FCMAT » Cali Education Headlines Monday, July 16, 2012

FCMAT » Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team:

Koreatown in Los Angeles  Fabled as one of LA's only 24-hour districts

Education Headlines

Monday, July 16, 2012

Frey: Program that helps young students adjust to school is in jeopardy

Gov. Jerry Brown’s line-item veto last month of $15 million for a two-decade-old program addressing mental health needs among elementary school children has left districts that relied on the funds with hard choices about whether to keep the program going.

Tustin school district, city ready to battle in court over construction

Land on the former Tustin Marine base is at the center of multiple lawsuits between the city and Tustin Unified that have dragged on for two years and frustrated residents and officials on both sides of the issue.

School ‘safe zones’ planned for San Diego

A group led by former gang members is starting a program to keep children safe as they walk to and from school in southeastern San Diego.

Despite budget cuts, some Bay Area school districts are offering innovative summer programs

Drastic budget pressures have led many California school districts to cut back their free summer school offerings, leaving children from lower-income families to while away their 10-week break with little to do. Still, some school leaders have found creative ways to keep academic enrichment programs running, often with the help of local foundations, tech companies and youth development organizations.

Open government at heart of budget cut

California's 59-year-old Ralph M. Brown Act is meant to ensure open and accessible government. These days, it also shows how convoluted the state can be. A key feature of the act - that local elected bodies and commissions must post their meeting agendas in advance - was suspended as part of the new state budget, a bookkeeping move that could save the state $96 million in 2012-13.

Walters: Gov. Jerry Brown's pitch on schools very risky

Whether schools would actually benefit from the taxes is very uncertain; Gov. Brown has, however, signed a bill that would slash school spending by $5.5 billion should it fail. It's a very risky strategy for a measure that, at the moment, has no better than a 50-50 chance of passage.

Friday, July 13, 2012

Rio School District reaches tentative deal with teachers

After two years of tense contract negotiations, the Rio School District and its teachers have reached a tentative agreement. The tentative three-year deal keeps all salaries the same and calls for three additional teacher furlough days.

Claremont Unified approves agreements with organizations

Claremont Unified School District board members voted to approve agreements with a number of employee organizations Thursday night using $2.4 million in reserve funding to temporarily increase the district's contribution to each groups benefits and give an immediate pay raise for 2012.

Alvord district calls for bond election

The Alvord school board will ask voters in November to approve $79 million in reauthorized bonds. The board unanimously approved a resolution Thursday night, July 12, to place the bond measure on the ballot. If passed, the measure would save about $260 million in interest over the life of the bonds, but property owners would pay about $51 more per $100,000 assessed valuation each year.