Murrieta Students to See Fewer School Days Next Year

Students in the Murrieta Valley Unified School District will face fewer instruction days in the coming year--one fewer than the current year and five fewer than two years ago.

As part of the district's agreement with its employee unions for furlough days, the 2011-2012 school year will be shortened from the statutory 180 to 175 days. The state began allowing districts to shave off student days in 2009, as a way to help districts mitigate budget shortfalls.

The school year will start one day later on August 11, and end four days sooner on May 31, 2012. The revised calendar is expected to be voted on by the school board during a special meeting Thursday.

The budget reduction days come after teachers agreed to take 10 furlough days. The remainder of those days will be taken in lieu of planned in-service days. Teachers will come back to school the same day students do, without staff days to prepare their classrooms, according to Kathy Ericson, vice president of Murrieta Teachers Association.

"We will have no prep days," Ericson said, noting that in normal budget years teachers have three prep days.

"It would be crazy to say it wasn't a tough decision to be made, but I've never seen these teachers not step up and do what needs to be done. That is just once piece of what the teachers have done."

According to a district staff report, placing the non-student days at the start and end of the school year best facilitates student learning while addressing the financial challenges brought about by the state fiscal crisis.

It will mark the second year Murrieta students will have fewer school days. Remaining budget reduction days for this year include May 27 and June 9 and 10. The last day of school is June 8. According to the 2010-2011 calendar posted on the district's website, there is also a budget reduction day on April 25, the Monday after Spring Break, which is scheduled for April 11-22.

What the Budget Looks Like

The combined revenue loss the Murrieta Valley Unified School District has been dealt between 2008 and 2011 is $65.5 million, according to Stacy Coleman, assistant superintendent of business services. That has equated to a loss of $598 per student, whereas before 2007, allotments per student went up each year with the cost of living. According to Coleman, the district should be receiving about $1,200 more than it is now for each student, had the state budget not gone sour.

Districts were also given flexibility to move funds for tier 3 categorical programs such as GATE, art and music, staff development and many others--which the district did, giving it $6.4 million to add to the general fund. The result has been a loss of many programs.

District officials are bracing for an additional loss of $330 per student in 2011-2012 if the proposed tax extensions aren't passed by state voters.

Revenues for 2010-2011 are $159.6 million, according to Coleman, which are slightly up because of receiving one-time funds from the federal jobs bill. Revenues are expected to fall to $148.9 million in 2011-2012, and go slightly back up to $151.4 in 2012-2013. This could mean the district may need to ask for $17.4 million in employee concessions in 2012-2013.

Coleman based his multi-year budget projections on Gov. Jerry Brown's January budget, which included the passage of the taxes, which are not yet on the ballot.

District Takes a Stand

On March 10, school board members voted 4-1, approving a resolution that urges legislators to put the tax extensions on the ballot.

Ken Dickson was the lone board member opposed to advocating for the tax extension.

"It costs taxpayers in our economy a significant millions of dollars and there are no guarantees it will be successful," Dickson said, adding that K-14 education is still a large portion of the state's budget.

Other board members supported the voters getting the choice.

"If we don't step up and allow the voters to choose to get us through this desperate tme, we again are making the students pay the price," said board member Margi Wray.

Robin Crist acknowledged it was the proper course of action to take.

"This is just a resolution to encourage our legislators to allow it to go to the voters...Statistics prove to this day that Californians will continue to support tax increases," Crist said.

"It our legislators don't give our voters that right, it is unjust and would be a poor decision on their part."