Balanced Budget for the District

The culmination of a year of hard work ended last night as the Board of Trustees adopted a budget for the 2010-2011 year. While $10 million has been cut from the district, we are still operating with deficit spending. So there will be more hard decisions to come.

My primary goal throughout the budget process was to make sure that as broad a cross section of services for our students is preserved. Sure, there will be noticable changes next year, but Berryessa students will still be prepared for a successful future. When students arrive back in school at the end of August, all of their classes will be slightly larger, with 24 students in K-3 classes, and an average of 32 in grades 4-8. By doing that, the district is able to make sure that there is still an award winning music program that begins in the elementary school and carries through our middle schools. We have made sure that while library hours will be reduced, all children will still have access to libraries and interaction with our wonderful media techs. Middle school students will continue to be served by counselors, even though the numbers have been reduced by 25%.

Read more of my comments on achieving a balanced budget for the district at the President's Blog.

District Will Miss Retiring Employees

Last night at our Board meeting, we celebrated over 30 employees of the district who are retiring this year. They include beloved school secretaries, a tremendous maintenance worker, two wonderful counselors, and a number of teachers, some of whom have been with the district as long as 40 years. I will miss these teachers during my visits to our schools and I know that the school communities will miss their skills, passion, and knowledge. One teacher who retired this week is Mel Ausman, who taught science at Piedmont Middle School. He is highlighted on the front page of the Mercury News today in a column by Sharon Noguchi.

Congratulations to all the retirees. Our district is better due to your having been a part of it. Best wishes in your next phase in life.