La Mesa-Spring Valley Schools Cut 14 Jobs After OK'ing $90.4M Budget

The La Mesa-Spring Valley School District continued to cut its work force Tuesday night, laying off 13 janitors and a preschool worker—even after passing a balanced $90.4 million budget for 2011-2012.

The governing board voted 5-0 to lay off  the 14 classified employees and reduce the work hours of 11 classified employees. Four vacant positions, including two special-education assistant spots, were eliminated.

“In a normal year, you would have some idea of what the budget looks like. Right now we don’t have any,” schools Superintendent Brian Marshall told the board at the Date Avenue meeting in La Mesa. “Unprecedented things have happened. The governor vetoed a budget. That has never happened.”

All but one of the laid off employees were part-time and full-time custodians.

The reductions were done after the board passed a balanced budget, raising the question of whether the layoffs were necessary.

Marshall said the cuts were expected but could not be factored into the budget passed because a negotiated agreement with the union that represents classified employees came late.

The cuts will save the district about $500,000 annually, Marshall said.

“We’ll put those into the next revision of the budget,” he said.

The budget adopted Tuesday night estimates $90.4 million in expenditures and $87.9 million in revenues. The district will dip into reserves to make up the deficit, which got smaller with the layoffs and pay cuts passed Tuesday.

The district, like most public school systems across California, has been preparing for severe state funding reductions for several months. California is facing a $10
billion budget deficit and the possibility of deep cuts to public education still
exists.

“I don’t know what happens tomorrow,” Marshall said. “Right now we have to stand tight at our worst-case scenario until we see what the real numbers are,” he said.

Earlier this month, 27 classified employees were laid off. The board also voted to lay off 104 teachers and other certificated employees, but as many as 30 were expected to return due to retirements and personal leaves.

Marshall lamented the loss of jobs and pay cuts but said they were necessary because of the state budget crisis.

“The toll on our staff is horrific,” he said. “No one likes their hours getting cut. No one likes getting laid off, but unfortunately in this environment you don’t know what your funding will be.

Gov. Jerry Brown last week vetoed a Democratic budget plan approved by the Legislature. He continues to warn about deeper cuts to public services unless a series of tax increases are extended.

The following La Mesa-Spring Valley positions had their hours reduced:

• One accounting technician, from 8 to 6 hours.
• One child nutrition cook at La Mesa Middle School, from 8 to 4 hours.
• Four child nutrition workers at middle schools, from 8 to 6 hours
• One child nutrition worker at Parkway Middle School, from 6 1/2 hours to 6 hours.
• One child nutrition worker at La Mesa Middle School, from 6 hours and 15 minutes to 5 hours and 15 minutes.
• Three warehouse drivers, from 8 hours to 7 hours.