Message from Superintendent Patrick Godwin Regarding the State Budget Crisis

June 19, 2009

Still no good news from the legislature

There is still no resolution or good news coming out of Sacramento about the budget crisis. Some legislators continue to oppose taxes and want schools to "live within their means" without discussing whether the means can reasonably support the type of education our students need and is offered to students in other states.  Other legislators push the job of prioritizing cuts to local school boards under the guise of flexibility so that school board members can take the heat from affected employee and interest groups.      

And so it goes. 

Current list of proposed reductions

Those that have been following the progress of the Folsom Cordova Unified School District's budget development know that we must prepare for potential cuts of $14.7 million to our 2009-10 school budget.

At a special meeting on June 11, I presented a list of reductions to balance the 2009-10 budget.    (Click Here for Superintendent's June 11 recommendations)

The list comes in three parts. 

The first section, titled February reductions, reflects $6.4 million in reductions generated by the legislature's "compromise" budget passed in February. 

The next two sections, titled May revise and June proposals, list the reductions developed after the failure of Measures 1A-1E.  The three lists total the $14.7 million needed to balance the 2009-10 budget. 

There is nothing to like on any of these lists, especially the June section.  Every cut reduces the opportunities and services we provide to our students.  In fact, the only redeeming thing that can be said about the overall list is that it does describe what we believe is a worst case scenario.    

Other options

The best hope we have for saving jobs and opportunities for students is to share the pain among all of our employee groups.

The administrators in the District have agreed to a two day furlough, and additional days will be considered as other employee groups step up.

At a meeting on June 10, the District presented the Folsom Cordova Education Association (FCEA), the union that represents the teachers and other certificated staff members, with two options that would save middle school electives, elective courses for juniors and seniors, and counselor positions.  (Click Here for FCEA and District Budget Options) 

Both options rely on furlough days, but one, labeled option A, also increases class size averages in grades 1 and 2 from 24-to-1 to 26-to-1.  A freeze in the automatic salary increase received by the majority of FCEA members for another year of experience could be substituted for a corresponding number of furlough days.  (See "Negotiable Items" for more details on the savings per furlough day and other savings that require the agreement of the affected employee group.)   

All FCEA members have been invited to an informational meeting with their representatives on June 19, followed by a meeting of the FCEA Representative Council on June 25.

District staff will meet with the FCEA bargaining team on June 29.  We are hopeful that we can reach an agreement that will be acceptable to both parties.

CSEA, the union that represents the District's classified employees, has indicated that it will participate in discussions this month to work on how a furlough program could be implemented.  

We must reach agreements quickly to avoid laying off more certificated and classified positions. 

There is still the ever-fading possibility that the legislature will find a way to provide more funding for education.  However, unless the "no taxes" pledge is pulled off the table, deep reductions appear to be the most likely scenario. 

Our promise (as repeated from previous budget updates)

The Governing Board has vowed to be transparent in all of its considerations.  We will keep you informed of all of our considerations and recommendations.  The most accurate and complete information will be posted at this location on our website, and we will keep it up to date.   

As we add new ideas and/or add details to existing ideas, we will share those with you to the extent possible.  In some cases, because of privacy rights and to protect individuals from unfair criticism, I may withhold names or other pieces of information until it is appropriate to make an announcement.  Please also keep in mind that we may consider and study many possibilities, but that does not necessarily mean that the idea will become part of the final recommendation. 

As I stated in the May 29 budget update, the most damaging aspect of the budget crisis is the potential to harm relationships. 

With fewer adults in schools, there are fewer opportunities for students to find the adult(s) that will influence and guide them.  Schools in the nation funded at the national average have 64 teachers and 3.4 administrators per 1000 students.  In California the average school has 48 teachers and 2.2 administrators, and that is before this round of cuts and reductions.    

With decisions being made to reduce positions and services, there will be strong disagreements about the choices.

I would suggest that now is a time for us to exercise patience and understanding.  In particular, please do not participate in circulating rumors and conjecture.  These are difficult times, and we do not need to add to our challenges by succumbing to unwarranted FEAR (False Expectations Appear Real).

If you have a concern or question, ask the person most responsible, or ask me.  Together we will get through this mess.

I look forward to what I believe will ultimately be a ground swell for public education, if not for next year, then very soon.  People who care about children and our future will eventually demand better from our state.     

 

Patrick Godwin