65 Teachers Face Layoff Notices in La Mesa-Spring Valley School District

The La Mesa-Spring Valley School District got the green light Tuesday night to prepare pink slips for up to 65 teachers—about 10 percent of its certificated ranks.

“We are working on the layoff notices even as we speak,” schools Superintendent Brian Marshall said via e-mail Wednesday, a day after the board of education voted 5-0 to approved a budget-cutting plan that includes changing middle schools back to junior highs.

Sixth-graders thus will stay with their elementary schools—instead of moving to La Mesa and Parkway middle schools, for example.

The identities of those targeted for possible firing will not be made public, Marshall said in reply to questions from La Mesa Patch.

“We don't announce the names of those affected—this is a personnel matter and is confidential,” he said.

The district could lay off an additional 15 classified employees, he said. Several also face reductions in their hours under a plan that originated with a district Budget Study Committee that included labor unions and parents.

The numbers could still change since the district must negotiate many of the budget cuts the board approved Tuesday night, Marshall said.

The deadline to adopt a budget is in late June, but the district has until March 15 to notify teachers and counselors who could potentially be laid off. Final layoff notices for teachers are due in May.

“The March 15 date is a preliminary notice,” Marshall said. “Final notices will also be impacted by retirements, leaves.”

Marshall said the layoff process is based on seniority. As such, a particular school could lose teachers but not teaching positions.

The district, which has a $100 million budget this year, is trying to address a projected $9 million shortfall next school year—2011-2012.

The board also voted for cuts that could result in the layoffs of as many as 15 classified employees, Marshall said. Several other classified employees face reduction of their working hours.

“Unfortunately we don’t have anywhere else to go,” board President Rick Winet said before Tuesday's vote. “We as trustees have to provide a solvent system.”

District employees have known for weeks that layoffs were coming.

More than 200 employees attended a Feb. 1 hearing where the budget-cutting proposal was presented.

They included  teachers who spoke out against further salary reduction after two consecutive years of pay cuts.

On Tuesday, more than 100 attended the meeting at district headquarters on Date Avenue where the board approved cuts. Many were classified employees whose jobs were targeted.

The board revised the list of reduction that its budget committee had recommended and spared some jobs, mainly that of health and library media technicians. (See attached list of cuts made or not made.)

“We saved our jobs,” said a relieved Lynn Nunez.  “They were thinking of closing libraries or drastically closing libraries. She said she staffs her school’s library and also works with students in classrooms.

Laying off teachers meanwhile is a complicated process. La Mesa-Spring Valley plans to do it by boosting class sizes for kindergarten through third grade and by keeping sixth-graders at their elementary school instead of moving them to middle schools.

Larger classes mean fewer teachers are needed. The sixth-grade move will save the district money because it won’t have to pay for separate physical education and elective courses.

The district also will explore converting La Presa Elementary and Kempton Middle schools into K-8 campuses—but not for next school year.