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Home :: Discover EGUSD :: Superintendent :: Superintendent's Message
At the March 3, 2009, Board of Education meeting the board gave approval for the district to move forward through these difficult economic times by using district reserves to significantly reduce the number of layoffs.
We know that this decision was somewhat of a calculated risk and will require additional future budget cuts in the next fiscal year. However, we believe that taking the risk is the right thing to do for our students, staff and community.
The fate of California’s finances and the funding of public education remain far from clear. Our funding will depend on the outcome of several ballot measures scheduled for the May 19 special election. Further complicating our budget planning is that we do not know how and when the promise of the federal stimulus dollars targeted for education will arrive. In addition, we will continue to monitor the state’s fiscal condition as we look to the May revise.
The day before the Governor signed the budget on February 20, the district faced the prospect of having to notify more than 1,100 staff members of possible layoff. In the 10 days from when the Governor signed the budget and the board took action, the 1,100 possible layoffs were reduced to about 300. As more information or funding becomes available we hope to reduce the number layoff notices even further. But again, we must all recognize that the use of our district reserves does not mitigate the need to find future budget reductions.
The use of the reserves allowed the district to save many positions for at least one more year including elementary school teachers, librarians, library technicians, administrators and other positions.
At the beginning of this budget building process I asked that we look at our budget through the following lenses, in no particular order:
- people before things
- well-maintained facilities
- safety and security
- academic programs and services
The decisions made on March 3 reflect this list of considerations.
Also know that the budget committee was able to identify $10 million in one-time cuts of “things” for 2008-2009. These savings, along with the use of other reserves, avoided more staff layoffs during the current school year. In addition, a significant portion of the district’s remaining reserves has been earmarked to be used with the $4 million more in one-time cuts along with $12.2 million in ongoing cuts that are needed in 2009-2010.
In the coming year we will continue to look for creative solutions and continue to find ways to be agents of hope.
I’d like to thank staff, parents, students and community members who contributed their ideas and thoughts through the district’s budget process and Budget Watch webpage. Please know that we will continue to use that webpage to update the community about our fiscal planning.
Steven M. Ladd, Ed.D.
Superintendent
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