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Guest Opinion: Trustees need long-term fiscal strategy

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The March 10 issue of the Sentinel included an article titled “Enrollment projection shows 14th year of decline.” The title highlights what was surely the most important matter on the agenda at the Ramona Unified School District (RUSD) Board of Trustees (Board) meeting — and the most critical strategic issue the Board must address.

The Jan. 7 issue of the Sentinel included two articles and an editorial related to selection of a superintendent. A number of points worth the Board’s consideration were made, but one stands out as a strategic necessity. As an attendee of the December Board meeting reportedly observed, the Board must represent the entire Ramona electorate, not a special interest “school community.” The Sentinel editorial pointed out that the Board is elected by the entire community that invests in RUSD, primarily through taxes, and the Board is elected to manage the community-wide investment.

A disconnect between the Board majority and the taxpaying public is surely an underlying cause of multiple recent failures to pass school bonds requested by the Board. Some members of the public surely see the Board majority as part of an education/school oligarchy who do not responsibly exercise their fiduciary responsibility to manage the public investment strategically.

This may seem too dollar-focused for some, but consider that it is tax dollars that are the strongest connection between many voters and the RUSD Board. The Board majority appears to be focused on near-term tactical manipulation of budgets rather than devising and implementing long-term investment strategies. A March 17 article in the Sentinel pointed out that the Second Interim Report adopted by the Board projects revenue falling by $1.7 million over the next two fiscal years, but budgets the spending of more than $4 million during that time. Even this is a more optimistic revenue projection than the one rejected by the Board at its previous meeting.

The Board has no apparent sustainable long-term strategic financial plan. Rather than react to this projection and set spending priorities, the Board “kicked the can down the road.” Declining enrollment may make the revenue shortfall even worse, so a responsible Board should enforce spending cuts now in accordance with a sustainable strategic financial plan that scales spending to enrollment and revenue.

According to the most recent Sentinel article, RUSD enrollment declined from 7,271 in fiscal 2002 to a projected 5,586 in fiscal 2017 (over 23%). This is surely due to changing lifestyles — fewer children per household, more children being raised in single-parent households, couples marrying at increasingly older ages, delays in starting families, as well as an aging population, etc. At the same time RUSD employment has already been reduced from 800 to 678 (or 650, according to another of the articles) — 15 or 19%.

K-3 class sizes increased from 20 to 27, so teachers directly responsible for educating students (the primary purpose of schools) were laid off disproportionately to administrators who are more costly on average. It should be noted that the Board voted to hire another employee at its most recent meeting “to help with the district’s new fiscal system.” A new fiscal system is not a long-term financial strategy — this hire is part of an ongoing lack of financial planning.

Meanwhile, school maintenance was deferred. The Sentinel has reported leaking roofs, donation of an air conditioner, etc. While most school districts have an athletic boosters’ club to obtain donations and pay for “extras” for the athletic programs, Ramona has a “building boosters” club because the Board spent available money on other priorities. However, the Board did not ignore football — $500,000 was spent to replace the field.

Trustee John Rajcic proposed a facility consolidation strategy that eliminates the district’s two oldest schools (no longer needed as school enrollment declines). This strategy scales RUSD spending on building operation, maintenance and administrators to student enrollment. This is an example of a long-term investment strategy and the first-level implementing tactics, yet the Board has failed to adopt it. Having the perspective and skill set to manage the public’s ongoing investment in RUSD so as to maximize education is surely the most critical duty of the Board.

The Board should require demonstrated investment management experience from the next superintendent it hires. One Sentinel editorial asks if the superintendent has to be an educator. Surely a person who is only an educator cannot do the job, because nobody will get the opportunity to properly educate until the investment management issues are resolved.

An investment strategy-oriented superintendent will surely be offensive to some of the “school community,” but the Board’s current “strategy” can only result in bankruptcy. We all need a superintendent who will help the Board meet its long-term fiduciary responsibility to manage the Sources and Uses of Funds Statement, or risk losing local control of our public education district.

Gary Hurst is a Ramona resident.

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