Pomona Unified Prepares for State Budget Uncertainties

The Pomona Unified school district is preparing to lay off 272 full-time teachers, but will ask that the decision be put, ultimately, to California voters.

The board approved a resolution Tuesday night to support a ballot measure, suggested in Gov. Brown's budget proposal, that would ask California voters to extend certain taxes for five years to spare the education budget from cuts.

The extension of those taxes could allow the district to retain the jobs it slated for elimination Tuesday night, but the district is planning for the worst-case scenario, Superintendent Richard Martinez said, and will issue notices to meet a March 15 deadline for notifying employees of layoffs for the next school year.

According to a report by the district's chief financial officer, Leslie Barnes, the district could face cuts of $28.5 million if the taxes are not extended, and will still need to cut $19.5 million from the budget if those taxes are passed.

"That would make a big change in how we do business," Tyra Rose Weis, president of the Associated Pomona Teachers, said, "and we like to say to keep the cuts as far from the classroom as possible."

Martinez said the district was in a similar bind last year, when it issued 200 layoff notices. But the district was ultimately able to give back those jobs using federal stimulus dollars. This year, Martinez said he doesn't see any rescue coming from the federal government.

"Here in California we're on our own and we will almost certainly have to let people go," Martinez said.

Martinez said that the district will make these choices in favor of avoiding school closures or eliminating athletics programs, which Martinez said could save the district $3.5 million if both were cut.

The layoff notices will affect 73 elementary teacher positions, 67 adult education teachers, and 60 child development teachers, among others.

The cut to elementary teachers is the largest in Tuesday's layoffs. Four of the district's 29 elementary schools are located in Diamond Bar.

Mario Ruiz, a seventh- and eighth-grade history teacher at Golden Springs Pre-K – 8 school, was out at Tuesday's meeting to urge the district to support a tax extension ballot measure.

Ruiz said that his primary concern in retaining staff is consistency.

"In order to have a high quality program, you need to have consistency," Ruiz said. "I am not saying that older teachers are better because that would an overgeneralization, but you need consistency."

Ruiz took issue with Diamond Bar Board Member Andrew Wong's vote against the resolution to support tax extensions, which Wong said was cast on a matter of principle.

Wong said he has always voted against "advisory resolutions" that advocate for items to be placed on the ballot for voter approval.

"The school district has to deal with a number of things that are within our control," Wong said, "and whether things get on the ballot is totally beyond our jurisdiction."

Wong said that the personal views of board members should have no bearing on actions for the school district.

"People can have their own personal opinions on raising or lowering taxes," Wong said, "and I have consistently been against tax increases and taxes, but my personal views have no bearing on what we should do for this particular school district."

Associated Pomona Teachers Union President Tyra Weis said at a previous meeting that she hopes the district will work with the union to organize and canvass neighborhoods to garner support for the tax measure.