By Jorge Casuso
January 14 – Satisfied that the School District had made significant strides in revamping its special education policies, the City Council Tuesday night unanimously voted to release $840,000 in additional funding it had held back for nearly two years.
The money could make a small dent in the looming budget of the cash-strapped district, which could face as much as a $10 million deficit over the next 18 months under a proposal to balance the State budget unveiled by California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger this week.
“I think it’s important to release these funds now,” said Mayor Ken Genser. “The question was, ‘Have they improved enough and will it continue to improve.”
The council’s major reservation was whether the district would continue to overhaul a special education program that has been the target of parent protests for years.
Genser noted that a joint use agreement between the City and District -- which calls for $7.5 million a year in City funding in exchange for public use of school facilities – was scheduled to be renegotiated, giving the district a strong incentive.
“We will continue to be involved through the joint use agreement,” Genser said. “If we perceive the children and parents are not getting good services, there would be conditions placed.”
“It’s not the end of the road. There’s a major point where the council has to make a decision. I think that’s even more painful that possibly withdrawing $840,000.”
Council member Pam O’Connor said the Council would continue to require “oversight and transparency,” two key provisions she pushed for before agreeing to vote for the joint use agreement four years ago, while refraining from meddling in district business.
“We do need to have an arm’s length relation,” O’Connor said. “We’re not going to be caseworkers up here for the district.”
But, O’Connor added, there needs to be “better oversight, better reporting, better transparency.”
Council member Bobby Shriver said the council’s refusal to release the funds had forced the district to act.
“It was always the School Board’s job,” Shriver said. “I think that that bridge has been crossed now. This was an important act that the council took.”
The unanimous voted came after dozens of parents and education activists pleaded with the council to release the funds, saying there had been a major shift in the district’s treatment of Special Education students and their parents.
For years, the parents had charged that top administrators were strong-arming them into agreements they couldn’t discuss and that the district was short-shrifting the needs of their children. While the complaints had long fallen on deaf ears, a report issued by an independent consultant last year confirmed the allegations
The report found that although the District met and exceeded many of the criteria, its policy of entering into agreements with parents, though legal, was not commonly used and not necessarily good practice.
The confidentiality clauses, consultants said, made it difficult to evaluate a student’s progress and made placing students transferring to another district more difficult. The policy also breeds distrust.
The controversy led to the resignation of deputy superintendent Tim Walker, who was in charge of special education. (“Walker Resigns Post Amidst Special Ed Controversy,” May 2, 2008)
Weeks later, Superintendent Dianne Talarico resigned to take over a small district in Northern California. ("Superintendent Talarico to Join Burlingame School District," May 30, 2008)
