Clearing up confusion
Dear ER:
Over the course of the past couple of weeks, there have been a few letters to the editor that criticize the Hermosa Beach City School District. While I applaud Ms. Tagliaferro and Ms. Prassas for their interest in the schools, I have to point out some flaws with their arguments and some errors with their facts.
It is true that the Hermosa Beach City School District does not appear on the California Department of Education’s watch list. Thank goodness! It would be a disservice to our students and disastrous for our community to be on this list. Fortunately, more than a year ago, our district began a strategic planning process to be proactive about the financial problems that our district is facing. The process, by the way, had a number of dedicated community volunteers investigating options such as a parcel tax, sales tax, unification with a nearby district, charter schools, administrative restructuring and minimum district programming. Some of the items have been implemented and some have been eliminated for their own reasons. Regardless, it is much better to know what lies on the road ahead than to be ambushed as you venture down the path. And, Hermosa is not alone in this boat. Last week, the Beach Reporter printed an article regarding the similar issues being present in Manhattan Beach and Redondo Beach. This is a state-wide problem and one that threatens not only our local education system, but the strength of our community.
The survey. Yes, it is true; the Hermosa Board of Education approved the development of a survey (to see if the community has an interest in maintaining and supporting our schools). What isn’t true is that the survey costs $65,000. If you just read the headlines in the newspaper, that might be what you believe to be fact. But, the simple fact is that you should check the facts before criticizing others. The $65,000 cost is a not-to-exceed figure that covers two phases of a process that could lead to a parcel tax being put on the ballot. The survey is a portion of the overall funding and, based on information I saw presented at the March 14th school board meeting, will cost around $20,000.
Each year, for the past few years, the district has had to issue “pink slips” to some staff members. That is a sad fact of school funding and the process that school districts have to adhere to. Districts are required to notify staff of their employment status for the following school year in March of the current school year. This is before the State of California even issues budget planning information for the following school year and it is well before community fundraising concludes. Fortunately, we live in a community that can provide support to our schools. Last year, this support gave our schools the ability to bring back most, if not all, of the teachers who received layoff notices. We still lack programs like music, foreign language sections to accommodate everyone who wants to take a class, and 20:1 classroom ratios, but at least we are able keep teachers who are providing excellent instruction, keep libraries open for students and keep our school sites safe and clean.
This might be stating the obvious, but the State of California’s actions regarding education are jeopardizing our future. From preschools to our university system, cuts have caused painful reductions in services to our students, put already at risk students in greater danger, and eaten away at the heart of communities. I don’t think any one of us can fix the problem tomorrow. The best we can hope for is enough support for our local schools to help them weather the storm.
At the end of the day, I think everyone is doing their best to try to figure out a very difficult problem. Perhaps some of the time Ms. Tagliaferro and Ms. Prassas spend generating negative comments and rehashing the past could be spent finding ways to help our schools and making our community stronger. I know that is where I am going to focus my energies.
Marianne Hunt Aguilar
Hermosa Beach
