School superintendents from across the state convened on the west steps of the Capitol on Monday to urge lawmakers to get tax extensions on the ballot in a June special election, which they said is necessary to avoid a $4.6 billion reduction in public school funding. Sacramento City Unified Superintendent Johnathan Raymond  said time has run out and that legislators need to get the tax extensions put on the ballot this week, since county clerks need 88 days to prepare for an election. “We are here because we represent children in California, and that, I think, is a point getting missed in our message,” said Raymond. “I look right in front of me and I see two yellow school buses. We all

The Natomas Unified School District has declared an “impasse,” or stalemate, with the California School Employees Association, chapter 745 over labor negotiations. The district is optimistic that a state mediator will move the district and the classified staff toward reaching an agreement that, according to a press release, would “adequately address the district's fiscal crisis and avoid a state takeover.” As part of the district's overall plan to achieve these cuts and minimize their impact on students and programs, each employee group, including all administrators, has agreed to take reductions of 7.9 percent of salaries and benefits, but the CSEA has not. According to the press relea

The California School Employees Association Chapter 745 announced last week, that its membership voted to reject the tentative agreement with the Natomas Unified School District.The agreement, if ratified, would have been a major step toward avoiding state takeover and establishing fiscal solvency for the district. On Jan. 11, the District and CSEA's Negotiations Team reached a tentative agreement with respect to furlough days for the 2011-12 school year, reflecting a 7.9 percent reduction in total compensation. After negotiating with CSEA nine times since September, district officials said they were disheartened to hear of the rejection. But to local CSEA Chief Negotiator and immediate

Assemblyman Richard Pan (D-Sacramento) led a town hall meeting for the Natomas Unified School District community at Inderkum High School on Thursday night where he and Superintendent Bobbie Plough laid out a plan to help the district prevent a state takeover, or “receivership.” The town hall meeting came on the heels of a prediction made by County Superintendent David Gordon that NUSD would end up with a negative fund balance in the coming years. If that projection comes true, then the district would lose local control with a state-appointed receiver in place and a disempowered school board. As the state legislator for the governing district, Pan said he is required to ask the Legislatu

Natomas Unified School District officials probably know better than any other in California the importance of Gov. Jerry Brown's proposed tax extensions. Voter approval in June has the power to pull this small Sacramento-area district of 10,000+ students back from the brink of bankruptcy. If the proposition fails, state funding to K-12 education could be cut 6 percent – or more – and two local legislators are poised to introduce legislation in the coming weeks that would empower the state to take over the cash-strapped school district in Natomas. While school districts statewide will be equally impacted if Gov. Brown's propositions fail to pass, Natomas Unified will financially be out of

Natomas Unified School District and teachers' union officials reached a tentative agreement Thursday evening to solve the district's budget woes and prevent a state takeover of the district. Late Thursday afternoon, the Natomas Teachers' Association agreed to 7.9 percent cuts in total spending on teachers, proposed by the district, to help prevent an $8.9 million cash shortfall expected by the end of fiscal year 2012/2013. Average class size will increase by two students, according to the school district. Teachers also agreed to take seven unpaid furlough days for school year 2011/12 and to go without extra compensation for teaching classes with more than 30 children, up to a limit, teac

Natomas school administrators and teachers' union officials both expressed hope Thursday they can head off a state takeover of the district. Sacramento County Superintendent of Schools David Gordon initiated the possibility of the state taking over Natomas Unified School District last week when he began the process to get the district an emergency state loan. The two sides voiced optimism following a meeting early this week, which was the latest in a string of bargaining sessions. More negotiations are set for next week. Talks between leaders from the district and Natomas Teachers' Association have become "very collaborative," District Superintendent Bobbie Plough said. "We're not goin

Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson said Thursday he is organizing an effort to link city services with Sacramento school districts. At a press conference at American Lakes Elementary School in Natomas, Johnson laid out a plan for how local schools can benefit from a relationship with city government. Sacramento schools and the city should explore methods to share city facilities and to boost public safety and after-school efforts for schoolchildren, he said. “We’re talking about the need to create a partnership in a way that we have not done in the past,” Johnson said to an audience that included a group of third graders. City Hall and the school system need to bolster their relationship b

Something is missing on Natomas Unified School District’s campuses that makes it harder to satisfy a sweet tooth: soda and candy vending machines. A 2005 California Health Interview Survey showed that 62 percent of teens consume 39 pounds of sugar each year from soft drinks alone. The research showed that counties with the highest obesity rates had the highest rates of soda consumption. One Natomas Unified School District parent, Heather Reed, said she “agrees 100% with the district’s ban on soda machines” and believes there is a link between adolescent obesity and soda consumption. Reed is in a unique position; not only is her daughter an eighth grader at Leroy Greene Middle School, bu