SANTA ANA : Trustees to Receive Budget Cut Options

A committee of more than 200 parents, students and employees of the Santa Ana Unified School District will present a list of alternative cuts from the district’s budget to the Board of Trustees Tuesday.

Last month, the board approved across-the-board cuts totaling $13.2 million in 37 areas in anticipation of major cuts in state funding expected if Gov. Pete Wilson’s 1991-92 budget is approved in its entirety.

The committee, which was formed after the cuts were announced, will present the board with a priority list of 17 items it would like to see restored as funding becomes available.

Bilingual aides were the committee’s highest priority for reinstatement. More than 80 of the district’s 384 bilingual aide positions are scheduled to be cut. Since about 28,000 of the district’s 46,000 students have limited English skills, bilingual aides are considered crucial in Santa Ana.

Other high-priority items on the committee’s list include rehiring nurses, counselors, library assistants, elementary school music teachers and keeping class size down.

“It was a very democratic process,” said John W. Bennett, assistant superintendent of the district’s elementary division. “It involved all of the people who are affected by the cuts. Everybody has felt positive because they felt they had the opportunity to give their input.”