Mission accomplished? OUSD’s structural deficit, closure savings and other budget questions - The Education Report - Katy Murphy's blog on Oakland schools

Mission accomplished? OUSD’s structural deficit, closure savings and other budget questions - The Education Report - Katy Murphy's blog on Oakland schools:

Mission accomplished? OUSD’s structural deficit, closure savings and other budget questions

By Katy Murphy
Monday, June 25th, 2012 at 5:06 pm in Uncategorized.

This spring, Oakland Superintendent Tony Smith heralded the elimination of a $40 million structural deficit that he had inherited when he came to OUSD in 2009. Soon thereafter, his financial services team discovered a multimillion-dollar shortfall, which was followed by major reductions in the proposed special education budget for 2012-13 and other adjustments.

Then, last Friday, the administration made the deficit-eradication claim once again. A public statement about the Lakeview Elementary School sit-in, which is now in its second week, said that the closure of Lakeview and other elementary schools had allowed the district to “eliminate a $40 million structural deficit…”

If you look at Slide #23 in the budget presentation (second-to-last link), and your eyes automatically run to the highlighted green line, that sure looks to be th