CVUSD to vote to lay off 80+ positions
The Coachella Valley Unified School District is set to vote on a plan that could cut over 80 positions, including teachers.
According to staff reports obtained by News Channel 3, CVUSD is predicting a $6.8 million deficit for the 2019-2020 fiscal school year. In the 2020-2021 fiscal school year, the district could see a $8.9 million shortfall in unrestricted reserve funds.
Thursday night at Desert Mirage High School at 5:30, the board will vote whether or not to make the cuts. Some employees say they hope boardmembers reevaluate the cuts.
“It means there’s probably an instability,” said Lourdes Contreras.
She works for the district’s transportation department and has a student who attends a CVUSD school.
“When the kids go through changes, it affects them. I wouldn’t want my child to have a teacher now then depend on subs through the whole year,” Contreras said.
More than 30 teachers can be cut if the vote is approved.
News Channel 3 checked in with Teacher’s Association President, Carissa Carera who says teachers are concerned and don’t know if they should look for jobs elsewhere adding the instability trickles down to morale issues at school and in the classrooms.
In addition to teachers, several mental health positions are also at risk, among other jobs.
Assitant Superintendent of Human Resources, Maria Gendera, says the vote is on the table because of an $8 million deficit over the next few years.
“Because we’re declining in enrollment, because we have a fiscally solvent challenge, what we are doing is re-aligning our resources. Less students means we need less personnel and that is what we are re-aligning,” Gendera said.
If the cuts are approved, employees can recieve notices as early as Friday.
CVUSD Superintendent Edwin Gomez wrote in a letter to parents in January that the fiscal distress the district was facing is due to declining enrollment over the last 4 years. The fall of enrollment resulted in reduced revenue in the amount of $12 million this year.
The district was advised to reduce cost by about $7.8 million in 2019-2020 and an addition $20 million in 2020-21.
Read: CVSUD facing budget troubles
Last March, the CVUSD board of trustees voted to lay off 150 employees, most of them were teachers.
Watch: Board unanimously approves layoffs & budget cuts
The CVUSD Board is set to vote on the plan Thursday at 5:30 p.m. at Desert Mirage High School.
Teaching and administrative positions that could be discontinued or reduced (according to staff reports):
2 English Teacher 4 Mathematics Teacher 15 Multiple Subject Credential Teacher (K8) 1 Physics Teacher 2 Spanish Teacher 2 Special Education Teacher, SDC 2 TOSA, Common Core Implementation 2 TOSA, English K12 1 TOSA, K-12 Intervention 2 TOSA, K12 Technology 3 District Psychologist 6 Assistant Administrator Instructional Improvement TK6 1 Coordinator, Educational Technology 1 Coordinator, English Language Support K12 1 Coordinator, English Learner & Migrant Education 1 Coordinator, Parent and Community Engagement
Laid off employees are given a 60-day notice.
Stay with News Channel 3 for continuing coverage.
