Centinela schools weigh cuts to remain solvent
Aiming to get through the school year without going bankrupt, the Centinela Valley Union High School District is considering a $1.2 million package of immediate cuts that include increasing class sizes, freezing overtime and eliminating some extra money-making jobs for teachers.
The temporary reductions, which also nix long-term substitutes and freeze conference attendance, would ensure solvency through the current semester, according to interim Superintendent Jose Fernandez.
"These are short-term remedies designed only to meet our needs between now and June 30," Fernandez said, describing the multilayered proposal as a "quilt of cuts that did not penalize our employees."
"This buys us time," he added. "We have to survive today to be able to fight tomorrow."
Announcement of the cuts came during the school system's first-ever State of the District presentation, held during a special board meeting Tuesday at Leuzinger High.
A crowd of several hundred that included Los Angeles County Superintendent of Schools Darline Robles heard the Fernandez-delivered report, which urged "finding a way to collectively solve the problems that were not just created overnight with solutions that will stand the test of time."
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