CUSD TRUSTEES APPROVE LAYOFFS
The following statement was read by President Ellen M. Addonizio at the Capistrano Unified School District Board Meeting on March 9, 2009.
The Capistrano Unified School District has been forced to make budgetary cuts over the last few years. This has come with unpleasant consequences. Educational opportunities and support programs considered important have had to be scaled back or eliminated. Sadly, we have been deprived of the funding necessary to continue at our already reduced funding levels.
The California Legislature recently passed a budget which shorts us the funding we desperately need. We are going to have to cut another 25 million dollars from our budget and fear it might even be more. This has placed us in a most unenviable position.
The Board is going to have to cut virtually every program not mandated in law. We will also be entering contract negotiations with the employee bargaining units of this District for the 2009-10 school year. Our ability to restore programs will be determined by what we are able to negotiate in the way of salary and benefits with our employees.
Hopefully, we can negotiate contracts that will result in no employees being laid off and some programs being restored. This will require salary rollbacks since roughly 85 percent of our general fund goes to labor expenses. CUSD personnel didn’t experience salary rollbacks this year like so many in the private sector.
California is in a dire financial situation. Unemployment has passed 10 percent with the income of those working often being substantially reduced. We can’t delude ourselves into thinking we will be immune to the crisis surrounding us.
However, I have every confidence in the parents, students, faculty and staff of this District. We can get through this but it will require everyone’s effort. Many hands make for a light load.
