Budget
Smith addresses overspending and dangerously low
reserves, confirming recall advocates claim that CUSD
is a district in crisis
May 09, 2007 |
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Reform advocates have exposed CUSD's financial mismanagement and corruption for years, often referring to CUSD as "a school district in crisis." Smith is the interim Superintendent of the Capistrano Unified School District.
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District confirms years of deficit spending, confirms
reform advocates claims of Fleming Trustees' fiscal
irresponsibility
May 09, 2007 |
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Sam Miller, The Orange County
Register
"The district has spent more than it has taken in for
five of the past six years, resulting in a $4.1
million deficit in this school year and a $6 million
shortfall in 2005-06. Its reserves are a little
higher than the legally mandated 2
percent."
Miller is the South Orange County education reporter for The Orange County Register.
Miller is the South Orange County education reporter for The Orange County Register.
Smith presents plan to end years of irresponsible
spending habits of Fleming Trustees
May 09, 2007 |
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Sam Miller, The Orange County
Register
"Superintendent Dennis Smith on Monday presented a
general plan of cuts, transfers and new revenues that
he said will get the district out of the habit of
spending down reserves and failing to plan for
teachers raises. The adjustments, which were not
voted on by trustees Monday, will be in the budget
the board considers in June."
Miller is the South Orange County education reporter for The Orange County Register.
Miller is the South Orange County education reporter for The Orange County Register.
CUSD spokeswoman prepares district for staff cuts
May 09, 2007 |
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Beverly De Nicola, The Orange County
Register
"The next step will be to fine-tune it and figure out
how much this will affect people. Because when you
cut $13 million, you cut people."
De Nicola is the spokeswoman for the Capistrano Unified School District.
De Nicola is the spokeswoman for the Capistrano Unified School District.
Smith's plans for cuts and increased revenues
May 09, 2007 |
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Sam Miller, The Orange County
Register "Eliminating some bus
routes with few riders and consolidating some bus
stops, for a savings of about $1 million; Raising
facilities use fees and selling obsolete school
buses, part of a plan to raise about $400,000;
Cutting staff positions to save about $4.2
million, including $2.1 million in teacher
salaries."
Officials don't know whether the cuts will come from laying off people or not filling positions of employees who leave. Teachers under contract can't be laid off, as pink slips would have had to have gone out before March 15. Miller is the South Orange County education reporter for The Orange County Register.
Officials don't know whether the cuts will come from laying off people or not filling positions of employees who leave. Teachers under contract can't be laid off, as pink slips would have had to have gone out before March 15. Miller is the South Orange County education reporter for The Orange County Register.
Smith's four guiding principles in budget planning
May 09, 2007 |
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Sam Miller, The Orange County
Register
"Smith last week said he had four guiding principles
in budget planning: ending deficit spending; carrying
a larger reserve; planning with multiyear
projections; and budgeting teacher raises in
advance."
Miller is the South Orange County education reporter for The Orange County Register.
Miller is the South Orange County education reporter for The Orange County Register.
Trustees' attempt to sell surplus land to cover
budget deficits comes up short
May 09, 2007 |
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Sam Miller, The Orange County
Register "Trustees also agreed
to try again to sell land in Laguna Niguel, a
month after bids for the 2.4 acres on Paseo de
Colinas came in smaller than expected. The largest
bid was $4.8 million, below the $6 million minimum
required. The school district reappraised the land
and has set the minimum bid at $4.8 million."
Miller is the South Orange County education reporter for The Orange County Register.
Miller is the South Orange County education reporter for The Orange County Register.
Smith's four guiding principles for the budget,
addresses automatic allocation for teachers' raises
May 06, 2007 |
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Smith is the Superintendent of the Capistrano Unified School District.
Trustees to consider millions in budget cuts, leasing
out district office space to raise $400,000 per year
May 05, 2007 |
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Volzke is the publisher of the Capistrano Dispatch.
Teacher raises will strain district with $4 million
more in cuts beyond $9 million shortfall already
identified
May 03, 2007 |
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Sam Miller, The Orange County
Register
“Union officials figure the raises mean 8.19 percent
more total pay over two years. The raises could mean
more cuts for CUSD, which had already faced a $9
million shortfall after years of deficit spending. A
package of proposed cuts will be announced next week
by new Superintendent Dennis Smith.”
Miller is the South Orange County education reporter for The Orange County Register.
Miller is the South Orange County education reporter for The Orange County Register.
Surplus property sale delayed due to low bids, could
strain budget
Apr 10, 2007 |
Permalink
Sam Miller, The Orange County
Register
"The
real estate sale Capistrano Unified needs in order to
balance its 2007-08 budget will be delayed at least a
couple months, after bids for the district's surplus
property came in lower than expected. The district is
counting on the sale – which has been planned since
2004 – in both its budget planning and its teacher
negotiations."
Miller is the South Orange County education reporter for The Orange County Register.
Miller is the South Orange County education reporter for The Orange County Register.
Land sale delay could affect teacher salaries and
retirement fund
Apr 10, 2007 |
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Sam Miller, The Orange County
Register
"Part
of the district's offer to teachers includes a 0.75
percent pay raise once the land sale goes through;
waiting on the sale would mean a delay for when
teachers would see that raise, if agreed to. And
CUSD's 2007-08 budget projections, to which trustees
are still looking to make cuts, depends on the land
sale to erase a $2 million-per-year annual debt the
district owes to a public retirement
fund."
Miller is the South Orange County education reporter for The Orange County Register.
Miller is the South Orange County education reporter for The Orange County Register.
No part of budget should be exempt from cuts
Mar 29, 2007 |
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Bryson is one of the ABC Reform Trustees.
District says deficit spending and flattening
enrollment caused budget crisis
Mar 29, 2007 |
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Eric Hall, Laguna Niguel
News
“Capistrano is facing significant budget
challenges because of two converging forces: three of
four years of deficit spending, and flattening
enrollment ... It has caused us to pause and take a
look at making budget reductions.”
Hall is
CUSD's interim deputy superintendent of business and
support services.
Trustees should have anticipated teacher salary
increases
Mar 29, 2007 |
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Ronda Walen, Laguna Niguel
News
“You’d think they would anticipate a salary
increase and build it into their budget ... Stability
is everything.” Walen is
president of the 2,000-member union for classified
workers.
Even with cuts, not enough to pay teacher salary
increases
Mar 29, 2007 |
Permalink
Sam Miller, Laguna Niguel
News
“Even with the expected cuts, CUSD would have
little left over to pay salary increases – about $3.7
million, or about 1.5 percent more for all employees.
Raises typically are nearer to the state-allocated
Cost of Living Adjustment, which CUSD expects to be
more than 4 percent.” Miller is
the South Orange County education reporter for the
Orange County Register.
McCully blames $9 million shortfall on bad decisions
Feb 23, 2007 |
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McCully says district could save with in-house lawyer
Feb 23, 2007 |
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Trustees cut 22 positions, but more cuts needed
Feb 23, 2007 |
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Volzke is the publisher of the Capistrano Dispatch.
CUSD eliminates top guidance counselor as
budget-cutting measure
Feb 18, 2007 |
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A week after the district eliminated her job as top guidance counselor in CUSD as a budget-cutting measure, Morgan expressed her hopes for the district's guidance center.
PTA leader presumes to know what's best for Morgan
and ignores impact on children
Feb 18, 2007 |
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Spoken like a true PTA political operative -- excuse the district's financial faux pas and downplay the real, unfulfilled needs of the kids, which will be made all the worse with the termination of the district's top guidance counselor. Thanks, Jennifer. Bet you won't lose any sleep over this one. See you at the next PTA-sponsored parent fundraiser.
Parent expresses concern about impact elimination of
guidance counselor will have on children
Feb 18, 2007 |
Permalink
Donna Furniss, The Orange County
Register
"We're forgetting about the middle-of-the-road child.
My child is one of them. The only place I got help
was Debbie [Morgan]. He has a 2.7 GPA, but he's
bringing it up. Why is he bringing it up? He had
someone who cared."
Furniss is a CUSD parent.
Furniss is a CUSD parent.
Trustee Bryson cautions district's reserves
dangerously low
Jan 04, 2007 |
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Trustee Bryson considers FCMAT to help with CUSD's
fiscal crisis
Jan 04, 2007 |
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Sam Miller, The Orange County
Register
“Anna Bryson said she asked district staff to put
together a report on what role the Fiscal Crisis and
Management Assistance Team could play in CUSD, and
how much it would cost to hire FCMAT.”
FCMAT
conducts management reviews for California school
districts, charter schools and community colleges.
Its experts can review and recommend policies in
various areas of education administration, ranging
from student transportation to special education.
Miller is the South Orange County education reporter
for The Orange County Register.
Enormous salary increases paid to two of CUSD's worst
offenders
Jan 02, 2007 |
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Mike Winsten, Trabuco Canyon
News
“CUSD provided three enormous salary increases to two
of CUSD’s most controversial deputy Superintendents
-- Dan Crawford and David Doomey. ... Doomey (who
many believe is the person most responsible for
creating the CUSD portable classroom crisis) admitted
CUSD had provided “misinformation” to the public as
to how CUSD would fund the new $52,000,000
administration office ... During the recall, Crawford
was roundly criticized for publishing a letter in the
O.C. Register that grossly understated the total
number of portable classrooms actually utilized by
CUSD.”
Soderberg critical of Trustees' budget decisions that
repeat same mistakes
Nov 24, 2006 |
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Vicki Soderberg, The Orange County
Register
“If you budgeted in salary increases for employees,
you wouldn’t have to cut anything ... You’re taking
this new money and putting it in other places, and
you’re telling me you have to cut? It seems like a
continued pattern.” Soderberg
is president of the Capistrano Unified Education
Association, a teachers union.
Trustees avoided cuts and paid raises during recall
by depleting reserves
Nov 24, 2006 |
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Sam Miller, Saddleback Valley
News
“It is a turnaround from last year, when the district
gave teachers a raise, reinstated spending such as
the popular class-size reduction program and avoided
cuts that officials had warned were pending. The
district avoided those cuts last year by spending
reserve funds down to the legal minimum of 2 percent.
No such cushion exists this year. Those reserves are
gone, while services, programs and employees must
still be funded.”
McCully identifies Trustees' budgeting failures and
challenges
Nov 24, 2006 |
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