Are these the headlines we expected to see in the tenth year of an economic expansion?
West Contra Costa Makes $12.5 Million in Budget Cuts
Antioch Unified School District Approves Two Charter Schools, Set to Lose $25 Million in Funding
Statewide cost indices showed Contra Costa County ranging from 105% to 120% of the California state average. The selected MIT Living Wage Index showed Contra Costa at 109.4% of average, implying a 9.4% regional cost disadvantage created by a flat school funding mechanism.
Increasing Contra Costa schools’ LCFF target funding suggests that specific districts are experiencing approximately the levels of financial pain shown below (above and beyond the general pain described in West-Ed’s “Silent Recession”).
Across the high-cost counties we’ve reviewed, this pain is generally reflected in multiple measures including less-experienced staff, higher staff turnover, less support staff, fewer enrichment programs (unless supported by external funding sources), perennial budget shortfalls, lower reserves, larger schools, larger class sizes, lower salary structures, antagonistic relationships between trustees, parents, unions, and staff. It is often worse, however, in areas of socioeconomic disadvantage, since the fixed Federal free-or-reduced-price-lunch cut-off excludes many high-needs students from LCFF student-need supplementation who are experiencing housing-cost related poverty.
Reach out to us here to put together information for your community!
Time to make an imPACT!
Please contact your state legislators. Here is the state search tool to find them. Their details are below. Rally friends to make a bigger imPACT!
- Email is nice -- tell them how your school is hurting and how you want them to “support a regional cost supplement to the Local Control Funding Formula in the May Revise.” (They’ll be impressed.)
- A phone call is better -- ask their office if they are supporting a regional cost supplement for your school district -- share a personal story and tell them where they can find more information (here!) if they ask.
- Tweet to your representatives -- ask if they will stand up for your schools and your students and support a regional cost supplement! Tag #MakeAnImPACT and @EducateOurState
- Fax your legislators' offices -- phone calls and faxes are always heard. Get your friends to all do it together for a bigger imPACT.
Now dig deeper! Whom do you know in the Education Community? An education researcher at Cal, Stanford, UC Irvine, UCSD or USC? A school board member? Send them an email, too, and link to this site. We need to influence the influencers!
Still willing to work to help your kids, grandkids, neighborhood kids AND the kids on the other side of the tracks in your county? Please, put this on Facebook and Twitter, talk at your school PTA meeting, address your school board. We are here to help -- just reach out to us here and let us know.
Otherwise, we’ll keep seeing articles like these:
One Nurse for 4000 Pupils - Not the Healthiest Arrangement
Antioch Unified Superintendent Forgoes Salary Increase: Cuts Ahead
WRITE, EMAIL, TWEET and CALL
Contra Costa
JIM FRAZIER Assembly District 11 https://a11.asmdc.org/ Capitol Office, Room 3091P.O. Box 942849, Sacramento, CA 94249-0011; (916) 319-2011; District Office: 1261 Travis Blvd, Suite 110, Fairfield, CA 94533; (707) 399-3011 ; 150 City Park Way, Brentwood, CA 94513; (925) 513-0411
Twitter: @AsmFrazier
TIMOTHY GRAYSON Assembly District 14 https://a14.asmdc.org/ Capitol Office, Room 4164, P.O. Box 942849, Sacramento, CA 94249-0014; (916) 319-2014 District Office: 2151 Salvio Street, Suite P, Concord, CA 94520; (925) 521-1511 ; 420 Virginia Street, Suite C-1, Vallejo, CA 94590; (707) 642-0314
Twitter: @AsmGrayson
BUFFY WICKS Assembly District 15 https://a15.asmdc.org/ (510) 286-1333 Sac:(916) 651-4009 District: 1515 Clay Street, Suite 2201, Oakland, CA 94612; Sacramento: State Capitol, Room 5160, Sacramento, CA 95814
Twitter: @BuffyWicks
REBECCA BAUER-KAHAN Assembly District 15 https://a16.asmdc.org/ Capitol Office, Room 2130, P.O. Box 942849, Sacramento, CA 94249-0016; (916) 319-2016 District Office: 2440 Camino Ramon, Suite 345, San Ramon, CA 94583; (925) 328-1515
Twitter: @RBKforAssembly
BILL DODD State Senate District 3 https://sd03.senate.ca.gov/: Capitol Office: State Capitol, Room 5114 Sacramento, CA 95814 Phone: (916) 651-4003 FAX: (916) 651-4903 Vacaville Office: 555 Mason Street #275 Vacaville, CA 95688 Phone: (707) 454-3808 FAX: (707) 454-3811
Twitter: @BillDoddCA
STEVE GLAZIER: State Senate District 7 https://sd07.senate.ca.gov/ Capitol Office: State Capitol, Room 4082 Sacramento, CA 95814 Phone: (916) 651-4007 FAX: (916) 445-2527 District Office: 1350 Treat Blvd S.240, Walnut Creek, CA 94597 Phone: (925) 942-6082 FAX: (925) 942-6087
Twitter: @Steve_Glazer
NANCY SKINNER: State Senate District 9 https://sd09.senate.ca.gov/District: District: (510) 286-1400 Sac:(916) 319-2015 District: 1515 Clay Street, Suite 2202, Oakland, CA 94612; Sacramento: State Capitol, Room 5094; Sacramento, CA 95814 Twitter @NancySkinnerCA
