Schools

No Teaching Layoffs This Year, But LVUSD Future Still Uncertain

The school district is able to save enough money to avoid issuing pink slips to teachers and counselors, but big cuts could be coming in the near future.

No layoff notices were issued to teachers or counselors in March due to the impending departure of a dozen educators whose jobs won't be restaffed in the fall, resulting in larger class sizes.

The district is facing a $600,000 deficit for the 2012-13 school year, but that gap will be closed with $760,000 in savings from the salaries of 12 teachers who are either retiring or leaving the district for other reasons, said Chief Business Official Karen Kimmel.

Last year, LVUSD faced more than $3 million in state funding cuts and issued layoff notices to about 50 teachers and counselors, though all those employees ended up keeping their jobs thanks to local fundraising and some grants.

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Although no teachers are slated to lose their jobs this year, class sizes will grow this fall for students in grades K-3 to make up for the attrition, Kimmel said.

Student-to-teacher classroom ratios could be raised from 20:1 to 24:1, said Assistant Superintendent of Personnel Dan Stepenosky.

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And things could get worse for the district if voters in November reject Gov. Jerry Brown's proposed income tax hike to generate $5.5. billion.

"The November election is critical for us," Stepenosky said. "If that initiative does not pass we will be looking at many furlough days and layoffs because the state has threatened to take away $455 per child in funding, about $5.14 million for us."

Kimmel said the district is working with local teaching unions on an agreement to enact furlough days if LVUSD is dealt such a financial blow.

In the meantime, more efforts to raise money for local schools about to get underway. The Together Helping Education (T.H.E.) Foundation is gearing up for its first fundraising event on June 9.

"On the positive side, T.H.E. Foundation has hit the ground running," Stepenosky said. "They don't want to wait for Sacramento to solve our problems, we as a community need to step up, get involved now, and go after the chronic underfunding that Sacramento provided us."  


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