December 16, 2005

ESD NEWS BRIEFS

ESD files positive certification of financial condition

First Interim Report positive through 2007-08

The First Interim Report filed by the Evergreen School District on Dec. 8 reflects a positive certification for the current and two subsequent fiscal years, according to Jim Crawford, assistant superintendent of business services.

“This is encouraging after last year’s qualified certification for the First and Second Interim Reports,” said Crawford.
He attributes the improved outlook to three factors: almost $1,000,000 of cuts made in the ESD budget last year, an improved state economy that’s providing more state funding and a different calculating formula he’s using based on how teacher contract negotiations are progressing.

“The anticipated salary settlement with the Evergreen Teacher’s Association will trigger significant budget cuts for the 2006-07 school year,” said Crawford. “The level of the cuts may reduce operational services to a level that will make it very difficult to meet acceptable standards.”

He noted that the district could delay severe program cuts if a new source of revenue is found, such as a parcel tax, but future reductions in programs will be inevitable given the continued projected growth of deficit spending in the next two years.

For 2005-06, the operating deficit in the unrestricted General Fund budget is $1,918,436 after adjusting for changes to salary and benefits for the certificated and management groups and reversing an earlier transfer to the Retiree Benefit Fund.

The reserve fund balance on June 30, 2006 is estimated at $8,927,010. This amount will decline to $6,674,640 in 2006-07 and $4,024,152 in 2007-08.

“There should be sufficient reserves to meet the state’s minimum level of 3 percent in each of the three years,” added Crawford.

The California Department of Education requires every school district to file a certification of financial condition for the first and second interims. ESD sends the report to the Santa Clara County Department of Education, which reviews the report and forwards it to the state if the report does not raise any questions.

Shakespeare, anyone?

Students from Cadwallader Elementary School can take advantage of a unique way to develop reading comprehension and language skills.

Director Donna Foley gives Alexis Nichols the complete works of Shakespeare, a certificate of completion and a stipend check for her work in the Midnight Shakespeare production at Cadwallader Elementary School Dec. 2.

From September through the first week in December, the San Francisco Shakespeare Festival works with willing fourth- through sixth-graders, two hours a week, twice a week, to practice and eventually perform a Shakespearean play. This year, they performed one of the most popular of Shakespeare’s works, “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.”

Students audition for roles, and parents must sign a contract to ensure no last-minute dropouts. In addition to learning the beauty, versatility and meaning of Shakes- pearean language, they create their own props, costumes and sets to gain a greater appreciation of what life was like in Elizabethan times.

Team building exercises augment the training given to use the power and expressiveness of their voices and bodies when conveying thoughts, moods and character traits.

“It’s really awesome, just amazing,” said Principal Denise Williams, noting that this is the fourth year that Shakespeare Festival staff has offered the program to Cadwallader. It is the only elementary school in Santa Clara County where this training is offered.

“The critical piece for me is that it’s all standards-based learning,” added Williams, as opposed to simply being an afterschool enrichment program.