State Budget Shortfall Forces School District To Move Forward With Layoffs

The Desert Sands Unified School District on Tuesday approved sending out 85 preliminary layoff notices to teachers and other personnel in the face of a state budget shortfall.

District board members took the action in a series of three 5-0 votes at the district board room, 47950 Dune Palms Road in La Quinta.

"We have to move forward tonight with the maximum number of possible reductions in service,'' Sherry Johnstone, Assistant Superintendent of Personnel Services, said before the meeting. "And so because the cut off date is March 15, we’re hoping that it’s less than that."

Johnstone said the notices have to be finalized by May 15, adding that the special election approving tax extensions would not be until June.

"We always hand deliver them by our principals,'' she said.

The board voted to send out layoff notices to teachers and other personnel because of a March 15 deadline, according to Cindy McDaniel, Assistant Superintendent of Business Services.

Those potentially on the chopping block include: 33 elementary school teachers, 11 middle school teachers 9 high school teachers, 12 elementary counselors, four secondary grade foreign language teachers, three librarians and 13 project teachers.

But those layoffs won't go into effect if Gov. Jerry Brown's budget proposal passes and voters approve tax extensions, McDaniel said.

Board member Matteo Monica III said he personally supports extending the tax hike.

"We need the money for our children during their progressive years,'' he said. "When our children graduate they need to be ready to start college level courses ... It’s our responsibility to make our children ready, and the dollars don’t allow it."

Johnstone said the district has been working hard ahead of time to reduce the number of possible layoffs.

"Last year at this time it was 211 (layoff notices),'' Johnstone said. "All of the Desert Sands employees have been working so hard together and compromising and working together and giving furlough days. We’ve all worked together to serve our students and provide them with the best education to try to make it through this most difficult fiscal time.''

Tom Burbank, president of the Desert Sands Teacher's Association, called on board members to support the tax extensions to avoid the layoffs.

"There is one key to making that all go away. And you all know what that is. Support the extension of taxes that we already pay,” Burbank said.

He said there is no more room in classrooms if teacher positions are eliminated. Burbank added that student safety will be compromised.

"It’s time to bail out the kids,'' he said. "It’s time to bail out schools. It’s time to bail out public education and time to stop bailing out people who it takes a lot of money to bail them out and they don’t pay it back."

Lou Sexson, an elementary school counselor in La Quinta, asked the board to value the services that counselors provide to students.

"All through our valley counselors emotionally hold the hands and hearts of students,'' Sexson told the board.

She said as many as 10 percent of students in the district struggle with depression.

"I ask that as you are facing this very difficult time of the budget, that you would see that cutting elementary counselors is something that we can’t afford, and it’s something our children can’t either,'' Sexson said.