What is the biggest issue facing the...

What is the biggest issue facing the school district?

There are numerous important issues facing our schools. Two stand

out as paramount for the success of our students.

We as California residents face one of the highest costs of living

in the country, which makes us reluctant to tax ourselves. Unlike

most other states, California relies primarily on state funds for

education rather than local property taxes. (About 40% of the state’s

budget is allocated to kindergarten though 12th-grade education.)

Thus our high schools must compete with other statewide public

services for the same funds. Because of this, how we prioritize funds

from Measure C to repair our aging schools is essential. The second

part is the necessity of the district to communicate to students and

parents regarding their educational program and to assist them in

graduating and achieving the students’ long-term goals. Parents and

students should have, at the very least, a clear description of

graduation and college entrance requirements as well as suggestions

for how they can best encourage their adolescents to make learning a

priority. Parents We also have to address how to be in compliance

with the No Child Left Behind regulations. We need to work with our

state representatives in Sacramento and support the push for some

changes with this critical federal ruling. What can be done to keep

test scores on the rise?

We need to continue to hire highly qualified teachers who have

access and training related to the state adopted and approved

materials and highly-qualified educational leaders who have the

resources to support the teachers and other school staff. We need to

support, encourage and embrace parents who are involved in the

educational community and support their children and youth with

homework. Parents that are partners with our educational leaders in

all aspects of the school community are an invaluable asset to our

community.

Our schools should encourage an atmosphere of enthusiasm for

growing in character and learning more complex material. We should

help students to take pride in their education and to encourage each

other to apply the teaching they receive to their performance on the

tests.

Standardized testing strategies should also be taught so that our

students’ knowledge of the material will not be masked by test-taking

weaknesses. The district can raise academic standards by ensuring

that teachers are knowledgeable about the state standards for their

content areas as well as the California standards for the teaching

profession. What needs to be done to bolster the budget? What

programs should take priorities?

We must always focus on trimming at the level that is farthest

from the students. The programs that should have priority are the

programs that occur in the classroom that are research-based and have

clear, replicable procedures, which are known to be effective in

supporting the learning of our students. California is experiencing

some very serious budget shortfalls and we must respond. The first

option is to cut budgets in areas that will not directly affect what

is happening in the classroom. I think we should first look at ways

we can, as a district increase our funding. Average Daily Attendance

is just one example. We must work with parents to send their children

to school even if they did not complete their homework, or if they

have a dentist appointment in the afternoon, bring them to school in

the morning. Even if we can increase the number of students attending

school by 2%, that would generate more funding. How can school board

members better communicate with parents and the community?

With the new school year will come changes that will be exciting

for our district. I would like to see twice a month on our HBTV

public access channel a call-in question and answer program with

board members and the superintendent. This is long overdue. The first

part of the program could be for disseminating information regarding

a variety of subjects, and the second portion could be for questions

and answers.

School board members can use the district website to communicate

with parents and other school community stakeholders. Once a month

members could post updates on decisions that are being considered at

the next meeting. School board members need to inform parents and

staff of ways to be involved before decisions are made, instead of

simply being informed after the decision is final.

Other options for communication are the local newspaper. Using

local media is very popular during the election cycle and it is a

tool to be considered throughout the school year.