Special Meeting Set to Discuss Central Union High School District Cuts
January 13, 2010
Cutting junior varsity sports, implementing a four-day school week and eliminating summer school were all options presented Tuesday as ways to fill a $2.7 million budget deficit predicted for Central Union High School District next year.
The school board voted unanimously to schedule a special budget study session later in the month to discuss what to cut and what to keep. The board will hold a special meeting at 6 p.m. Jan. 26 in the district office board room to discuss the recommendations by the budget committee.
The committee, which consisted of parents, teachers, staff and administration, have been talking for some time and ranked a list of possible cuts for the board to evaluate, said Superintendent C. Thomas Budde.
The highest-ranking option is collecting debt, followed by changing school attendance boundaries and eliminating summer school programs.
“These things might look like they don’t have personnel implications, but they do,” he said.
For example, the No. 6-ranked option, expanding walking distance for students, predicted to save about $55,000, would decrease the number of hours for busing and possibly eliminate a few positions, he said.
Budde said he hopes to conduct the special board meeting in January, negotiations with labor unions in February if needed, implementation of a budget plan in March and a 2010-2011 budget adopted in June.
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President of the board Jacinto Jimenez reserved comment for the special meeting, but did say that the board has been very frugal in the past two years. This allowed it to not have to make personnel cuts.
“So we’re finally going to have to bite the bullet,” he said.
Some of the options would include those cuts, and there is a possibility that workers would feel the effect, he said. However, the board is pro-teachers and pro-students.
The board also held off on voting on transferring about $500,000 dollars to secure the purchase of a piece of land for a future school.
Trustee Steve Walker called for the board to table the item, which would make a $503,163 payment to the escrow account.
He said that he thought it was premature to decide on it until after the budget meeting once the board can evaluate the money situation. While he is still personally in favor of the purchase, he would like the flexibility to change his mind depending on the Jan. 26 meeting.
PROPOSED RANKING OF POSSIBLE BUDGET CUTS BY MOST PREFERRED
– Debt collection — $191,032
– Change student attendance boundaries — $55,570
– Eliminate summer school programs — $300,000
– Use reserve funds — $2,584,000
– Eliminate participation in IVROP joint powers agreement — $268,781
– Expand walking distance for students — $55,570
– Eliminate minor sports (golf, swimming, tennis, etc.) — $84,347
– Eliminate sub-varsity sports (junior varsity and frosh) — $128, 963
– Eliminate three staff development days — $364,600
– Eliminate four teacher work days — $472,800
– Implement a four school day week — $600,000
– Reduce adult education program — $55,000
– Shorten school year by five days — $591,000
– Change to a five-period day — $1.5 million
– Eliminate student transportation/busing — $887,868
– Reduce three staff development days/shorten year by five days/eliminate four work days — $1,418,400
– Eliminate adult education program — $564,487
– Counseling staff modification — $250,000
Some numbers were adjusted at the board meeting