Superintendent Letter May/June 2011

As we approach the end of this school year, I would like to thank Alameda once again for the extraordinary support so many community members have continued to give to our schools this year and every year, in good times and in hard times. We are continuing to work towards a future where the State of California will fulfill its responsibility to provide stable, reliable and sufficient resources for public education for students in Alameda and all across California. But we all know that, for now, in Alameda we have to rely on ourselves to support our students and our schools.

The great news of this past school year is that our extraordinary community was able to come together to do just that. Alamedans from all walks of life from every part of Alameda spoke up in community meetings last fall, volunteered this winter and voted in March to pass Measure A to offset the unprecedented K-12 budget cuts by the State and to protect Alameda’s core educational values. With Measure A, we will avoid the most devastating cuts facing so many other districts around California. Measure A will help us maintain small class sizes, help us continue to attract and keep the very best teachers, give our students the sports, music and art programs they love and count on, and protect the core academic programs that prepare our children for a successful future.

With Measure A, we will also have a much greater ability than most other districts to chart our own path forward: We are excited to return our focus to the community’s educational priorities reflected in AUSD’s Master Plan “Plan A” adopted in 2010. As we move ahead, we will continue to implement our core strategies set forth in the Master Plan, including raising the bar for academic achievement and equity, creating a system of attractive school options, maintaining a policy of neighborhood schools, and strengthening enrichment programs. We look forward to continuing the community engagement of the past two school years in order to have as many community members as possible help us succeed with promising innovations for our schools and choices for our families. We are thankful for all the educational opportunities to come for our students because Alameda passed Measure A and because so many in Alameda support our schools in so many other ways.

We all realize the unfortunate reality that California’s fiscal and political crisis continues. Since AUSD and other school districts in California rely on the State for the majority of their funding, we know we will still face uncertainty and challenges ahead. Even with the secure local funding Measure A provides, we will continue to have to deal with the instability, unreliability and insufficiency of California’s funding of education.

The past three school years have seen California make the most severe cuts to K-12 education funding in memory. The resulting budget cuts we have faced in AUSD have meant several very difficult years, with this past year the most challenging of all. As we are all too aware, Sacramento’s failure to protect and restore school funding has meant that for this school year alone we had to cut $7 million from AUSD’s budget by shortening the school year, increasing class sizes, implementing furloughs for every single employee and making millions of dollars of additional cuts.

Throughout the State’s fiscal crisis and its ongoing budget battles, May and June have been a time of stress and uncertainty for families, teachers and staff as we wait each year to see what the Governor’s revised budget will mean for public schools. By law, the “May Revise” is the Governor’s last chance to present to the Legislature his budget proposals for the following next fiscal year and next school year.

I would like to clarify what the Governor’s May Revise proposals may mean for K-12 education generally and for AUSD specifically. Even if adopted by the Legislature, the Governor’s May Revise proposals would not provide an increase in funding for K-12 education. Instead, the Governor proposes merely to have the State reduce “deferrals:” To start catching up on past deferred payments the State has already withheld from and owes to school districts over the course of the State’s fiscal crisis. Accordingly, under the May Revise proposals, education funding for next year would remain flat relative to last year. State funding would not reverse the billions of dollars already cut over the last several years and would not include even a modest increase to keep pace with rising expenses.

Moreover, the May Revise proposals assume certain taxes currently scheduled to expire will be extended by votes of the Legislature and voters. The May Revise proposals would also impose a new, potentially substantial spending mandate on school districts by assigning school districts financial responsibility for mental health services for students with disabilities, a responsibility that has been placed with County mental health agencies for the past 26 years.

In order to be fiscally responsible in the face of all the economic, political and budgetary uncertainties the State creates, AUSD must plan conservatively and prepare for many possible budget contingencies. Our preliminary estimates indicate that a combination of Measure A revenue and federal jobs money will likely permit AUSD to balance next year’s budget without any draconian reductions for the next school year. In addition, we expect not to have to implement furlough days next year. As a result, students will have more instructional time in school next year. We are also hopeful that for next year we will be able to restore at least some professional development for teachers even above the professional development provided for in Measure A.

Despite the difficulties we’ve faced this year and the challenges still ahead, we hope that during this traditional week of celebration, promotion and graduation, we will all take a step back to focus on all there is to be proud of in AUSD. Our community strongly supports our schools. Students and schools across the district continue to excel and to improve. Our high school student-athletes continue outstanding achievements on and off the field. Our graduates are ready to take their next steps to college and career. Our extremely dedicated teachers and staff work tirelessly to provide excellent opportunities for students and service to families.

So once again, thank you, Alameda. We hope everyone enjoys a well deserved summer break. We’re looking forward to seeing you again in August!

Sincerely,

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Kirsten Vital
Superintendent of Schools