Schools

Layoffs and Furloughs for Non-Teaching Staff in Gilroy Unified

The cuts would save the district $663,388, part of the $6.7 million—or more—it needs to cut before next school year.

Several non-teaching employees across the school district will be either laid off or working less of the year after the school board voted Thursday to pass a round of cuts to help bridge an unprecedented $6.7 million expected cut in state funding.

The meeting of the Gilroy Unified School District Board of Education was well attended by a large group concerned about the reduction to staff.

“If there was any way we could avoid this, we would,” said Superintendent Deborah Flores, looking toward the crowd before the resolution was presented. “I just want to remind everyone—we are in the most amazing fiscal crisis that we can imagine.”

Find out what's happening in Gilroywith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Flores recounted how a $2.8 million cut grew to $6.7 million as the state budget process developed, with an even larger $11 million cut to district funding still possible.

The district’s operating budget every year is approximately $50 million, board members said at a recent meeting.

Find out what's happening in Gilroywith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Office assistants, bus drivers, registrars and custodians are among the 26 positions affected, saving the district $663,388 for the 2010–11 school year, according to a brief by Kim Filice, director of human resources.

Six positions will be eliminated, though two of them were already vacant.

Many in attendance, including the board, agreed that cutting the positions would have major impacts on how the district does business.

“There’s no question there’s going to be effects, and they’re not going to be good ones,” said Rhoda Bress, president of the board. 

The nature of the furloughs varies: Some employees will work only 11 months out of the year, and some will work half their usual hours or less.

“All positions affect students,” said BC Doyle, local chapter president for the California School Employees Association.

One speaker, Gilroy High School senior, Fatima Magallanes, said she would be particularly affected by having the registrar gone in the month of July.

“As a senior, I’ve been applying for scholarships since the first day of school,” said the aspiring Fresno State University student. “The month of July is when transcripts are due. 

The board was visibly somber when approving the resolution, and member Jaime Rosso received applause after saying, “Yes ... under protest.”

The vote came after an earlier resolution declaring May 17-21 “Classified Employees Week,” an official time for the district to honor the work of non-teaching employees. 

The district is considering more deep cuts to bridge the budget gap. Closing schools, eliminating bus services, making more staff reductions and cutting sports are all on the table, Superintendent Flores said.

The new budget, once decided, will go into affect July 1.

Other Highlights

School Calendar Released

Students will return to school on Aug. 22 next year, with the last day being June 1. If the budget climate somehow improves, days would be added to the second half of the year. Similarly, days could be taken away from the second half if the state mandates it. The schedule is one week shorter than last year.

Longer Math Period for Seventh- and Eighth-Graders

A group comprised of all three middle-school principals and representatives from their math education programs came to the meeting to lobby for doubling the length of algebra classes—from 45 minutes to 90 minutes. The speakers compared a typical day’s activities with both time frames, with the 90-minute class dwarfing the activities possible in 45 minutes.

“Every year, it’s the same complaints: ‘There isn’t enough time, there isn’t enough time,’” said Greg Camacho-Light, principal of Brownell Middle School.

Some board members argued that a 60-minute period would be ideal and the extra 30 minutes were more a product of simplified scheduling.

“You’re not going to harm anyone by exposing them to 90 minutes of math,” said member Mark Good. “The question is ... where is that extra 30 minutes coming from?”

The board approved the measure under the universal agreement that students required a deeper understanding of algebra before moving on to the high-school level, but several members of the board suggested a more comprehensive look at the middle-school schedule.

Resolution to Support Budget Fight/Joint Council Resolution

The board voted to support the May 9-13 “Week of Action,” a statewide effort to press Sacramento lawmakers to limit the cuts facing schools next year.

“Next week will be a big week in educating the public on the cuts facing our district,” said board president Bress. “It doesn’t seem to have struck home yet that this is happening to our school districts.”

A joint resolution between the Gilroy City Council and the board of education was also mentioned as part of the continuing effort to lobby state legislators to reduce the level of funding cuts facing schools next year. The council will vote on the resolution during its next meeting.


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