget Tuesday.

The protests, which drew widespread media attention, appeared to achieve its goal, union and other officials said.

State Assembly Speaker Karen Bass (D-Los Angeles) said the demonstrators -- who included teachers in red T-shirts, parents with young children and students -- were heard by the governor and state lawmakers wrestling with a $17-billion budget shortfall. She said Democrats in the Assembly and Senate will not accept any budget that is balanced through cuts only.

"I absolutely support the action taken by the teachers, and if it wasn't for the swearing-in activities, I would have walked on the picket line right along with them," said Bass at her ceremonial inauguration as Assembly speaker at Los Angeles Trade Technical College. "What the teachers did today was they sounded the alarm for the people of Los Angeles to understand how serious this crisis is."

Even Schwarzenegger, who asked teachers to report to their classrooms on time, said he understood their frustration.

If he were a teacher he too would be upset at the state "that we have a broken budget system that is taking schools on a roller-coaster ride continuously," he said in a conference call with reporters Friday.

Teachers union President A.J. Duffy called the coordinated demonstrations "a great day for the teachers of L.A." but said the protest would have been more powerful if Supt. David Brewer had walked the line as well.

"If he was standing next to me . . . then no Legislature, no governor would try to take the kind of cuts out of education that they're talking about," said Duffy, who was joined by about 150 protesters at Los Angeles High School in mid-city.

Brewer, who had unsuccessfully sought a temporary restraining order against the job action, said the protests were "just not a smart move." Duffy, the superintendent said, "can't ask me to condone something that is illegal."

Not all teachers or schools joined in the walkout. Locke High, for example, did not participate for fear that it would be too disruptive. District officials said that about 75% of the union's 48,000 members took part, but the union said that estimate was slightly low.

Doug Ahler, 24, was among the L.A. High teachers who joined Duffy.

"I am particularly interested in this because I'm a first-year teacher," said Ahler, who teaches social studies. "I'm just doing whatever I can to fight to keep my job."

District officials have said that they hope to avoid cuts in the classroom but that about 6,500 probationary teachers like Ahler could be laid off, a move the union has vowed to fight.

At Belvedere Elementary School in East Los Angeles, about 300 parents, teachers and students banged drums, shook maracas and hoisted bilingual signs reading "Save our schools," some hand-lettered in crayon and marker.

A handful of teachers and volunteers at the school monitored about 300 to 400 students at a basketball court behind the school while younger students watched a movie indoors. The teachers who watched the students said they did so in solidarity with the protesting teachers to ensure the children were safe. Only children whose parents attended the protest were allowed to participate in it.

Edward Stepanian, a second-grade teacher who helped organize the protest, rallied the morning crowd with a bullhorn.

"We want more books, we want better classrooms, we just want what we need to give the students a good education," he said.

At University High, teachers and parents complained that the school is already starved for funds. Although the campus is outwardly beautiful, with a graceful, Italianate main building often used in movie shoots, it has not been given the money it needs for proper maintenance and operations, they said.

Dana Mortimer, a parent who is a member of the school's management committee and a 1981 graduate, said she has been asked to vote on whether to spend money on toilet paper or campus security because there wasn't money for both.

Cassandra Miramontes, a sophomore who joined the protest, said she didn't want to lose any of her teachers and that she wasn't happy to be skipping class.

"That's not what it's about," she said.

Reading teacher Kyle Moody, 28, said he wanted to call the governor's attention to illiteracy.

"We have ninth and 10th graders in our schools that can't read," he said, which "only proves that we have to put more resources in our schools, not less."

jason.song@latimes.com

phil.willon@latimes.com

Times staff writers Mitchell Landsberg, Alice Short, Tami Abdollah, Molly Hennessy-Fiske and Francisco Vara-Orta contributed to this report.

 

From the Los Angeles Times

 

Judge allows L.A. teachers to protest California education budget
The school district loses a bid to block the demonstration. Teachers can skip the first hour of class while aides and administrators monitor students.
By Jason Song
Los Angeles Times Staff Writer

June 6, 2008

Los Angeles Unified School District officials urged parents to send their children to class today even though union leaders are encouraging teachers to skip the first hour of instruction to protest the state's education budget.

"Schools will still be the best place for them to be," Supt. David Brewer said at a Thursday morning news conference at 10th Street Elementary School.

The Los Angeles Unified School District filed for a temporary restraining order to block the job action Thursday, but Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge David P. Yaffe declined the request. Earlier in the week, the state Public Employment Relations Board also declined to file an injunction on behalf of the district, which has expressed concern that the demonstration could endanger students.

"We're pleased that the court understood that the district request was not reasonable," said teachers union President A.J. Duffy.

District officials said students will wait in cafeterias, auditoriums and playgrounds and will be overseen by aides, parent volunteers and administrators as teachers are picketing. School officials plan to deploy an additional 450 employees from central offices to campuses to help supervise.

The demonstration, organized by United Teachers Los Angeles, is intended to draw attention to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's latest budget, which provides a $193-million increase over last year's $56.6 billion in education funding. But L.A. Unified estimates that it will face a $353-million shortfall because the budget does not include a cost-of-living increase and cuts support to certain programs that will have to be paid with unrestricted general funds.

Teachers will lose an hour of pay for protesting, which union leaders said is the best way to draw legislators' attention.

Along with Brewer, state Supt. of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell asked all teachers to report to work on time and discuss the state's budget process with their students instead of picketing. He said he was concerned about safety and warned that the district could lose revenue if students don't come to school.

"I understand the level of frustration . . . but we also know our teachers need to be in class, on track," he said.

The protest comes as the Board of Education prepares to vote on the district budget Tuesday. District officials have said that they hope to avoid cuts in the classroom, but that about 6,500 probationary teachers could be laid off, a possibility that the union has vowed to fight.

Schwarzenegger, who this week had asked teachers to reconsider reporting late, said he understood their concerns. "He's just as frustrated over the budget as they are," spokesman Aaron McLear said.

Some parents, like Cindy Kaffen, whose daughter is a second-grader at Hancock Park Elementary, said they plan to protest with teachers. Kaffen said she wasn't worried about student safety.

"The district got rid of a crossing guard position, so [students] have to dodge traffic when they cross the street. . . . I'm really not concerned about the demonstration," she said.

Duffy said he expects all of his nearly 48,000 members to participate in the demonstration, but some have said they don't like the idea. "How petty of those teachers to take away valuable instruction time from students who need more, not less hours in the classroom," said Scott Krier, a Panorama High teacher who has been a union member since 1990, in a letter to Duffy this week.

jason.song@latimes.com

From the Los Angeles Times

 

 Los Angeles Unified's attempt to halt teacher protest is rejected

State board won't file an injunction to prevent the instructors from reporting to work an hour late Friday to protest proposed budget cuts.
By Jason Song
Los Angeles Times Staff Writer

June 4, 2008

The Los Angeles Unified School District's attempt to stop teachers from protesting proposed state budget cuts by reporting to work one hour late this week was denied Tuesday.

The state Public Employee Relations Board declined to file for an injunction on the district's behalf, so the demonstration, organized by the United Teachers Los Angeles union, should take place as planned Friday.

Teachers are expected to spend the first hour of the day picketing outside their schools, which means classes will be delayed and students will be supervised by aides and administrators.

The teachers are protesting Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's latest budget, which would result in a $353-million shortfall for L.A. Unified.

The school board is scheduled to vote on the budget next week, but district officials have said they will have to lay off teachers and cut programs to balance the books.

District officials asked the employee relations board last week to stop the protest, saying they were concerned about safety, especially at schools that have experienced student violence.

Police had to break up a brawl at Locke High School in South Los Angeles last month that involved 600 students.

"I'm concerned that we are going to have kids at school unsupervised for an hour or kids who choose not to go to school at all. Neither situation is a good one," board member Tamar Galatzan said.

Employee relations board members could not be reached for comment Tuesday.

David Holmquist, the district's chief operating officer, said that he was disappointed in the decision but that L.A. Unified still hoped to prevent the walkout and would file for a temporary restraining order this week.

"We are going to do everything we can to ensure student safety," he said.

Union President A.J. Duffy said the protest would not endanger students and was the best way to draw attention to the budget shortfall. Teachers will not be paid for the time they spend picketing, and "that's the strongest message we can send that these budget cuts will hurt our kids," he said.

Duffy said he expected as many as 40,000 teachers to participate. "Anyone who doesn't will be crossing a picket line," he said.

District officials and principals have started making contingency plans. At Hancock Park Elementary School, students will be divided among five campus locations, where they will be overseen by aides, parent volunteers and administrators, and will spend the time in reading activities and physical education, Principal Judith Perez said.

Perez said she expected all of her teachers to picket and that they would be welcomed back on campus after the demonstration.

"There's no hostility," Perez said. "I respect UTLA and their decisions."

jason.song@latimes.com

 

 

L.A. Unified seeks to block teachers' budget protest

The union hopes to draw attention to cuts in state funding, but district officials say student safety could be compromised is teachers skip the first class of the day.

By Jason Song, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
May 29, 2008

The Los Angeles Unified School District asked for a court order Wednesday to prevent teachers from skipping class next week to protest proposed budget cuts, leaving students under the supervision of aides and administrators.

The one-hour morning demonstration, organized by United Teachers Los Angeles, is scheduled for June 6. Teachers plan to picket outside their schools before signing in and going to class, sacrificing an hour's pay to draw attention to the state's education funding levels.

In his latest budget, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has proposed increasing education spending by $1.8 billion, although that translates to a $353-million shortfall for L.A. Unified because the budget does not include a cost-of-living increase and does not fund certain programs that instead will be paid out of the district's general fund.

L.A. Unified administrators and board members said the demonstration was illegal and suggested that students could be endangered, especially at campuses that recently have had student violence. Earlier this month, police had to break up a brawl at Locke High School involving about 600 students.

"We clearly support the message, but we can't support the action," said Supt. David L. Brewer. "The safety of the students comes first."

Union President A.J. Duffy said the union approached district officials with the idea of a walkout three weeks ago, but proposed keeping students in auditoriums where they could be watched by aides and an administrator for the first hour of classes.

And because elementary school teachers have to report half an hour before their classes begin, they would miss only 30 minutes of instructional time, Duffy said. "Our take on it was that they were interested," Duffy said.

Brewer said the district tried to work with the union, but it couldn't entertain the idea. "If something happened to a student, we'd be held liable," he said.

Duffy said the protest was the best way to send a message to lawmakers and the governor.

jason.song@latimes.com

 

 

From the Los Angeles Times

 

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It is Time To Return Democracy to California's Budget Process

By Tom Torlakson
California State Senate

California is one of only three states, Arkansas and Rhode Island are the others, that require a two-thirds vote to pass a budget. This “supermajority” requirement has repeatedly led to budget gridlock that has real consequences for the people of California.

The two-thirds vote requirement to pass a budget has created an ongoing battle. The current system allows a minority of the Legislature to make it impossible to pass a rational state budget. The failure to resolve the ongoing state budget stalemate has grown into nothing less than a serious constitutional crisis.

This deadlock is threatening our state’s ability to remain competitive in the 21st Century global economy. It threatens to leave California incapable of providing a public education system offering students a rigorous and relevant curriculum, the infrastructure needed to support continued economic vitality, or a health care system able to care for and protect our residents.

As some people have noted, the definition of “insanity” is doing the same thing over and over again while expecting a different result. After years of gimmicks and delayed budget reckoning created by the two-thirds vote requirement, it is time to fundamentally change our dysfunctional and undemocratic state budget process.

This is why I have authored Senate Constitutional Amendment 22 to allow the Legislature to pass a state budget by a majority vote—and restoring democracy to the process!

Late budgets hurt real people: local governments and school boards cannot plan their budgets for the coming year, nursing homes face shutdowns, transportation projects face costly delays, and critical education programs are jeopardized.

Worst of all, teachers receive disheartening “pink slips” warning of possible layoffs. We lose great teachers who leave the profession after such discouraging “pink slip” events and through actual layoffs. California could see 10,000 to 15,000 teachers and school personnel actually leaving our schools at this critical stage—at a time where we are focusing on improving our schools.

There is no evidence, moreover, that the two-thirds vote requirement keeps taxes lower or protects against wasteful spending. In 1996, the California Constitution Revision Commission noted that the two-thirds vote requirement “has permitted those who have specific interests, which may or may not be related to the budget, to delay passage of the budget by leveraging their issue into the budget debate.”

The current two-thirds vote requirement also regrettably masks those who should be accountable for our budgets.

We once had true democracy in the state budget process, but in the tense and uncertain times created by the Great Depression, the two-thirds vote requirement was adopted in 1933 for state budgets growing more than five percent from the previous year. A 1962 Constitutional Amendment applied the two-thirds vote to all state budgets.

After more than a decade of budget dysfunction, I believe now is the time to try something different and return sanity and democracy to our budget process.

SCA 22’s provisions calling for majority votes to pass a budget and increase revenues will make the legislature more accountable. It will help fix a broken budget process. Voters will have the information they need to decide whom they would like to send to Sacramento to represent them. Voters could then ensure their values and priorities were represented in our state budgets.

If the majority party overreaches and spends too much or too little—or taxes too much or too little—everyone will know which party to hold accountable. Voters will be able to react. A small minority will no longer be able to highjack the budget process and confuse voters about how a budget problem developed.

The two-thirds vote requirement is keeping the Legislature from doing the job increasing numbers of Californians want their elected officials to do. A recent Public Policy Institute of California poll shows that a plurality of Californians now want the current budget crisis solved with a combination of budget cuts, efficiencies, and revenue increases.

Unfortunately, the two-thirds vote requirement makes such a solution virtually impossible today. Republicans, who have to supply votes to reach the two-thirds vote threshold, have said so far that restoring revenues is off-the-table.

We are apparently unable to revisit the $12 billion in tax cuts enacted over the past decade, despite currently facing the grave concerns expressed over the Governor’s proposed $4.8 billion in devastating cuts to our schools.

To solve this budget crisis, I am arguing that we must have a balanced approach. One including cuts, finding new efficiencies, and restoring at least some of the revenues California had until recently to fund our schools, health care systems, and other priorities.

This is why I have joined with my co-authors, Senator Elaine Alquist, Senator Sheila Kuehl, Assemblymember Mark DeSaulnier, and Assemblymember Loni Hancock, to propose a different budget course for our great golden state.

We must not continue to assume we will get a different result from trying the same process again and again. It is time to pass a comprehensive reform!

With SCA 22, we can allow the majority of Californians to have a budget reflecting their values. It will return democracy to the priority setting that should be a critical part of crafting a state budget.

Senator Tom Torlakson (D-Antioch) represents the Seventh Senatorial District, including most of Contra Costa County. He is the chair of the Senate’s Appropriations Committee and the Senate Select Committee on Schools and Community. Senator Torlakson is also a member of the Senate Education and Transportation and Housing Committees. A teacher and coach, Senator Torlakson is the Chair and Founder of the California Task Force on Youth and Workplace Wellness, a group seeking to raise the profile of health and fitness in the public schools and in the workplace. He is currently on faculty at Los Medanos College in Pittsburg, Calif.

 

 

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 Classrooms Come First

 

Senate Democrats are traveling the state to meet with local school officials, teachers, and parents to discuss the effects of the Governor’s proposed $4.8 billion in cuts to education. These cuts could mean laying off one-third of the state’s teachers, reducing the school year by four weeks or increasing class sizes by 35 percent. Senate Democrats are committed to doing everything possible to protect every penny in education funding and improve classroom results.

 

 

Watch Senate Democrats press conference with pink slipped teachers in Concord on Governor's proposed budget cuts (click here)
Monday, March 17, 2008

Watch Senate Democrats press conference in Oakland on Governor's proposed budget cuts (click here)
Wednesday, March 12, 2008

 

Watch Senate Democrats press conference in Marin County on Governor's proposed budget cuts (click here)
Friday, March 07, 2008

 

Watch Senate Democrats press conference in Sacramento on Governor's proposed budget cuts (click here)
Tuesday, March 04, 2008

 

Senate Democrats Decry Governor’s Proposed Education Cuts
Tuesday, March 04, 2008

 

News Coverage
Contra Costa Times: Perata talks tough on school cuts
Tuesday, March 18, 2008

 

Oakland Tribune: Dems vow to protect schools from cuts
Thursday, March 13, 2008

 

Mercury News Editorial: State tax reform can spare schools devastating cuts
Monday, March 10, 2008

 

From Senate President pro Tem Don Perata

 

 

 

Governor Schwartnegger says

"Classrooms Come First" also!

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Schools in Sacramento area feeling region's economic pain
By Laurel Rosenhall - lrosenhall@sacbee.com

Published 12:00 am PDT Sunday, June 1, 2008
Driving a vanful of kids on a field trip used to be an insignificant expense. Suzy McMurtrey considered the cost of gas a small donation to her son's school.

Now that filling up her Mercury Villager costs $60, however, the economy of field trips is changing. When the Carmichael mom took six kids to Amador County last month for a visit to the Black Chasm Caverns, the students in her van each handed her a few dollars.

"The teacher had told the kids to bring money for gas," she said. "I wasn't expecting it at all, but I was certainly grateful."

The long arm of the economy has reached into the region's schools – and it extends far beyond the budget cuts districts are imposing in response to the state government's fiscal crisis.

The financial problems families are experiencing are affecting everything from whether parents drive on field trips to how much money they donate at school fundraisers and which school children attend when their parents lose the family home. In addition, the rising costs school systems face for staples such as gas and food are having impacts of their own.

Schools in wealthy and poor neighborhoods alike are feeling the economy's pinch.

At Del Dayo Elementary in Carmichael, where more than 80 percent of parents have graduated from college, fundraising is harder than it's been in the past, said parent Joy Wake. Businesses typically donate items for the school's annual dinner auction, she said, but fewer of them have been willing to give as much this year.

"They're saying, 'Look, people aren't eating out much – we can't donate a gift certificate,'" Wake said.

And families have less to spend at the auction than they did in previous years. Last year, 300 people attended the spring function – paying $90 per couple. This year, 200 came to the event. The dinner auction raised $63,000 – down about a third from last year's $95,000.

"We realize we're pretty lucky to have the parents and the fundraising base that we have," Wake said.

But the drop in revenue from the fundraiser means the school will have less money to spend on its library and technology programs.

In poor neighborhoods, school enrollment is fluctuating as families face unemployment and home foreclosures.

"I'm seeing a lot of families displaced," said Ramona Bishop, superintendent of Del Paso Heights schools, where 96 percent of children receive subsidized meals. "We have kids being marked homeless because they are living with others – aunts, uncles, grandfathers."

Enrollment overall hasn't dropped, Bishop said, because as some families leave Del Paso Heights to stay with relatives elsewhere, others are moving into the neighborhood in search of temporary shelter.

With the hardship many of her students are facing, Bishop decided Del Paso schools must start serving larger and healthier meals. School breakfasts and lunches are now prepared with more carbs, more fat and more vitamins "so this food will stick to our students' bones," Bishop said.

"At least when they go home they'll have had two really healthy meals," she said. "In case they're not fed at home, they'll be able to make it until breakfast the next morning."

The heartier meals cost the school district more, but Bishop said it's money worth spending.

The Elk Grove Unified School District has changed its cafeteria menu, too – not because of hungry students, but because of the rising price of food. Next year the district will pay twice as much for flour and 30 percent more for milk than it did this year.

In response, Elk Grove cafeterias have been cutting back on pricey menu items and replacing them with more economical entrees. That means kids are eating more bean burritos and popcorn chicken – and fewer beef enchiladas and popcorn shrimp. Bagel dogs are out; corn dogs are in.

Skyrocketing fuel costs are prompting other kinds of cutbacks at some schools. Roseville high schools are limiting how far they'll bus student athletes to away games and how far classes can travel for field trips.

Private schools are also seeing some changes with the downturn in the economy. Several in the Sacramento region reported a slight drop in the number of applicants for next year and a small increase in the number of requests for financial aid.

"We know that some of our parents who are in development or home construction or sales, we know they've experienced significant downturns in their income," said Stephen Repsher, headmaster of Sacramento Country Day School, where tuition is around $16,000 a year.

On the upside, the collapse of the real estate market has allowed high school economics teachers to spice up classroom theory with examples from real life. Tim Griffin recently led his McClatchy High School students through a lesson on interest rates and the Federal Reserve. The class looked at the historic correlation between home sales and mortgage rates.

"Being at the epicenter of the mortgage crisis, this is something you can tell the kids to look out for," Griffin said, "all the foreclosure signs, or that house you pass on the way to school that's been on the market forever."


Go to: Sacbee / Back to story

 

 

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ABOUT THE SURVEY

This edition of the PPIC Statewide Survey is part of a series supported by funding from The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. The intent of this series is to inform state policymakers, encourage discussion, and raise public awareness about a variety of K-12, higher education, environment, and population issues. Findings are based on a telephone survey of 2,502 California adult residents. To account for the growing use of cell phones, this PPIC Statewide Survey for the first time incorporates interviews on cell phones along with those on landline phones. Interviews took place between April 8 and April 22, 2008. They were conducted in English, Spanish, Chinese (Mandarin or Cantonese), Vietnamese, and Korean. The sampling error for the total sample is +/- 2% and for the 1,406 likely voters is +/- 3%. For more information on methodology, see page 29.


Mark Baldassare is president and CEO of PPIC, where he holds the Arjay and Frances Fearing Miller Chair in Public Policy. He is founder of the PPIC Statewide Survey, which is now in its 10th year and has generated a database of responses from more than 180,000 Californians.

PPIC is a private, nonprofit organization dedicated to informing and improving public policy in California through independent, objective, nonpartisan research on major economic, social, and political issues. The institute was established in 1994 with an endowment from William R. Hewlett. PPIC does not take or support positions on any ballot measure or on any local, state, or federal legislation, nor does it endorse, support, or oppose any political parties or candidates for public office.


Central Valley Business Times

Download a PDF copy of the PPIC Statewide Survey: Californians and Education

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CALIFORNIA BUDGET CRISIS REPORT CARD: Real Impact of Budget Cuts on Schools and Students

Nothing has a greater impact on student learning than the quality of the teacher in the classroom

By Jack O’Connell
California Superintendent of Public Instruction
This past December, the Center for the Future of Teaching and Learning released a report showing that California has made considerable progress in reducing the number of underprepared teachers in our schools. The report proved the state’s concentrated effort of providing teacher support and professional development has made a difference. Since 2001-02, the state has reduced the number of underprepared teachers in the classroom by 25,000. California, the Center reported, “…seemed to be on the right track toward building a teacher development system with the capacity to produce an adequate supply of teachers and deliver them to schools where they were needed most.”

So while we’re improving the quality of the teachers in the field, what about the supply of future teachers: those students in college today who are considering teaching as a profession? Unfortunately, the picture isn’t so bright.

In the next 10 years, California will need to replace 100,000 teachers due to retirement alone. As our need for new, well-trained teachers is on the rise, the number of students in our colleges considering teaching as a profession is on the decline. While there may be many reasons for this decline, some researchers believe they can show a cause and effect reflected in our state budget crises.

For example, the Center for the Future of Teaching and Learning recently looked at the number of enrollees in teacher preparation programs since the state’s last fiscal crisis in 2003. The Center reports the following: "During the 2002-03 school year, colleges enrolled 74,203 candidates in preparation programs. The next year, that number dropped to 67,595 and the following year (2004-05) the numbers declined further to 64,753, a loss of 10,000 teacher candidates in two years. Similarly, the numbers of teaching credentials awarded dropped from 27,000 in 2004 to 22,400 in 2006."

This year California once again faces a budget crisis with potential cuts to education of $4.8 billion dollars. Undergraduates or those students already in teacher credential programs are thinking twice about their career choice. They are aware of the 14,000 pink slips just sent to teachers to prepare them for potential layoffs. They are well aware of the “last-hired, first-fired” rule and they ask themselves, “Do I want to pursue a career that is so unstable that I will face potential layoffs year after year?”

If we don’t find a way to stabilize our funding to schools, California may soon be facing another crisis: classrooms full of students with no teachers at the head of the class.

Posted on April 14, 2008

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Teachers in training uneasy over proposed budget cuts
By Jean Cowden Moore
Friday, April 25, 2008 

Cachu has been in CSU Channel Islands' teaching credential program for three years and is still committed to being a teacher despite proposed cuts to the state education budget.

Back when she started her teacher training, Melissa Cachu kept hearing that the state desperately needed teachers.

Now, three years later, Cachu, 28, sees the governor proposing major cuts to education and teachers across the state getting layoff notices.

Though she remains sure her calling is to be a teacher, she's wondering if she'll have a job when she gets her credential this summer from CSU Channel Islands in Camarillo.

"I'm uneasy," said Cachu, an Oxnard resident. "You hear so many rumors. It gets really confusing."

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has proposed cutting 10 percent from the state education budget — a total of $4.4 billion.

In response, school districts across the state sent layoff notices to teachers last month — more than 600 in Ventura County alone.

While the budget is still in flux and must be acted on by the Legislature, the potential cuts and layoffs send a troubling message to aspiring teachers, said Charles Weis, Ventura County superintendent of schools.

"These budget cuts send a message to people in education that maybe there won't be a job for me," Weis said. "It sends a message to people in college that maybe they shouldn't pursue teaching. That's why we need stable funding in California."

Local educators say they don't know yet how those proposed cuts will affect teacher preparation programs and the students in them.

But Joan Karp, senior associate dean of the school of education at CSUCI, said she's seeing some uneasiness among the student teachers in her program.

Many of those students already are teaching in local schools while they earn their credentials.

"They're obviously concerned about this, unsure whether they will get jobs," Karp said. "It's a tough time for them."

CSUCI accepts applications to its teaching program through April, so Karp doesn't know yet if she'll have fewer applicants than in the past.

"Last month was a little down, but not as significantly as I thought it would be," she said.

Potential students are filling information sessions for the teacher credential program, but "they don't have the same feeling," she said.

California Lutheran University in Thousand Oaks has not seen a drop in applications to its teacher credential program, but there hasn't been an increase either.

There has been more interest in special education, maybe because students realize there are jobs in that area, said Michelle Saucedo, director of graduate student services.

"It's a challenge to grow programs now," Saucedo said. "We do get asked the question more: What is the job outlook?' That's so hard to predict."

Linda Davis, 47, a student at CSUCI, decided to go into teaching after a career as a mechanical engineer. Despite the budget, she has no intention of changing her mind now.

"I worked so hard at this point that I won't give up what I've done," said Davis, a Camarillo resident and the mother of four. "I'm just going to go forward and hope for the best — that I will get a job someday."

Still, Davis is worried about her younger classmates.

"They're just starting a career," she said. "It would be really sad to go through all this and not get a job."


 Ventura County Star

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Schwarzenegger predicts state deficit will top $10 billion

Thursday, April 24, 2008

(04-24) 16:38 PDT Sacramento, CA (AP) --

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger predicted Thursday that California would face a budget deficit of more than $10 billion in the fiscal year that starts July 1.

"This is why we have to make all kinds of cuts across the board," he told a group of prosecutors and criminal investigators at a conference near the Capitol.

"I hate making those kinds of cuts, but we have no more money," he added later in comments to reporters. "We have to live within our means. We are out of whack every one of the next few years by $10 (billion) to $12 billion. You cannot tax your way out of that."

Democrats have proposed a combination of budget cuts and tax increases to deal with the deficit.

"There is no way that a cuts-only budget will be enacted with a deficit of that size," said Steve Maviglio, a spokesman for Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez, D-Los Angeles.

Schwarzenegger initially forecast a $14.5 billion deficit for the 18-month period starting in January. The legislative analyst later said the gap between projected revenue and expenses was $16 billion.

Lawmakers then cut that figure to about $8 billion by authorizing more borrowing, delaying some payments and making other budget changes. Since then, tax revenue to the state has been below expectations as the downturn in the housing market has spread to other parts of the economy.

Schwarzenegger is scheduled to reveal his revised budget proposal for the next fiscal year on May 14.

In another budget-related development Thursday, Republican lawmakers proposed giving schools $2.1 billion more than Schwarzenegger proposed when he released his initial budget plan in January.

They proposed making up the difference in part by cutting welfare programs. The Republicans also favor some money-saving recommendations made by the nonpartisan Legislative Analyst's Office, such as eliminating vacant state government positions.

Senate Minority Leader Dave Cogdill, R-Modesto, said the plan would allow more money for schools without increasing spending or raising taxes. Providing stable education funding, he said, "must go hand-in-hand with enacting commonsense reforms."

Maviglio said the GOP plan was "the budget equivalent of robbing Peter to shortchange Paul."

"While we appreciate that the Republicans are finally understanding that Californians believe education should be a priority, (the GOP proposal) has the potential to shred the safety net and still leave our schools billions short of what they deserve," he said.

From sfgate.com

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Top State Officials Join Sacramento Parents and Teachers
to Oppose Governor's Borrowing and Education Cuts

Lt. Gov. Bustamante and Controller Westly Join Fifth Stop of Statewide Effort Launched
by State Schools Superintendent O'Connell and State Treasurer Angelides
to Fight Governor's "One-Two Punch" to California's Kids

FRESNO/SUNNYVALE/BURBANK/NATIONAL CITY/SACRAMENTO — State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell, State Treasurer Phil Angelides, Lieutenant Governor Cruz Bustamante, and State Controller Steve Westly today joined with students, parents, teachers, and educational leaders at Jedediah Smith Elementary School in Sacramento, calling Governor Schwarzenegger's proposed FY 2005-06 budget "a one-two punch to California's kids." Despite unambiguous promises to protect education and balance the budget without new debt, Governor Schwarzenegger's new budget proposes burdening California 's children with massive new debt while also cutting back on their educational opportunities.

In light of the Governor's broken promises, four of the State's top public officials today visited the Sacramento school, making the fifth stop in their statewide effort to bring together students, parents, teachers and educational leaders to fight for a budget that protects opportunities for our children. O'Connell and Angelides launched the effort last week, visiting schools in Fresno, Sunnyvale, Burbank, and National City .

Breaking his promise to the people to "tear up the credit card" and end deficit borrowing, the Governor's budget depends on at least $6 billion in new borrowing -- bringing the State's credit card debt (the borrowing to cover budget deficits) to $31 billion, 68% higher than it was under Governor Gray Davis. That $31 billion will cost each man, woman, and child in the State approximately $860. While saddling our children with additional debt, Governor Schwarzenegger has compromised his credibility by breaking a promise he made publicly just one year ago when he asked already strapped schools to absorb a $2 billion cut in exchange for full funding of Proposition 98 when state revenues went up. Now, even though California's economy has improved, he has turned his back on students and proposed to cut $2.8 billion from California schools -- despite his commitment that the voter-approved, Proposition 98 school funding guarantee would be suspended only "over my dead body."

"Governor Schwarzenegger's budget hits California's children twice: first by loading California with new debt that our children will be forced to repay, then by cutting education. The Governor's budget is both fiscally unbalanced and morally unbalanced," said Treasurer Angelides.

Superintendent of Public Instruction O'Connell told students, parents and educators how the Governor's broken promise to California 's kids threatens educational opportunities for California 's young people.

"Governor Schwarzenegger says that he listens to the people, but he is ignoring California voters who voted to protect funding for our public schools. His plan will suspend Proposition 98 for a second year in a row, then render it meaningless through his own autopilot budget formula. California already ranks eighth from the bottom of all states in per-pupil funding, yet has some of the highest academic expectations, and the most challenging student population in the country. The Governor's budget fails our students, starves our schools, and consigns our public K-12 education system to a state of permanent underfunding," said Superintendent O'Connell.

The statewide effort launched by the State officials comes at a time when California can ill-afford further reductions in educational investment such as those proposed by Governor Schwarzenegger. A RAND Corporation report released earlier this month shows California falling far short of the national average in per-pupil spending, while student performance ranks near the bottom of the fifty states.

From California Departmento of Education

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State Schools Chief Jack O'Connell

Budget Crisis Report Card

Report to the Education Community on Proposed State Budget Cuts and its Effect on Education in California.

On February 16, 2008, the Governor signed a package of bills dealing with the state's fiscal crisis. The measures take effect immediately. Among other actions, the measures reduce current-year Proposition 98 funding for kindergarten through grade twelve (K-12) education and community colleges by $507 million and defer most of the 2008-09 July apportionment payment to September. The outlook for 2008-09 is grim with the Governor's proposed budget calling for an additional $4.8 billion in cuts to education. For specific information on state budget cuts, please visit 2008 Budget Letter.

The information collected below is from news reports and reports from local educational agencies to the California Department of Education. The reports are designed to provide readers with insight into how the proposed cuts are affecting schools. Please check back frequently for new additions.

Report Cards
Volume 3 (Posted 14-Apr-2008)
Volume 2 (Posted 21-Mar-2008)
Volume 1 (Posted 18-Mar-2008)

Proposed Local School District Budget Cuts click here

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Academic gains threatened by potential cuts

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Too Many Pink Slips for California Teachers We Need to Keep
By Don Perata President pro Tem California State Senate


Today, more than 10,100 dedicated public school teachers are receiving pink slips. School districts are required to send the notices by March 15th every year to notify teachers that they may not have a job the next fall.

It is outrageous that teachers are the latest casualty of the Governor's budget cuts.

In January, the Governor proposed slashing $4.8 billion from education. To do that, the state would have to shorten the school year by a month, lay off one-third of all teachers or increase class sizes by 35 percent.

That is unacceptable. Deep budget cuts will devastate our education system, hurt our economy and darken California's promise.

A couple generations ago, California had the reputation for the best public schools in the nation. Our schools produced students who now lead private, non-profit and government agencies. My, how times have changed -- in 2005, our state ranked 47th in the nation in per-pupil spending. I don't know anyone who doesn't want to see the state maintain and strengthen its economy. But doing so requires giving more to our schools, not taking from them.

Teachers are the engines that drive the academic achievements of our children. We already demand so much of our teachers that many leave the profession after a few years. Teacher training enrollment has dropped 13 percent in the past two years. The sad reality is that many talented teachers who receive pink slips today will start looking for new careers tomorrow.

My fellow Democratic Senators and I will not stand for it. If California wants a vibrant economy and a bright future, our classrooms must come first. We are determined to protect school funding.

Please join us in our fight to save our schools and protect California's future

The California Progress Report

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What does it look like to be 1 of the 10,100 Teachers being Fired?

Re: Notice of Recommendation

That Your Services Will Not Be Required For The Ensuing School Year (2008-2009)

Dear Name:

As our district contends with financial realities and constraints resulting from revenue being insufficient to
maintain current levels of services, some very difficult decisions must be made. As a result, certificated staffing is
being reduced and layoff proceedings are being implemented. Unfortunately, you are one of the individuals who
will be directly impacted.

You are hereby notified that it has been recommended to the Governing Board that you be given notice that your services will not be required for the ensuing school year (2008-2009).This notice is provided to you pursuant to the provisions of sections 44949 and 44955 of the Education Code. Thereasons for this recommendation are as indicated in the enclosed copy of the Board's Resolution, involving theBoard's decision to discontinue and to reduce particular kinds of certificated services of this District beginning notlater than the commencement of the 2008-2009 school year.

As a result of those discontinuances and reductions of particular kinds of services, the Board has determined that
it will be necessary to reduce the certificated staff by a corresponding number and/or percentage of full-time
equivalent positions. It has been determined that you are one of those employees whose services will therefore
not be required for the ensuing 2008-2009 school year.

This notice is being sent to you because you are serving within one of the particular kinds of services identified in the Resolution for discontinuance or reduction, and/or because of displacement rights or "bumping" of othercertificated employees who are more senior to you and who possess the legal right to perform your services and therefore to displace you.

Your relative seniority and credentials/experience do not allow you to "bump" (displace) a more junior certificated
employee. In accordance with Education Code section 44955, no permanent or probationary certificated
employee with less seniority than you is being retained to render services which you are certificated and, within
the meaning of the layoff statutes, competent to render.

Pursuant to Education Code section 44949 (a copy of which is attached, together with section 44955) you may
request a hearing to determine if there is cause for not reemploying you for the 2008-2009 school year. Y

We regret the necessity of this action. We want to assure you that your reemployment rights within this school
district will be governed by the Education Code, whether or not a hearing is requested. The California statutes
governing reemployment are enclosed for your information. For purposes of your reemployment rights and for
purposes of forwarding future documents and notices relating to this layoff hearing, we will presume your address
on file with the District is accurate. If it is not correct, or if it changes, please notify me in writing immediately.

Thank you.

We sincerely appreciate and thank you for your efforts to provide quality education to the student of this District.

Sincerely,

Enclosures: California Education Code sections 44949 and 44955
California Education Code sections 44956 and 44957
Request for Hearing
Board Resolution
cc: Personnel File

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Peter Schrag:

California school funding:

Inadequate by any measure
By Peter Schrag - pschrag@sacbee.com
Published 12:00 am PDT Wednesday, April 9, 2008

The Sacramento Bee
Story appeared in EDITORIALS section, Page B7

The latest numbers from the Census throw yet more confusion into the great school funding debate. By one set of tables, California's school revenues are just below the national average, and put us at 25th among the states.

On another Census table – school funding in relation to personal income, a measure of taxpayer effort – California ranks 35th, below most Southern states as well as high-spending Northeastern states such as New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and Massachusetts.

But maybe the most relevant computations, which show the real inequities among the states, put California near the bottom. Those calculations take into account not only regional differences in the cost of living and thus the cost of attracting good people, but also the relative challenges of different kinds of school populations: poor kids, English learners, minorities.

By those criteria, in the calculations of, among others, Goodwin Liu of Boalt Hall School of Law at Berkeley, California ranks 45th. Only Tennessee, Florida, Mississippi, Arizona and Utah fund their schools even less adequately than California does.

Liu, who's done some of the most impressive work on the adequacy of school funding, and on its lack, believes that the huge differences in current spending among the states – nearly $15,000 per pupil in New York compared to $8,500 in California and $5,400 in Utah in the unadjusted Census figures – is "a problem that only the federal government can meaningfully address."

In a recent article in the Yale Law Journal, he argues that the clause in the 14th Amendment granting citizenship to all native-born Americans imposes such a responsibility on the federal government. In the post-Civil War years, after the amendment was adopted to grant citizenship to the former slaves, Congress, acting on the presumption that citizenship was meaningless without education, several times came close to creating a broad federal program in education.

Liu recognizes that money is hardly an all-purpose solution. The dismal performance – the corruption and waste in high-spending districts such as Washington, D.C. – are evidence enough.

At the same time, as he says (in a recent article in the New York University Law Review), "it is difficult to believe that our gaping interstate disparities in educational standards and resources have little or no bearing on unequal opportunity and outcomes."

If you want proof of that, all you have to do is look at the behavior of parents who have a choice of districts or at the hundreds of thousands of dollars – sometimes millions – that parents raise voluntarily in affluent districts to provide additional resources for their already well-resourced schools.

Liu, state school board member and former California education secretary Alan Bersin and retired Stanford professor Michael Kirst have just issued a paper (www.law.berkeley.edu/centers/ewi/GBTFissuebriefFINAL.pdf  ) that, like other school funding reform proposals, would reduce top-down regulation and expand local authority.

But it would also fund according to student needs and the relative cost of living in different parts of the state. It doesn't claim to address all school funding questions. And like other adequacy proposals, it can only guess at the real cost of, say educating an English learner as against a native English speaker, much less the difference between educating an English learner already literate in some other language and one who can't read or write in any language.

But it does recognize that "state allocations to school districts often bear little relation to educational costs or student needs … high-poverty districts receive only slightly more revenue per than low-poverty districts."

The same, they point out, is true with respect to different concentrations of English learners. Something similar happens within districts where schools with large numbers of poor and minority students – also generally the oldest and most run-down schools – tend to get the newest and lowest paid teachers. That could also be mitigated by student-weighted formulas.

Liu, Bersin and Kirst's reform plan would hold all districts harmless. It's premised on the assumption that given the prediction that school enrollment will stay flat or even decline slightly in the years to come, there will be more money per student.

Those additional funds would be allocated according to their cost and student needs formulas.

Like others, they also argue that now – when the state is running a deficit, and when no one is rushing to grab new funds, as interest groups do in good times – is the best time to do the planning and put in place a fiscal arrangement that's fair and efficient.

Even on that score, they're probably over-optimistic. Will affluent suburban districts accept funding formulas that allocate the lion's share of new funds to poor schools? Will the California Teachers Association accept differential working conditions and perhaps differential pay, and loosen its grip on the existing seniority-based pay scales and assignment priorities?

Still it's encouraging that the structural unfairness and inadequacy of school funding, both among states and within California, are getting attention beyond the usual clichés and blather. It's the will, not the way, that's missing.

About the writer:
Reach Peter Schrag at Box 15779, Sacramento, CA 95852-0779.

The Sacramento Bee

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Other states woo California teachers amid wave of pink slips

By ALLISON HOFFMAN - Associated Press Writer
Published 1:06 pm PDT Friday, April 18, 2008

Precious Jackson has two years of teaching under her belt and two school teacher-of-the-year awards to show for it. She also has a pink slip.

Now Jackson is a prime target for growing school districts across the country hoping to cherry-pick from thousands of California teachers who have been warned they could be laid off because of state budget woes.

"Your future is in our classroom," the Fort Worth, Texas, school district says on a San Diego billboard. It plans to send recruiters to the city next month to dangle $3,000 signing bonuses.

Several Los Angeles-area newspapers are carrying ads for the Clark County, Nev., school district, which hopes to lure teachers to Las Vegas with $2,000 incentives.

"We don't hear things like that here," said Jackson, 25, who teaches English at Lincoln High School, her alma mater in San Diego's hardscrabble Lincoln Park neighborhood. "Instead we just don't know what to expect, and it makes us feel underappreciated."

Jackson was among a wave of teachers hired in recent years as California raised education spending to cut class sizes. Now she is at the mercy of state legislators who are negotiating more than $4 billion in education cuts proposed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to combat a budget shortfall caused by the housing slump and a stagnant economy.

During budget stalemates, layoff notices are practically a rite of spring for California public school teachers. State law requires teachers be notified by March 15 if their jobs are in jeopardy for the next school year, and districts routinely cast a wide net to prepare for the worst. In previous fiscal crises, only a small fraction of those who got pink slips eventually lost their jobs.

This year, some districts, including the behemoth Los Angeles Unified, have avoided layoff notices to teachers, but many are preparing for deep cuts. About 14,000 teachers have received pink slips throughout the state, according to the California Teachers Association.

San Diego Unified School District, the state's second-largest, has issued the most with about 900. Notices were sent out by seniority, touching people with fresh credentials like Jackson.

The notices also went to experienced hands like Lincoln High's Guillermo Gomez, 37, who was named a San Diego County Teacher of the Year in 2006 for his work in suburban Chula Vista. He lost his seniority when he joined the San Diego district last year to help launch a new college-track program in social justice at Lincoln.

Only math, science and special-education teachers were protected in San Diego.

"I took a risk and a $10,000 pay cut to come here," said Gomez, whose wife, an elementary-school teacher, was also given notice. "Now we're in limbo and waiting for the worst."

Recruiters from other districts aren't shy about boasting their advantages.

"We don't have an ocean but we have a very good climate, and for a teacher's salary we're considerably more affordable than what San Diego or California is," said Clint Bond, a spokesman for the Fort Worth Independent School District.

Andrea Wiesner, a middle-school teacher in San Diego whose one-year contract won't be renewed, plans to apply in Henderson, Nev., south of Las Vegas, to take advantage of generous student-loan repayment assistance offered by the Clark County School District.

"I worked really hard to be a teacher and now it's like, 'Well, if you want to stay in California, go back and work jobs you worked in college,'" the 28-year-old said. "But I can't just volunteer. I need a job."

In the past, Clark County hired from shrinking districts in cities like Detroit. This year, the district is targeting California, where prospective hires can easily drive to weekend interviews, said Martha Tittle, chief human resources officer.

Yet she also worries that California teachers will back out of their new jobs if the state fixes its budget problems, as it has in the past.

"If we fill offers with people who may change their minds because they have other options, that doesn't help us," Tittle said.

Some California teachers, however, say they've had enough spring budget anxiety.

Patrick Konen, 25, a history teacher who got a pink slip in his second year at San Diego Unified, interviewed this week in districts outside Atlanta. His wife, a fifth-grade teacher who was given notice by a neighboring district, was offered a job in Georgia on the spot, and the principal offered to help him find a position.

"In San Diego you're throwing yourself at principals and begging them to hire you, and you maybe get an offer two days before the school year starts," said Konen, a California native. "I don't want to live that way, and I think we deserve better."


Go to: Sacbee / Back to story

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Is Anyone Going to Stop the Teacher Exodus from California?
By Robert Cruickshank

When Arnold took office in late 2003 he argued that one of the state's highest priorities was to "reform" a workers' compensation system that was supposedly driving businesses, and therefore jobs, out of the state. And the Legislature did so, cutting benefits to injured workers in order to try and keep business and the Chamber of Commerce happy.

Five years later California faces a similar crisis, as skilled workers flee the state in droves, taking their salaries and therefore their positive economic impact with them. But this time, Arnold seems happy to see their backs, because it's teachers and not well-connected corporations that are fleeing a state thanks to poor budget priorities:

"Precious Jackson has two years of teaching under her belt and two school teacher-of-the-year awards to show for it. She also has a pink slip...

""Your future is in our classroom," the Fort Worth, Texas, school district says on a San Diego billboard. It plans to send recruiters to the city next month to dangle $3,000 signing bonuses.

"Several Los Angeles-area newspapers are carrying ads for the Clark County, Nev., school district, which hopes to lure teachers to Las Vegas with $2,000 incentives."

"We don't hear things like that here," said Jackson, 25, who teaches English at Lincoln High School, her alma mater in San Diego's hardscrabble Lincoln Park neighborhood. "Instead we just don't know what to expect, and it makes us feel underappreciated."

Here is a teacher who gave back to her community, sacrificing opportunities for better pay and easier working conditions to devote herself as a teacher to the students in need in her community. Now she's looking at leaving the state because California isn't willing to do what it must to keep her employed.

It's not as if California has a surplus of teachers to lose to other states. It has been estimated that California needs to recruit 100,000 new teachers over the next 10 years just to maintain current staffing levels thanks to retirements. Given the staffing needs, and the economic benefit of having employed teachers contributing to the state's businesses, one would think that Arnold Schwarzenegger would be moving heaven and earth to keep California competitive and stop this economic exodus.

Instead we have young teachers looking at moving to Atlanta, or Las Vegas, or Fort Worth just to make ends meet:

"Andrea Wiesner, a middle-school teacher in San Diego whose one-year contract won't be renewed, plans to apply in Henderson, Nev., south of Las Vegas, to take advantage of generous student-loan repayment assistance offered by the Clark County School District.

""I worked really hard to be a teacher and now it's like, 'Well, if you want to stay in California, go back and work jobs you worked in college,'" the 28-year-old said. "But I can't just volunteer. I need a job.""

I would love for Arnold and his fellow members of the Yacht Party to explain how any of this is good for California's economy.

Robert Cruickshank is a historian, activist, and teacher living in Monterey. He is a contributing editor at Calitics.com and works for the Courage Campaign, in addition to teaching political science at Monterey Peninsula College. Currently he is completing his Ph.D. dissertation in US history, on progressive politics in San Francisco in the 1960s and 1970s. A native Californian, he was raised in Orange County and educated at UC Berkeley.

The California Progress Report

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Students Aroused To Protect Public Education While Schwarzenegger ...
California Progress Report - 1 hour ago
As their future is taken from them by the Yacht Party determined to protect wealth and aristocracy through crippling education cuts, California students are beginning to fight back. In rallies that are unfolding across the state, they are speaking out ...

Proposed budget cuts stir up more protests than usual this spring
Ventura County Star - Apr 12, 2008
It is, said Dina Cervantes, chair of the California State Student Association, "the day no student should be silent in the face of $5.3 billion in cuts to education." Also warming up is the largest and most vocal group of budget-protection advocates: ...

Should Education Be Exempt from Budget Cuts
theOneRepublic - Apr 9, 2008
by JF Kelly, Jr. 4/10/08 There is a prevailing view amongst California’s powerful education bureaucracy that teachers, schools and educational programs in general are sacrosanct and must be shielded from any budget cuts regardless of the severity of ...

Local Schools, State Superintendent Standing Up to Budget Cuts
KESQ - Mar 28, 2008
By Elyse Webb School districts all over California are feeling the far-reaching impact of the governor's proposed education budget. The cuts made in the budget have already forced school districts to cut teaching jobs, drastically scale back summer ...


San Mateo Daily Journal
Don't let Gov. Schwarzenegger dismantle public education
Ventura County Star - 9 hours ago
To propose even further education cuts in a state that trails the national average in per-pupil spending by nearly $2000 per student is absurdly offensive.
School chiefs will address budget concerns at community forum Simi Valley Acorn
Schools dodged a bullet Burbank Leader
Pasadena Weekly - San Mateo Daily Journal
all 5 news articles »


California Progress Report
Democrats’ Budget Priorities Reflect California Values
California Progress Report - Mar 29, 2008
Just last month we agreed to cut $7.5 billion from the current fiscal year’s budget. But we cannot solve our budget deficit and fund important services such as public education with budget cuts alone. Every Republican in the legislature, except one, ...



Students gather to "Save Our Schools' in Poway
North County Times - 15 hours ago
I'm here to support the kids and the teachers," Edelson said. If the governor's proposed budget cuts are approved, the Poway district alone will lose $14.4 billion in funding.


Education budget cuts are not in California's interest
San Francisco Chronicle - Mar 19, 2008
Arnold Schwarzenegger has announced that California is in a fiscal crisis, and proposed several spending cuts, including $4.8 billion budgeted for public education. All of us who have been in California for some time are veterans of fiscal crises.


Letters for Saturday, March 29, 2008
North County Times - 16 hours ago
This year, due to the drastic state education budget cuts, the turnover threatens to be overwhelming. Though the 10 percent across-the-board budget cuts may sound fair, it is not responsible to let our sons and daughters pay for the failings of their ...


Education budget cuts barge into SD forums
San Diego Union Tribune - Mar 16, 2008
He pledged that he would “consider” boosting funding “when our budget picture is brighter.” But considering the impact that education has on the California work force, it might be better to do more than just “consider” the panel's recommendation.


California to slash billions from public schools
Party for Socialism and Liberation - Mar 28, 2008
According to the California Teachers Association, 110000 teachers could lose their jobs. Many predict the budget cuts will destroy extracurricular programs and classes in subjects such as arts, music and physical education. All this is happening when ...


Selected recent California newspaper editorials
San Jose Mercury News - Mar 26, 2008
Education reform has been stuck in the stable, an opportunity wasted. That's a shame because, even amid a state war over budget cuts, it's possible to implement some recommendations of the Governor's Committee on Education Excellence.
Gas prices drive up sales tax revenue in state San Francisco Chronicle
all 26 news articles »



Los Angeles Wave Newspapers
Students and faculty protest budget cuts for CSUs
Daily 49er - 9 hours ago
Nina Delavin, the event's last speaker and a member of CSU Students for Quality Education, went over some of the budget cut statistics. She informed audience members that budget cuts already made have increased undergraduate fees by 94 percent and ...
Cutting to the bone Los Angeles Wave Newspapers
Thousands unite to speak as one voice against cuts StateHornet.com
all 16 news articles »



Students Sound Off on Budget Cuts
RedOrbit - 20 minutes ago
... throughout California, talking with students about potential effects of the proposed $4.4 billion cut to education funding. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in January proposed 10 percent across-the-board cuts to close a $14.5 billion state budget gap.



California Progress Report
In SLO, governor talks tough
San Luis Obispo Tribune - 7 hours ago
Her district faces up to $1 million in cuts and has had to issue pink slips to a few teachers, informing them they could be laid off.
Gov. Schwarzenegger tells SLO County that "nothing is sacred" when ... San Luis Obispo Tribune
Governor refuses to blame illegal immigrants for budget problems Sacramento Bee
all 16 news articles »




Flunk the budget
Pasadena Star-News - 12 hours ago
As if this isn't bad enough, the proposed cuts will further reduce the per-student spending by $786. California public schools do not have a spending problem, they have a funding problem!
Why education must be fully funded Highland Community News (Subscription)
Shock value doesn’t make a story news Victorville Daily Press
all 3 news articles »




State superintendent visits students to discuss budget cuts
KGET 17 - 11 hours ago
State Superintendent Jack O'Connell visited Centennial High School to discuss proposed cuts to education. Twenty five students participated in a roundtable discussion with O'Connell Wednesday afternoon.
Governor in town to talk about budget crisis Trading Markets (press release)
State Official To Talk Budget Woes With Students TurnTo23.com
TurnTo23.com
all 7 news articles »



California Progress Report
How Schwarzenegger and the GOP Are Responsible for California’s ...
California Progress Report - 21 hours ago
As long as Republican lawmakers support the Governor’s budget program, the Democrats will be unable to gain media traction for any plan to mix in tax hikes with budget cuts. The press corps will label any plan that lacks bipartisan support, “petty, ...
California’s Budget–A Time for Straight Talk on How We Got Here ... California Progress Report
Ending home mortgage interest credit would equal a tax increase Capitol Weekly
all 9 news articles »



Budget cuts top 'Pizza' concerns
The Daily Titan - 10 hours ago
Schlaufman said that in the 1970's, California spent 17 percent of its budget on higher education. Today it's only 11 percent.


Local representatives unite to flunk the budget
Valley Sun - 3 hours ago
Schwarzenegger’s proposed budget cuts to public education during last Thursday evening’s community forum, “Flunk the Budget.” Held at McKinley School in Pasadena, former assemblymember and current senate candidate Liu, Assemblymember Portantino and ...

Board Budget Sub-Committee
Monday, April 21, 2008, 4:30 p.m.
California Middle School 1600 Vallejo Way Sacramento, CA 95818

This Meeting is Open to All Parents and other Members of the Community

Important Issues that will impact all students will be discussed.
Sac City has cut more than $70 million from its budget over the past seven years,

and must reduce its general fund budget by more than $24 million in the 2008-09 fiscal year.

The budget sub-committee is open to the public.

Agenda

1600 Vallejo Way
Sacramento, CA 95818
Driving Directions

1. Warm-Up

2. Budget Update

• Budget Presentations to the Board 4/3/2008 and 4/17/2008
• Next Steps
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Public Comment

3. Next Regular Meeting: Monday, May 19th at 4:30 p.m.

(Location To Be Determine)

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State Schools Chief Jack O'Connell and San Diego
Educators Discuss Budget Cuts, Teacher and Staff Layoff
SACRAMENTO – State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O’Connell joined Dr. Terry Grier, San Diego Unified School District’s new superintendent, at a news conference Monday at Lincoln High School to discuss the impact of $4.8 billion in proposed cuts to education funding and the potential suspension of Proposition 98. Concern about the impact of these cuts to public education already has forced districts to issue approximately 24,000 notices of potential layoff to teachers and support staff statewide.

"School districts up and down this state are sending out pink slips to tens of thousands of hard-working, dedicated teachers, administrators, and school staff, not because our state faces a spending problem, but because we face a priorities problem," O’Connell said. "Over the past five years, California schools have been making steady gains in student achievement thanks to our high standards, effective reforms, and the dedication and passion of these same educators. Today, this progress and the future of our students are in grave jeopardy."

"California is the eighth largest economy in the world and yet in education funding we rank only 46th in the country," Grier said.

Joining O’Connell and Grier at the news conference were Shelia Jackson, a member of the San Diego Unified School District Board, and Mel Collins, principal of Lincoln High School.

"The Governor’s budget fails to invest in our future. We should be encouraging the best and brightest to join the teaching ranks. We know that effective teachers are the number one element in student success. Sadly, the flood of pink slips being handed out only discourages people from entering the teacher profession," O’Connell said.

"While I understand the Governor and the Legislature have tough decisions to make, these cuts to public education impact the morale of our education professionals, will increase class sizes, and leave our schools with fewer resources just when we are asking more of them than ever before," he said. "These budget cuts ultimately are a direct hit on the quality of the education we offer our students."

State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O’Connell

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Statement from CTA President David A. Sanchez on Governor’s 2008 State of the State Address
January 08, 2008
“It’s disappointing and certainly ironic that in the proclaimed ‘year of education,’ the governor is talking about cutting  Continue reading story 8

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ACSA STATEMENT ON GOVERNOR'S 2008-09 BUDGET PROPOSAL

Posted: January 11, 2008
Author: ACSA Communications Department

The 16,500-member Association of California School Administrators is strongly opposed to the Governor's 2008-09 budget proposal released yesterday.
“We stand firm in our support for Proposition 98 and the funding it provides for the basic needs of students and schools,” said ACSA President Bob Lee. “Budget cuts to education and plans to suspend Prop. 98 are fundamentally inconsistent  Continue reading story9

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Year of Education, still
Budget cuts or not, a few inexpensive measures could vastly improve California's schools.

January 12, 2008
The year of education went flatter than a sheet of three-hole notebook paper in the few minutes it took Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to cover schools in his State of the State speech. But the budget crisis is no excuse for shrinking his once-grand plans to a couple of modest initiatives. Schwarzenegger has plenty of reasons to move forward now.
For starters, he has some good ideas already at his fingertips, courtesy of his own committee on education. Many of the best recommendations don't involve Continue reading story10

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Use parent power to fix our schools
By Edwin C. Darden December 19, 2007

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Two Sac City schools are among 35 selected as the state’s nominees to the 2008 No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Blue Ribbon Schools Program, the California Department of Education announced recently. West Campus High School ( go to school web site: http://www.westcampushigh.org/) and Golden Empire Elementary School ( go to school web site: http://schools.scusd.edu/goldenempire/index.htm ) are the only two schools in Sacramento County nominated for the award. Continue reading story17

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A California Budget “Shock Attack”
By Dave Johnson
Speak Out California
California is said to be having a budget "crisis." Last week the Governor signed an emergency proclamation forcing the legislature to meet and act on the budget within forty-five days.

"Crisis" and "emergency" are serious words, and the public is upset about hearing them. This is, of course, the intent of those using the words -- to get the public  Continue reading story18