Always be my boo

For those of you who still read Alameda Daily News, and I readily admit that I still do, you may have noticed that Don Roberts and ADN have been relatively silent about the school district budget issue, until yesterday that is, when Don R. posted a blurry photo and this “report” of what happened:

Last night’s meeting of Alameda’s School Board lasted until 1:15 a.m. At the meeting, the Board approved moving forward on an election for a $120.00 parcel tax and approved spending reductions of over $1,500,000 for 2008-2009. Among the cuts approved were closing swim centers, increasing class size and reductions for high school athletics and middle school counselors.

Alameda students left classes to attend a protest inside Kofman Auditorium which was completely packed requiring the overflow crowd to stand in the lobby and outside in front of the auditorium. Superintendent of Schools Ardella Dailey tried to speak to the students from a mike on the stage, but she was booed down by the crowd. It took the efforts of a student to calm the crowd and to allow the superintendent to complete her remarks. Student speakers and teachers got standing ovations when they spoke against the cuts…

I have to admit I was shocked by the report that Ardella Dailey was “booed by the crowd” after all it seemed to run contrary to all reports that I had heard previously that said that the anger was directed not at the school board or administration, but rather at the Governor and state level.   So I reached out to some folks that I either knew had been at the rally or that I thought would have been at the rally for confirmation whether or not this retelling of what had went down was true.

Turns out it wasn’t.

I received three separate confirmations that it was not Superintendent Dailey the kids were booing, but that they booed almost every time mention of the cuts were made.  In fact, you can hear the kids booing on the video posted by Eve Pearlman whenever the subject of the cuts are made.   What is most impressive about these students who felt angry enough over the cuts to march all the way to the school headquarters to make a statement was they they understood — better than some adults — where to place the blame of these cuts, not on the school administration, Superintendent, or Board, but squarely on the shoulders of the Governor.

In fact, new blog, The Island, posted a great analysis of the school budget issues and included this tidbit:

…As to the contention that the district needs to cut its bloated administration to balance the budget? Alameda spends less money on administration per student than 10 of 11 similar districts in the state, and less than most districts in the county, according to 2005-06 numbers from the Education Data Partnership, an online group helmed by the state education department. The tax ballot language specifically prohibits funds from paying administrators’ salaries…

Don’t believe The Island, I checked the numbers myself at Education Data Partnership and you can too.  It’s a bit tricky at first to know what you are looking for, but after you get the hang of it you can run any number of different options.    Additionally compared to the other school districts in Alameda County, Alameda is the second lowest of percentages of their budgets spent on Administration services.  

So as mentioned time and time again, the Administration is running lean and even leaner now that the budget is cutting the Public Information Officer, which will just make it even harder for parents and community members to get information in a timely fashion from the school district.

Even the School Board members gave up what little pittance of a stipend that they get for serving on the Board.

For the most comprehensive news report on the school budget issue is the one from the Alameda Sun which did an excellent job covering the issue from a very local point of view.

Remember folks, this is only year one of a two-year plan to make cuts, every single report on the budgettalks about the 09-10 budget as part and parcel and what is looming in 09-10 barring a miracle are school closures, consolidation and the elimination of elementary class size reductions.   So chances are we will be seeing Wood Middle School closed and consolidated with Lincoln and Chipman.   Who knows what the elementary school closures will look like, we’ll probably see yet another West End school closed, probably the one with the least capacity.   We’re in for the long haul folks.