Free Republic

Sacramento - -- Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, whose budget already makes dramatic cuts in education, is proposing to withhold billions of dollars from schools that were guaranteed by a measure approved by voters two decades ago. School officials and education advocates railed Tuesday against Schwarzenegger's proposal, which would go into effect after 2010, arguing that it would make permanent reductions in school spending that would eliminate programs and increase the size of classes. "The vast majority of the education community in California believe that we're underfunded already," said Nancy Waymack, a policy director for San Francisco's public schools. "So when the...

SCOTTS VALLEY - Parents whose kids take a day off from school will be asked to open their wallets. That will be $36.13, please. Desperate to hold on to every penny of state funding, Scotts Valley Unified School District leaders are asking parents to make a donation to the district for the amount it loses every time a student is absent for a reason other than illness. They say such absences cost the district $223,500 last school year. ``When parents keep their kids out of school, it's difficult for the child,'' Superintendent Susan Silver said. ``But it's also a cost...

Sacramento -- State Senate Leader Don Perata, taking a new approach to both the state budget and a weakened Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, called Tuesday for a dramatic increase in spending on education and said he will push for new taxes to repair the state's school system. The Oakland Democrat called California "miserably behind the curve'' when it comes to school funding, noting that the state ranks in the bottom half of per-pupil spending in the nation. He said that improving schools so California students can compete in a global economy "can't be done on the cheap.'' Perata said he will...

<p>When you drop a quarter into an Arizona slot machine, money trickles into Tempe's Bustoz Elementary School, where reading coach Jane Clevenger can spend a few more hours helping children write sentences.</p> <p>The quarters and dollars find their way into bonus checks for teachers at Murphy Elementary School District.</p>