LCUSD Outlines Financial Future, Asks for $2,500 Donation

Editor's Note: The following is a statement, posted in its entirety, from the

As many of you know, the state budget crisis has led to deep cuts in public education funding in California. We in La Cañada have not been immune; indeed, in very real ways, we have been hurt disproportionally.

Last September, the entire community received a wake-up call. With the promise of even more cuts to come, the message was spread, we all rose to the challenge and raised a record $2,000,000. Your generosity allowed the District to hire 12 additional teachers. Class sizes began coming back down.

And yet, as miraculous as that was, we are sorry to say the battle is far from over.

Right now, the District is planning its budget for the 2012-2013 school year. Here's what we know.

We know that we will be carrying over the reduced level of state funding we labored under last year. What's worse, we will also incur even more cuts on top of that.

As startling as it sounds, this time raising $2,000,000 for the District won't be enough. When all is said and done, the District must plan for an additional $2,300,000 in funding cuts from the current year.

The District hopes the community will at least raise $2,000,000 again to enjoy the level of service our students currently enjoy. In order to bridge the rest of the funding cuts, the district intends to pull an additional $2,300,000 out of reserves.  However, if we continue to raise $2,000,000 each year and make up the rest with reserves, we will only last three years before we default.

We're telling you this now, because we don't want anyone to be caught off guard. Presently, we have issued pink slips to 19 teachers in preparation for the worst. This is an incredibly challenging time for us, but there is hope. It's important that you read this carefully to understand the crisis with which we struggle and the ways in which we can survive it.

What do we get if we raise $2,000,000 by June 30?

If the community raises $2 million, the District will be able to retain current average class size for the next school year (2012-13).

What happens if we don't get to $2,000,000 in fundraising?

The District will be forced to lay off staff, including teachers. Class sizes will go up. Additional cuts to programs may also be necessary.

What happens if the community raises more than $2,000,000?

The closer we get to the roughly $4,300,000 we need, the less we will need to draw from our reserves.

What's so bad about drawing from reserves? Isn't that what they're for?

Our reserves exist to help us bridge a short-term funding crisis. Although LCUSD has reserved far more money than the average district in California, even we cannot rely upon reserves for more than three years. Assuming no change to the present levels of state and federal funding, the District projects that even with a sustained community donation level of $2,000,000 a year, we will be insolvent by 2015-2016, and subject to being taken over by the state. In order to avoid insolvency, we will be forced to make draconian cuts to staff. This will increase class sizes dramatically.

Are larger class sizes such a problem?

We make a point of listening to a broad cross-section of our community. Lower class size is not only an important goal for the District because of its importance to the learning experience, but it is also a major priority for the parents of our students

Isn't there more “fat” that can be cut from the budget?

Every ounce of fat was cut long ago. We are no longer maintaining our campuses in the manner we wish. Key site improvements have been deferred. We cancelled our intended “refresh” of our aging computer equipment. Janitorial staff and services have been cut back. We are running as lean as we possibly can, and yet, more cuts are on the way.

Is there somewhere to review the funding numbers and cuts in more detail?

Absolutely. This document is intended to summarize the financial crisis we face. For a more detailed breakout of our possible funding scenarios, please visit lcfef.org/budgetchart. Please understand that these details are also condensed. Public K-12 funding is a very complicated process that relies on ever-changing numbers from the state and federal government, along with changing numbers in enrollment.

What about closing an elementary school? Would that save money?

Unfortunately, no. Even though we continue to deal with declining enrollment, which in turn reduces our state funding, we have too many K-6 students to fit into two elementary campuses. If we closed a school, we would have to spend money to build out temporary classrooms. Furthermore, class sizes would jump dramatically in the very grades we try our best to keep small. At this time, the District does not believe this is a viable solution to our problems.

Where do permit students fall into all of this?

Out-of-district, or “permit”, students are almost entirely children of District employees and people who work in La Cañada (most notably at JPL) who are granted a permit to attend our schools. Because permit students bolster our enrollment, they have helped us steady our funding.

However, the District feels that our current level of permit students (roughly 15%) is an appropriate level. Ultimately, we cannot rely upon increasing numbers of outside students to permanently prop up our local school funding.

Have the funding cuts hurt our schools' performance?

We are proud to say that so far, they have not. Our schools continue to excel. We remain the second-ranked open enrollment district in the state; in fact, we have actually shortened the gap between us and first-ranked San Marino.

What about the parcel tax?

The parcel tax has helped offset some of the initial round of cutting that began years ago. Our parcel tax, which is $150, still lags far behind that of similar districts like San Marino, which currently levies a combined parcel tax of $1,150.

After the November election, the District will take the appropriate steps to extend and potentially increase the amount of our parcel tax which sunsets in June 2014. We believe that a self-sustaining source of local revenue is the best solution to protect our schools from the ongoing devastating budget cuts that continue to threaten us. 

Is this just us, or is this a problem everywhere?

Every single district in California is dealing with this. As bad as things might seem right now, we're actually one of the best-prepared districts. The next few months will likely bring a cascade of pink slips for teachers all across the state. We hope to avoid this.

What's Sacramento doing about all of this?

Governor Brown has a tax measure planned for the ballot this fall. If it passes, it would grant us some relief. However, there are a number of competing measures planned as well, and history indicates that multiple tax-raise measures tend to be met by an across-the-board “no” vote from the electorate.

Even if this weren't the case, we cannot rely on November's outcome. Our budget, which includes 19 layoff notices, must be locked in for the beginning of the school year in September. Even if Governor Brown's measure succeeds, it will be too late for 2012-2013.

So where's the hope, and how can I help?

You are the hope.

The District is asking every family and business in La Cañada, as well as all permit families, to donate to the Educational Foundation. The recommended donation is $2,500 per family, which is still roughly half what San Marino asks its families to donate.

If we land below $2,000,000, you will see the evidence in the classrooms this September. That's something none of us wants, but we feel it's our responsibility to give you the bad news as plainly as we can.

If you have already made your donation to the LCFEF, we thank you. If not, please donate now at lcfef.org/donate. Every dollar counts.

We know this is frustrating, and we know these are hard times. We don't like this any more than you do, but we are out of options. Please understand that your donations directly support our schools, our community, and our children.

For those of you who have given and continue to give, thank you so much for all you have done already.