Volume I, No. 23

May 14, 2009

Education’s Bottom Line provides information regarding the State Budget along with other pertinent information on issues affecting school districts. Further editions of the Education’s Bottom Line will be sent as conditions warrant.  

Assembly Education Committee Informational Hearing on School Finance--Equity and Adequacy

By Duwayne Brooks  

Here is a brief summary of some of the key points raised at the May 13, 2009 informational hearing.

The panel of presenters included:

• Jennifer Imazeki, Associate Professor, San Diego State
• Lawrence Picas, USC
• Heather Rose, Assistant Professor, UCD
• Jay Chambers, American Institutes of Research
• John Affeldt, Attorney, Public Advocates

Affeldt told the Committee that students have a constitutional right to an adequate education, defined as equipping them with the means to achieve economic security by preparing them to obtain meaningful employment and/or enter higher education.

The researchers provided the following insights and suggestions:

• We cannot tinker around the edges of education reform. We need a comprehensive overhaul.
• The method of distributing the dollars needs to be more flexible.
• There needs to be more accountability at the school level.
• Current resources are inadequate. Additional resources needed were quoted as being in the $15 billion to $17 billion range.
• Some students need more funding to achieve the specified performance level—low-income, students with disabilities, English Language Learners.
• More time and resources should focus on the core subjects of math, social studies, and language arts.
• Class Size Reduction (CSR) is expensive. Better results can be achieved by improving teacher training, providing more tutors for students, and extending the school day and summer school. CSR should be 15:1 for K-3 and 25:1 for 4-12.
• Resources should be given to each school based on an assessment of that school’s individual needs.
• Rural, small school districts face higher costs.
• Education cannot close the achievement gap by itself. Education needs to link to health and human services, such as feeding and housing programs.

Assembly Member Brownley concluded by saying that right now we need to protect what we have, rather than add resources. The group concluded that the state needs to develop a model, starting with what we want to achieve and what resources are needed. 

If you have any questions on the articles in this newsletter, please contact the author of the article in question.

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Murdoch, Walrath & Holmes (MWH) has been instrumental in shaping statewide policy and implementing regulations for K-12 schools for more than two decades.  Strategic relationships have been forged with the State Administration through agencies such as the Department of Education, the State Allocation Board, the Department of Finance and the Office of Public School Construction and, on the federal level, with key Congressional Members and the Executive Branch.  MWH prides itself on having some of the best minds in K-12 education in virtually all aspects of school fiscal needs. 

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