CUSD Update

CUSD Update

Dawn Urbanek’s letter to the editor was published by San Juan Capistrano Patch.com on Mar. 15. Titled “Preventing Bankruptcy at Capo Unified,” Urbanek provides a comprehensive description of the district’s financial crisis.

From the letter:

There are currently 143 school districts in the state of California that are facing insolvency this year. Orange County has nine out of their 28 districts on that list. (The complete list can be viewed at: Second Interim Status Report, FY 2010-11 http://www.cde.ca.gov/fg/fi/ir/second1011.asp )

  • Anaheim City
  • Capistrano Unified
  • Centralia
  • Fullerton Elementary
  • Fullerton Joint Union High
  • Garden Grove Unified
  • La Habra City
  • Santa Ana Unified
  • Westminster

(Saddleback Valley Unified has recently been removed from this list).
With 50 percent of California's State budget going to fund education, why are so many Orange County Schools facing bankruptcy?

Urbanek’s letter, along with 73 comments from readers, can be found at
http://sanjuancapistrano.patch.com/articles/letter-to-the-editor-preventing-bankruptcy-at-capo-unified

Some of the comments recommend distributing Urbanek’s letter to Capo parents, while others state they had no idea how close to the brink CUSD is. Here’s a sample comment from reader:

“… It is hard to fathom that many teachers are getting increases in pay, and more damning that [Supt.] Farley got a raise, at the same time CUSD is facing a $33 to $51-million-dollar deficit, and a real concern as to whether it will have enough funds on hand to pay its bills. The current board majority has been reckless and grossly irresponsible in giving approx. $20 million back over 2 years while CUSD is facing a fiscal Armageddon. Dawn is right about many things, one of which is we need a drastic redo in CUSD. Get the reckless and irresponsible spenders off the board and elect trustees who will be fiscally prudent and have the best interests of our kids as their first priority. As Dawn noted, and as I have stated many times in the past, the unions only advocate and look out for their members because that's their sole job. Who looks out for the kids when CUSD is negotiating with the unions, obviously no one who really cares.”