SAN DIEGO - The San Diego school board has approved a plan to encourage the district's most experienced teachers to retire early to save the district millions of dollars and avoid layoffs.
The plan negotiated by the teachers' union includes retirement incentives and was approved by the school board Tuesday.
School officials say the plan could save the district more than $7.6 million in the next few years.
On average, about 250 teachers retire per year. The plan would need 633 teachers to volunteer for early retirement.
The district faces a $77 million deficit in next year's budget.
The district has already committed to $45.3 million in cuts through hiring and spending freezes and consolidating school bus routes.
San Diego Unified Budget Gap Grows to $46.1 Million
SAN DIEGO - Reduced state funding for special education left the San Diego Unified School District with budget gap $13 million bigger than expected, board members said Tuesday.
Combined with other shortfalls, the district is now looking at plugging a current-year budget gap estimated at $46.1 million, according to James Masias, SDUSD's chief financial officer.
The school board found ways to cover about $31 million in over-budget spending, and Masias has proposed another $15.4 million in cuts to balance the budget by the end of the fiscal year on June 30.
Board members said the state threw a curve ball at them when special education funding was cut.
"The rules of the game changed," said Shelia Jackson, the board president.
To help cover the remaining budget deficit, Masias recommended that the board dip into various accounts, including those involving arts and music and gifted-student programs. He said most of the money targeted is actually unspent budget carryover from previous fiscal years. None of it is for personnel expenses, he said.
School board member John De Beck said raiding funds with leftover money effectively punished those who scrimped to save.
If you're fiscally prudent, the school board will "yank it from you," De Beck said.
Jackson countered that thrifty district employees helped prevent layoffs.
Some of the funds the board want to use to balance the budget are in accounts frozen by Superintendent Terry Grier earlier this year to save money.
Grier said urban districts with more special education students were "slammed hard" by the state.
Because of changes precipitated by the state, the district's projected deficit for the fiscal year starting July 1 may rise from $63.1 million to about $71 million, Grier said.
The board needs to approve a final package of savings and deliver a report on the financial status of the district to the San Diego County Office of Education by March 15.
South Bay Layoffs
More than 100 South County middle and high school educators may lose their jobs this fall.
Sweetwater Union High School District's board voted 3-2 Monday night to send tentative layoff notices to 25 social studies teachers, 24 English teachers, 22 physical education teachers, 15 counselors, 13 Spanish teachers, eight art teachers and a school nurse.
A small number of part-time positions may also be cut.
Like most school districts in California, Sweetwater is contemplating layoffs to cope with decreased funding from the state.
Sweetwater needs to cut spending by $11.6 million to balance its budget for the upcoming school year.
State law requires any school district considering layoffs to notify its employees no later than March 15.
School Expansion
SAN DIEGO - Expansion plans at a Catholic girls' school in North Park were rejected Tuesday by the San Diego City Council.
Officials at the Academy of Our Lady of Peace, which has about 750 students, sought development permits from the city to build a two-story classroom building and a two-level parking garage.
The proposal was approved by the Planning Commission last year, but opponents appealed that decision to the City Council.
The City Council voted 5-3 to deny the necessary development permits. Council President Ben Hueso and Councilmen Kevin Faulconer and Carl DeMaio wanted the project to proceed.
Residents in North Park and University Heights vigorously opposed the project because it would lead to the demolition of three historic Spanish-style homes on the grounds of the 23-acre school campus.
The City Council put off a vote on the project in January to give both sides a chance to reach a consensus, but school administrators and opponents from the community have dug in their heals.
DeMaio and Councilman Todd Gloria both expressed disappointment that the two sides couldn't resolve their differences.
"I am disappointed that we haven't seen more progress on both sides," DeMaio said before the vote.
"My concern is the girls will be the ones to bear the brunt (of the dispute)," he said. "We have education on the line here."
Officials hinted that the dispute will likely land in court.
The Academy of Our Lady of Peace was built at its current site in the 4800 block of Oregon Street in 1925. The Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet founded the school in 1882 at a downtown site.
