As reported, yesterday we spent the day in Sacramento – which was most interesting. Our Riverside County contingent met with staff from the Governor’s office, the Department of Finance, Speaker Bass, and Senator Steinberg’s office. News of note from the sessions was that there will be publication of the Governor’s May Revise beginning on Thursday of this week (much ahead of the timelines we were provided). That publication should provide us with a clear idea of the road ahead. While open to suggestions, it seemed all concurred that the problem is now much larger than anticipated and as one person said, “The problem is so big – nothing is off the table.” Additionally, there is a common opinion that under the current circumstances that there will again be a large problem with “cash” in July, and therefore the state will not be able to “pay its bills” unless they make some changes. Overall, it seemed that we made progress in providing new ways of thinking about the budget – from a public education perspective – and our approach was somewhat “atypical” in that we were looking at the long-view.
All the best,
Rick
What is going on with the $11 million State Fiscal Stabilization Fund that was released to RUSD earlier this week? It is hard to imagine a reason why the remaining pink slips were not rescinded when we just received that amount of money and are to receive even more federal money later in the year. I keep hearing, “Well, we don’t know what the state is going to do and that’s one time money.” I read information through California Department of Ed about the $11 million and, according to the guidelines, SFSF money is designed to subsidize cuts made by the state earlier in the year and is not tied to Title 1, Special Ed, or other programs. Furthermore, CDE stated:
ReplyDelete“LEAs may use SFSF to pay salaries to avoid having to lay off teachers and other school employees.”
So if the money is designed to save jobs, why aren’t we saving jobs? Are we really sending out final layoff notices when we just received $11 million?
Please understand that I do not mean any disrespect to RUSD or any of our leaders of staff. It has been an emotional few months that have left me feeling that I am only a replaceable number. Over the past few months, everyday has been an emotional roller coaster of hope, disappointment, anger, anxiety, and uncertainty. When the March 15 deadline came and so many teachers were issued RIF notices, my colleagues banded together to show their concern that the future would be devastating. Then came the rumors and the countless RIF and board meetings. Sometimes there was hope, but it was quickly replaced with disappointment. I watched as my coworkers slowly got their pink slips rescinded, until the day of the hearing when only a couple teachers at my site were still in danger of losing their job. By this time only my closest friends seemed to still be concerned about RIF notices. I also watched as people below me on the seniority list were moved up and rescinded for one reason or another. After the hearing I heard nothing for 2 weeks. I was left to listen to teachers talk about who would teach which grade levels next year. Some even discussed who would take my place and who would move into my room. It was as if my boxes had already been packed, but, all the while, I continued to work just as hard to make sure my kids were getting the best education they could get. I then received a certified letter from RUSD. I tore it open with hope that my pink slip had been rescinded only to find the Judge’s decision from the hearing. I have also sat through meetings discussing release sub days next year for cognitive planning, all the time wondering why we can pay for 7 planning days for each teacher, but we can’t save my job. I also started wondering what would happen if I got my job back too late and someone had transferred into my place? I am so close, but so far away and it seems that no one truly cares. Next came more hope. I read that $11 million was released to RUSD and I was sure that with $11 million my job could be saved, but I have heard nothing. I have checked the RUSD website but have seen nothing about the federal money. I understand that things take time, but why isn’t there an emergency board meeting scheduled to try to rescind as many pink slips as possible before May 15? I guess I will be left to pick up another certified letter telling me I will not have a job next year. Do you know how devastating that is when all you want to do is go into your classroom and be the best teacher you can be and bring home enough money to take care of your own family? No matter how many times you hear, “Don’t worry, it will work out,” you can’t help but think “What if it doesn’t?”
I am in full agreement with the above comment. I have also heard through other friends and sources than many surrounding districts rescinded all of their pink slips even before this money was available. Districts that sent out more RIFs than RUSD had their superintendents take a cut in their own pay, their boards/cabinets take cuts in pay, and all other staff take furlough days to ensure their colleagues had jobs and class size reduction would continue. I would gladly take furlough days if it meant keeping these wonderful, dedicated teachers employed as well as smaller class sizes for our students. In a time when California stands to be ranked 47th in per pupil spending, why can't RUSD use this new source of funding to make sure our students get the best education possible with smaller class sizes and teachers that are dedicated to their profession in spite of working 20 days realizing they will not be asked back next year? I have seen these teachers working well into the evening, sacrificing time with their own families, working as hard as they can to motivate students during testing, listening to plans being made for next year, keeping a wonderful attitude and teaching environment for their students, all while feeling they are expendable.
ReplyDelete$11 million is a lot of money. I realize that we do not understand all that it takes to make a district or a school run; however, with the additional $11 million basically being paid back to us that we already cut, it seems we should be able to give our students the education they deserve, with small class sizes and dedicated teachers. If we do not use this money to reinstate RIFed teachers, I think we all need to be made aware of how that money is being used.