Cotati-Rohnert Park School district is poised to cut five school days from the current school year in an effort to save money.
The approximately 180-member teachers union voted overwhelmingly Thursday to eliminate five student days from the current school year, which means students would finish classes June 4 instead of June 11. Teachers will work two of those days in professional development sessions, so will lose three days pay.
If approved, a similar calendar will be in place for the 2010-11 school year.
The plan, which would save the district between $550,000 and $600,000 on this year's approximately $51 million budget, and about $550,000 next year, is expected to be approved by the school board at Tuesday night's regular board meeting.
Superintendent Barbara Vrankovich said the district is committed to maintaining quality programs, just in fewer days.
"I don't believe that eliminating five days from the school year is going to have a negative impact on the quality of the program that we offer," she said.
At 6,140 students, Cotati-Rohnert Park is Sonoma County's third largest district. But its enrollment numbers continue to fall - 232 fewer students are enrolled this year compared with 2008-09.
Hammered by both a state budget crisis and long-term declining enrollment, the district laid off 43 teachers before the start of this school year and saw its classroom size surge to 28 or 29 students in grades as early as kindergarten.
In addition, middle school sports were cut and 10 days were cut from the classified staff schedule; managers will work five fewer days this year.
Teachers union president Mark Galipeau said teachers hoped cutting their pay by approximately 1.5 to 2 percent would reduce the need for more layoffs and cuts.
"The district has made some cuts, our classified employees have been forced to take a pay cut and work fewer days. We felt we needed to step up and offer what we could to balance this," he said.
With predictions that the state's fiscal crisis will deepen when Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger releases his budget in January, coupled with the end of $3.9 million in federal stimulus dollars, district officials worry the cuts might not be enough.
In addition to the change in the school year, board members are expected to hear details Tuesday night of what the impact would be of closing one of the district's two middle schools.
"We have discovered our middle schools are pretty significantly underutilized. They have a lot of extra space in them," Vrankovich said.
Closing either Mountain Shadows or Creekside middle schools would save the district about $750,000 annually, according to the district.
Conversations have also begun about whether the district should consider saving about $300,000 a year by shuttering an elementary school - just two years after two elementary campuses were closed in a money saving effort.
A recommendation on the future of the district's two middle schools is expected in January, but both Vrankovich and Galipeau said talk of closing an elementary school is premature.
"There has been discussion of &‘Let's get this over with. Let's load up our schools to full capacity and make the most of what we have,'" Galipeau said. "I think that's probably a little bit extreme."
Teachers are still adjusting to the loss of colleagues and larger class sizes, Galipeau said. The impact of losing 43 full-time positions, he said.
"Teachers tend to put a Band-Aid on everything and make everything as positive as we can," Galipeau said. "We try to be all things to all people and we just can't do that anymore. They have to realize we are too overloaded."
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