“She changed my life forever.” “He made me believe in myself because he believed in me.” “She inspired me to do my best because she accepted nothing less.”
Powerful accolades such as these are heard primarily in only one field: education. It is the reason teachers teach and why I take extreme pride and pleasure in serving as the superintendent of the Carlsbad Unified School District.
January began on a difficult note. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger used his Jan. 10 state-of-the-state address to declare that California is in a fiscal emergency.
His proposal to balance the state budget by imposing mid-year cuts and suspending Proposition 98, which guarantees that schools will be adequately funded each year, caused sweeping concern throughout school districts across California. Suspending Prop. 98 would force CUSD to reduce its 2008-09 budget by $4.5 million, which is more than twice the amount of the painful cuts we endured last year.
The state fiscal emergency was created in Sacramento and needs to be resolved in Sacramento. There is both a revenue and a spending problem. Elected officials in Sacramento ought to lock themselves in their chambers, admit they have a problem, show wise leadership and tell the citizens of California that we can't have the programs of Sweden on the taxes that would support Mississippi's budget.
Carlsbad and California voters have repeatedly made it clear that public education is a priority. Nevertheless, although we believe that CUSD students and employees should not have to suffer due to the state's inability to provide predictable funds, we are preparing for the possibility.
To ensure the district's continuing financial stability, a three-pronged approach was put into place at the Jan. 23 board of trustees meeting. Assistant Superintendent Suzanne O'Connell is leading a state fiscal emergency advisory committee representing all district stakeholders. The group is tasked with analyzing potential General Fund cost reductions and revenue enhancements that will total at least $4.5 million, and developing impact statements for consideration in proposing a balanced budget for 2008-09.
Jefferson Elementary School Principal Carol Van Vooren is leading a drive to multiply private and corporate funding sources to help replace the $4.5 million shortfall. The board of trustees is leading a grassroots local and state advocacy effort that has garnered support from parents, city officials and business leaders, including Carlsbad Chamber members.
Up-to-date information on all of these efforts can be found online at www.carlsbadusd.k12.ca.us.
Many of you are standing up for those who stood up for you, a public school teacher who helped you through a bad day, guided you to a career path or nurtured you along the way. Thank you for your support and assistance during these troubling times.
Financial Facts:
• In 1988, California voters approved Proposition 98, an initiative to guarantee that schools would be adequately funded each year regardless of volatile economic swings. In 2004, the Legislature temporarily suspended Prop. 98. The lost funds were never regained.
• According to the California Education Coalition, California ranks 46th in the nation in per-pupil spending, trailing the national average by nearly $2,000 per student. Education Week magazine gave California a D-plus in school funding, and this was before the state fiscal emergency was declared.
• CUSD cannot use any of the $198 million Proposition P bonds approved by Carlsbad voters in 2006 to supplement lost funds. This money can only be used for the approved purposes of renovating existing schools and building a new high school.
Powerful accolades such as these are heard primarily in only one field: education. It is the reason teachers teach and why I take extreme pride and pleasure in serving as the superintendent of the Carlsbad Unified School District.
January began on a difficult note. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger used his Jan. 10 state-of-the-state address to declare that California is in a fiscal emergency.
His proposal to balance the state budget by imposing mid-year cuts and suspending Proposition 98, which guarantees that schools will be adequately funded each year, caused sweeping concern throughout school districts across California. Suspending Prop. 98 would force CUSD to reduce its 2008-09 budget by $4.5 million, which is more than twice the amount of the painful cuts we endured last year.
The state fiscal emergency was created in Sacramento and needs to be resolved in Sacramento. There is both a revenue and a spending problem. Elected officials in Sacramento ought to lock themselves in their chambers, admit they have a problem, show wise leadership and tell the citizens of California that we can't have the programs of Sweden on the taxes that would support Mississippi's budget.
Carlsbad and California voters have repeatedly made it clear that public education is a priority. Nevertheless, although we believe that CUSD students and employees should not have to suffer due to the state's inability to provide predictable funds, we are preparing for the possibility.
To ensure the district's continuing financial stability, a three-pronged approach was put into place at the Jan. 23 board of trustees meeting. Assistant Superintendent Suzanne O'Connell is leading a state fiscal emergency advisory committee representing all district stakeholders. The group is tasked with analyzing potential General Fund cost reductions and revenue enhancements that will total at least $4.5 million, and developing impact statements for consideration in proposing a balanced budget for 2008-09.
Jefferson Elementary School Principal Carol Van Vooren is leading a drive to multiply private and corporate funding sources to help replace the $4.5 million shortfall. The board of trustees is leading a grassroots local and state advocacy effort that has garnered support from parents, city officials and business leaders, including Carlsbad Chamber members.
Up-to-date information on all of these efforts can be found online at www.carlsbadusd.k12.ca.us.
Many of you are standing up for those who stood up for you, a public school teacher who helped you through a bad day, guided you to a career path or nurtured you along the way. Thank you for your support and assistance during these troubling times.
Financial Facts:
• In 1988, California voters approved Proposition 98, an initiative to guarantee that schools would be adequately funded each year regardless of volatile economic swings. In 2004, the Legislature temporarily suspended Prop. 98. The lost funds were never regained.
• According to the California Education Coalition, California ranks 46th in the nation in per-pupil spending, trailing the national average by nearly $2,000 per student. Education Week magazine gave California a D-plus in school funding, and this was before the state fiscal emergency was declared.
• CUSD cannot use any of the $198 million Proposition P bonds approved by Carlsbad voters in 2006 to supplement lost funds. This money can only be used for the approved purposes of renovating existing schools and building a new high school.