How will you address the state budget crisis?

By Bob Harden

That's why over the past several years we have been quietly building up our cash reserves; setting aside a little money each year during good times to make sure we would have cash available to help soften the blow when hard times came.

It's also why over the past 3-4 years we have been working with our employee associations to reduce the cost of providing health care and other benefits to employees. This move will help us through the current crisis and will also put us in a better financial position for many years to come.

The board has spent the past several months prioritizing spending for the current and future school years, and identifying areas where cost cutting can occur with the minimum impact on what goes on in the classroom.

We are making several cost cutting moves this year. We're making small cuts like reducing the length of high school sports seasons, eliminating or increasing fees for adult education programs, eliminating some jobs and leaving open jobs unfilled.

We are also pulling some money out of cash reserves. Unfortunately, these measures will not be enough to meet this year's and next year's projected budget shortfalls. There will be some large and painful cuts.

We will implement a pay reduction in the form of furlough days for all employees. Student/teacher ratios will increase resulting in slightly larger class sizes, especially in grades 1-3. We are eliminating many teacher aide positions.

There is more to this than just balancing the budget. The district has seen great progress in academic performance over the past several years. The challenge for the board is to make financial decisions that will allow us to continue that progress.

As your representative, I've helped guide GGUSD through tough financial times in the past. We've made it through before, and we will make it through these times too.

Thank you for trusting me to serve as your representative. I look forward to serving you for the next four years.