California: California's schools to lay off 25,000 staff

The Independent (UK) ^ | 6 April 2003 17:16 | Andrew Gumbel in Los Angeles

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

California may fancy itself as the fifth largest economy in the world, but when it comes to funding its school system it is a calamity.

Across the state, 25,000 primary and secondary school teachers – 20 per cent of the total – have just been notified that they will be out of work from September.

In each of the state's 1,000-odd school districts, administrators are contemplating, reluctantly, the wholesale dismemberment of programmes, from music to art to PE, as well as the dismissal of nurses, librarians and cleaners.

Class sizes, which were successfully reduced in the go-go 1990s to as low as 20 to 1 in the primary grades, look certain to expand again, with some scenarios suggesting 40 or 50 students per teacher in certain classes.

The reason for this is simple: the state is broke. Because of the depressed economy, the bursting of the dot-com bubble and a tax code that makes state revenues excessively reliant on personal incomes rather than property values or corporate profits, California is facing a $35bn (£22bn) budget shortfall this year. Education accounts for roughly half of state spending, so schools are where the pain is being felt first.

It would not be so calamitous if Californian schools were not woefully underfunded already, ranking 41st in spending per pupil out of the 50 states. New York state, for example, spends $4,000 more per child per year. There is simply no fat to cut, largely because of a statewide tax revolt in the 1970s that capped spending for social services, sabotaging America's former leading school system.

"Let's cut the rhetoric of 'Leave No Child Behind' [President Bush's campaign slogan on education] and 'fess up to the reality that all children will be left behind," said John Deasy, superintendent of the relatively successful Santa Monica-Malibu school district in southern California, which now faces the loss of more than 200 teachers.

States across the country are suffering their worst budget crisis for half a century, and few are receiving help from the federal government, which is pouring funds instead into counter-terrorism, the military and tax cuts for the wealthy. Anti-war activists like to call the education crisis in California an instance of "domestic collateral damage", holding the White House at least indirectly responsible.

But California's own political leadership is also to blame. Governor Gray Davis, a Democrat, is infuriating even his own party by refusing to contemplate substantial tax increases and handing out favours to campaign contributors, notably the prison guards' union. While the schools sink into oblivion, Governor Davis is insisting on building a new death row unit at San Quentin prison. The price tag: $220m.

6 April 2003 17:16

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[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

And the news comes from out of State!

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

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[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Should have said I saw this on the Drudge page!

[DoughtyOne]

Out of state? Try out of nation, out of continent.

[Truth29]

How big would the class sizes be if all of the illegal aliens were excluded?

[Dog Gone]

Maybe they'll fire my communist brother who has been polluting the minds of California students for years.

But they'll probably single out the non-commies for firing.

[Mark]

Vouchers would solve the state's problems.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

You haven't been able to convert him?

I know the feeling, I have relatives I have given up on!

[LibertyThug]

Yeah, I already know about it. Looks like I'll be stuck teaching in San Bernardino yet another year.
All of this while individual schools buy EACH teacher new laptops or copy machines for every classroom.
Local control of school funding isn't always the best idea.

[Gopher Broke]

There is simply no fat to cut, largely because of a statewide tax revolt in the 1970s that capped spending for social services, sabotaging America's former leading school system.

Revolt? Sabotaging? Hey, UK...it is called WE THE PEOPLE. Finally they realized in CA how they were getting ripped off in taxes!!

[marsh2]

My daughter is a first year High School teacher. She loves to teach and has been given the highest ratings possible by her Principal, peers and students. They all came to support her when the school board looked at cuts. Although she got her slip, she is now on first on the rehire list if the school can find the money.

Such a waste of a fine teacher. If these young dedicated teachers can't find jobs in their field, California will lose a great resource.

I have also heard a rumor that all schools under 600 in enrollment could be closed. That would take out most of our county's schools. Kids would have to be bused for hours if that is the case.

[Canticle_of_Deborah]

Hats off to our "education" governor. You know those Dems, they are the only ones who care about our schools, infrastructure, environment, etc.

I can't wait to see the college recruiting campaigns for teachers because we "need" them. What a joke.

[KneelBeforeZod]

teachers love to complain about the class size thing. yet they can't explain how asian kids come over from classes of 60 kids, can't speak english, and yet graduate at the top of their high school class, and go to Berkeley, stanfUrd, MIT, etc.

The Marine Corps and probably the rest of the military doesn't even consider Asians as minorities anymore, because its screws up all their tests to have a minority get the best scores.

however, SE asia doesn't seem to follow this...lots of them seem more interested in emulating inner city thugs.

[CIB-173RDABN]

"Education accounts for roughly half of state spending, so schools are where the pain is being felt first.

---

Half the state budget goes to education, and they say there is no fat to cut...

[bonesmccoy]

http://www.recallgraydavis.com

GET BUSY AND GET THOSE TEACHERS THE RECALL PETITIONS>>> MAYBE WE CAN SAVE THEIR JOBS and Save our Educational System!

http://www.recallgraydavis.com/Petition.asp

Click here for a petition: http://www.recallgraydavis.com/Petition.pdf

[Mister Baredog]

It would not be so calamitous if Californian schools were not woefully underfunded already, ranking 41st in spending per pupil out of the 50 states.

MONEY is not the answer. Open borders and labor unions, along with incessant unwillingness to REALLY improve education(even a proven plus like English emersion was a huge fight), all of these things have brought it to this. We are screwed in so many ways now, this is just one of them. IMO one party rule is a BIG part of the problem.

[thinktwice]

For California Freepers, one thing we can do is dump the governor. For recall petitions, click on ... http://www.recallgraydavis.com

[thinktwice]

What is that saying, "All roads lead to Baghdad"?

And now -- in this thread -- it's all roads lead to http://www.recallgraydavis.com

[ItisaReligionofPeace]

Exactly right. There are tons of kids who come from crowded classes with no technology who seem to do pretty well.

[thunders]

I love how everyone is so quick to blame Bush for problems within the school system. Our current president did not cause these initial problems. And he simply cannot just take a chunk of the budget that is needed elsewhere and hand it over to the public education system. Personally, I like the fact that Bush isn't pushing a huge budget for the public education system. It is lacking in a lot of things, and I think it needs an overhaul--much of in that we need to start rethinking our plan to rely upon the government to educate our children instead of us doing it ourselves.

Yes, my fiance and I plan on homeschooling our children. I know you guys have probably heard this argument, and many of you feel the same way, but I just get so upset at people...and sometimes I just need to get my thoughts out...

I don't even understand how people can believe that they can rely on the gov. to educate their children, while they are asking for tax cuts and the such from that same gov. There is simply not enough money to go around...and I feel like Bush is placing much of it in the correct places for our current world situation....it's just time for people to get off their *ss's and quit whining and start to help in the education of their own children...

Sorry guys, guess it's time for me to step down off my soap-box now...