Final Pink Slips Coming to 20 San Leandro Unified Teachers

Twenty public school educators in the will receive final layoff notices after the cuts were approved by the Board of Education Tuesday night.

School districts, along with many other public agencies, are trapped in budget limbo due to the state legislature's inability to garner enough votes for Gov. Jerry Brown's budget plan. If Brown's plan — including the extension of three tax hikes — isn't approved, K-12 schools stand to lose nearly $5 billion in funding next year.

"It's so disheartening," Trustee Carmen Sullivan said before she moved the layoff vote.

President Morgan Mack-Rose agreed. "Sadly we lose some of our best, most enthusiastic teachers because of this," she said.

"There's not a superfluous person in this district," Mack-Rose added.

The cuts primarily affect elementary schools, with three teachers from Washington, two each from Wilson and Jefferson, and one each from Garfield, Madison and McKinley receiving final layoff notices, according to John Thompson, senior director of human resources for the district.

If the cuts stick, K-3 class sizes would swell to 32 students come fall 2011. The layoffs would save the district about $1.3 million.

In addition, physical education taught by certified staff at the elementary school level is being trimmed back by eliminating the P.E. prep period for teachers.

Five certified P.E. teachers will receive pink slips, although because layoffs are based on seniority, not all those who are being let go currently teach in elementary schools, Thompson said.

Three newer employees at  and one at  will lose their jobs while elementary school P.E. teachers take their places. One of the five instructors to be cut currently teaches at Jefferson and Garfield elementary schools.

Cuts are also being made to the fifth grade instrumental music program, including the layoff of one music teacher who currently works mainly at San Leandro High. An equivalent employee at the elementary level will take the teacher's place. However, Thompson said the district hopes to be able to bring the music teacher back before the start of the 2011-12 school year.

Lastly, the middle school counseling program will be cut back. Four counselors, two who currently work in middle schools and two at the high school, will be let go.

In addition to employee layoffs, administrators have also agreed to concessions. 

All administrators have agreed to three furlough days next school year while classified employees, such as office staff, para-educators and cafeteria staff, have agreed to one or two. In addition, vice principals at all elementary schools and at Bancroft and John Muir Middle Schools will reduce their work hours further.

While the district expects to be able to rehire a few employees, Thompson said it probably won't be able to bring all of the pink slipped employees back, as it did last year.

"I'm not optimistic given the budget situation and negotiations with the teachers union," he said. "It's a real challenge this year."

The district resumes talks with the San Leandro Teachers Association on May 20.

SLTA president Jon Sherr said he was still in discussion with the district as of Wednesday about the layoffs and did not wish to comment at this time.

Thompson said if the union agrees to concessions, more teachers could be brought back. But that also depends on budget developments in Sacramento. Governor Jerry Brown is scheduled to announce his May revised budget next week.

Song Chin-Bendib, assistant superintendent of business services for the school district, told the board Tuesday that while she hopes Brown's revised budget will allow for fewer layoffs, "we have to proceed with what we know at this point."

By law school districts must issue final layoff notices by May 15, which is why some pink-slipped employees could still be back to teach in the fall once the district has a better idea of its final budget. 

Governor Brown has been campaigning across the state to gain voter approval for extending tax rate increases to stave off additional cuts to education.

Talks with Republican legislators broke down in March, causing Brown to miss the deadline to get the extensions on the June ballot, but he has said possibilities include putting the tax extensions on the November ballot or collecting signatures for a voter initiative to extend them.

If the tax hikes, which are set to expire July 1, are not extended, schools could lose nearly $5 billion in funding, on top of deep cuts over the past several years. For the district, that would mean up to $825 less in state funds per student.

In March, the board approved 23 layoff notices. Three of those were rescinded for various reasons, according to Thompson.