CA: Paying for Schools: Minding the store

Sac Bee ^ | 2/3/03 | Deb Kollars

[NormsRevenge]

A watchful eye.

The state's system of categorical funding for schools is a bureaucratic labyrinth. It consists of dozens and dozens of separate pots of money and is marked by outdated programs and inequities.

It is also marked by a sea of red tape that is inconsistent and confusing. Some categoricals are closely watched by the state, and the scrutiny, uncomfortable as it can be, has paid off for both taxpayers and schoolchildren. Other programs receive limited reviews, or no monitoring at all, begging the question of whether they are working.

[NormsRevenge]

Student chefs prepare a white sauce at San Juan High's Culinary Arts Academy. The state monitors such academies to ensure that career programs are useful.

Sacramento Bee/Jay Mather

	Mary Hudler and Alice Parker of the state's Special Education Division are on a mission to improve accountability. Sacramento Bee/Jay Mather

	From left, Kuu Lee, Zoua Lo, Joua Vue, Neng Lee and Tai Cheng learn English at Fairbanks Elementary. The goal of the Community Based English Tutoring program is for parents to then teach their kids. But records have been sketchy on whether that is happening. Sacramento Bee/Jay Mather

	Hmong students gather for a traditional dance at Martin Luther King Jr. Junior High School. The event was funded by an Economic Impact Aid grant to the Grant Joint Union High School District, which has had money withheld for failing to deliver adequate services to students. Sacramento Bee/Jay Mather

[Thud]

Most of my contact with State oversight of schools comes from lawsuits over school construction contracts. The state-mandated building inspectors are rightly hard-nosed about construction and earthquake safety as the buildings are filled with children.

This is a success story and other states should emulate it. I've seen some scary looking school buildings in other states. Lots of California schools may be run-down, but structurally they are damned tough, and the safety standards increase as knowledge about construction techniques and earthquake hazards increase.