California schools among the worst in nation
SACRAMENTO — Thousands of parents demanding more money for public education were met with deaf ears last week when they marched onto the steps of the Capitol.
About 100 Santa Monicans joined up with thousands of California parents in Sacramento to demand Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger make the failing public school system a top state priority.
Gov. Schwarzenegger, however, didn’t meet with the state’s public education advocates, according to the rally’s organizers.
The two-day rally, called “Caravan for Kids,” included a pit stop at Gov. Schwarzenegger’s office in Los Angeles last Wednesday, followed by the statewide protest on the Capitol steps in Sacramento on Thursday. The event was organized by Santa Monica’s Community for Excellent Public Schools and the Santa Monica- Malibu PTA, which called on the statewide PTA to join in their effort.
“Caravan for Kids” organizers said they hope their efforts will prompt Gov. Schwarzenegger to make good on a promise made last year to increase public education funding, protect Proposition 98 school money and develop a 10-year plan to restore the greatness California’s schools once enjoyed.
Organizers said Carla Niño, president to the California PTA, asked to discuss the educational budget with Gov. Schwarzenegger a month ago. Gov. Schwarzenegger’s office called a day before the rallies were scheduled to take place and invited the PTA leadership to meet with his staff. Niño allegedly denied the invitation on the grounds she felt the matter required the direct attention of Gov. Schwarzenegger.
H.D. Palmer, deputy director of the state’s department of finance, said Gov.
Schwarzenegger is committed to significant yearly increases to make up for the $9 billion public education funding gap inherited when he took office.
Palmer said the educational budget Gov. Schwarzenegger is proposing more than covers expected growth of student enrollment.
The $47 billion education budget will increase $3 billion, mostly from Prop. 98 money. The added funds will increase per student spending by $362 for next year, from $7,012 to $7,374.
However, local advocacy groups said the proposal is not enough to get California’s public schools back where they need to be.
“The governor will meet with leaders who represent far fewer constituents,” said Rochelle Fanali, a CEPS member who helped organize the rally. “For the governor to not stand with the California PTA when the education budget is being hotly debated does not seem fair.”
A recent report published by the RAND Corp., a Santa Monica-based international think tank, said California’s K-12 school system has fallen from its position as the national leader it was 30 years ago to near the bottom of the rank-ings, above just Mississippi and Louisiana.
CEPS representatives said after the local school district earlier this month secured an annual $6 million contribution from the Santa Monica City Council for the next five years — to offset the local impact from the state budget crisis — CEPS members have begun to focus their attention on the statewide educational financing crisis.
“Organizing the statewide effort was probably the most natural thing for us to do, since we’ve become used to maximizing our resources,” Fanali said. “But it’s been a little like shoveling snow, since the governor is denying the state’s responsibility.”
Despite the $6 million annual subsidy, plus many more millions in other funding each year by City Hall, local school officials have said that four years of educational budget cuts on the state level have cost local schools nearly $9 million in lost services and personnel, resulting in a reduction of administrators, staff, faculty and the support for programs. “Caravan for Kids” organizers said the problem is worse for schools without local support.
Maria Rodriguez, president of the Santa Monica-Malibu PTA Council, said her group has done everything it can to drum up local support. She said the PTA has a responsibility to all children in the state of California — many of whom belong to schools that have not had the same level of local support as the Santa Monica-Malibu school system.
Overall, CEPS and local PTA representatives said they are happy with the outcome of the rally, since it has allowed them to meet education advocates statewide, which may help with future organization efforts.
“We’re pleased with what we were able to accomplish,” said Rebecca Kennerly, a CEPS member and event organizer. “It has been a huge mobilization. There are a number of groups out there that are eager to take local advocacy up to the state, where the root of our education problems lie.”
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on May 4, 2005. Read the original PDF.