Around 50 Pink Slips to Go to Teachers, Staff on Friday

Almost 50 pink slips will be handed out to Los Altos teachers Friday after the last bell rings, more than the district has distributed in more than a decade, according to school Superintendent Jeff Baier.

With the Los Altos School District’s budget suffering and the results of still unknown, the board voted Monday to distribute pink slips to the schools Friday after school is out. Baier said the reductions affect the equivalent of 42 full-time positions. With part-time employees, this affects 40-50 certified staff, he said.

“It’s an emotional experience for those teachers affected,” Baier said. "The idea of having the weekend come afterward seems best to us. These are outstanding teachers we have. This affects us having to tell them, too.”

Joe Seither, a parent with children at Oak Elementary and Mountain View High and also co-president of LAEF, said he does not envy the positions the administration and the board are in right now. Budget and program cuts are hard choices to make.

Seither said this district is unique in how strongly the parents come together to help with volunteering and raising money.

“Volunteer hours are extremely high, PTA fundraising, LAEF fundraising … this year alone between the PTA and LAEF parents will contribute more than $4 million,” Seither said. “It’s a culture in the family and the community. We put a lot of emphasis on education. Our kids come to school ready to learn.”

Working with its right now, the district has many special programs on the cutting board, including music and art, PE specialists and the library program.

The district has an estimated deficit right now of $4.7-$5.9 million—depending on enrollment figures. Along with many other districts in California, the district hopes a state tax referendum is approved in June, because it would preserve the budget money that's counting on. Other revenues the district needs includes a proposed new parcel tax of $193, up for voters’ approval in a special May election. This, combined with an existing $597 parcel tax approved several years ago, would bring the total per household contribution to $790.

The list of cuts is sobering right now to staff, board members and the community.

Randall Kenyon, assistant superintendent of business services, said he hopes the district does not end up having to cut the libraries “and just about everything else on the list.”

The district will be able to rescind some of its layoff notices when administration has a better idea of the outcome of the taxes. The board needs to make a decision on the “final notices” by May 15, according to Baier.

He said if the taxes come through, it would be possible to rescind most of the layoff notices, but he does not know at the moment how many.

“I feel like I’ve been hit in the stomach … in the 20-some-odd years I’ve been in the district, this seems the most egregious,” said Egan Junior High Principal Brenda Dyckman at Monday’s board meeting. “I don’t believe the slash-and-burn response prepares the soil for the nutrients we need for the 21st century education.”