> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.smdp.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Superintendent waters down gift proposal - URL: https://www.smdp.com/superintendent-waters-down-gift-proposal/ - Published: 2004-02-16T16:00:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-23T03:48:27.000Z - Author: John Wood - Tags: Education, Santa Monica, #archive-import *Board will discuss revised gift proposal on Thursday* Hoping to garner support for his controversial school gift policy, Santa Monica’s top educator released an amended version Friday that lets the wealthiest schools hold onto a little more of the cash they raise. Under the new proposal, the district would take 15 percent of the first $100,000 collected by individual schools. After that, the amount taken would drop by two percentage points for each $100,000 raised. As with the prior proposal, money taken by the district would be redistributed to schools based on their size and need. Under the new proposal, a maximum of $64,000 in donations would be taken from a school by the district — if the school raised $800,000\. Donations in excess of $800,000 would go directly to the school in their entirety. Superintendent John Deasy said he’s optimistic the proposal will earn the backing of the school board. Board members, who will discuss the new proposal Thursday, have already heard more than five hours of discussion on the matter. The controversial policy has drawn fire from some school supporters, who say it unfairly taxes generous donors and will lead to reduced fundraising at area schools. Others maintain that sharing 15 percent of all donations does too little to help some area schools, which are able to raise far less than others. To illustrate the discrepancy in funding, McKinley Elementary in Santa Monica raised about $30,000 from donors last year, while Pt. Dume Elementary in Malibu accrued $300,000 or more, school district officials said. At Malibu High School, the stated goal for fundraising is $1 million. “I believe that this is an essential and critical issue we try to begin to resolve in our community,” Deasy said. “It is something that not everybody likes, I understand that. But I don’t know anybody that likes the existing condition either.” > “It is something that not everybody likes, I understand that. But I don’t know anybody that likes the existing condition either.” — – JOHN DEASY Superintendent of schools Another part of Deasy’s amended proposal is a clearer delineation of exemptions to the gift policy. Field trips, academic scholarships, scholarships for needy children and district-approved capital programs, among other things, would be exempt. Also, a voluntary donation fund would be set up under the proposed gift policy to run simultaneously with the mandatory fund. Deasy said he hopes the changes will be well received. “I think it keeps the integrity of the policy, as I proposed it, and solves, or tries to solve, the concerns that people have,” he said. Although school board members have made comments and asked pointed questions on the proposal, no formal positions have been taken. However, board member Oscar de la Torre said he would vote in favor of the proposal, and board members Shane McLoud and Mike Jordan have expressed deep reservations. “I’m opposed to taking someone’s gift and distributing it,” McLoud said Friday. “It’s simple — for me, it’s a matter of not reallocating someone’s gift. It was their intention to give it to their school, and I think we need to respect that. “I don’t think we should alter someone’s charity,” he added. “I think we should — instead we should be recognizing it, honoring it and asking for the spirit of that contribution to voluntarily help the schools that really need it.” McLoud, who teaches fifth grade at Figueroa Elementary School in South Central Los Angeles, said he has received over 60 letters and e-mails from parents and others opposed to the gift policy. He said he would like to see a well-organized — but strictly voluntary — effort by parents to raise money for the poorer schools. McLoud’s perspective on the matter is different than some of those at wealthy schools in Malibu. He said the Parent Teacher Association at his school, which is part of the LA Unified School District, raises a mere $200 or $300 a year. “I see an environment where I would love to be able to see my students receive more money,” McLoud said. “But I don’t think the solution is to be found in altering someone’s generosity... “What I hear from the people who want this is there’s a need for it... and that’s absolutely true — this just isn’t the way to solve this problem,” he added. “What I would rather see is voluntary contribution and a well-organized effort. And I think we need to look at the state, to look at the way it distributes funds.” De la Torre, on the other hand, said he will fight for the proposal. “We know that social economic status is a contributing factor to low academic achievement,” he said Friday. “The fact remains that some families in our community have more resources than others. It is a moral imperative and an economic necessity for us to support equity in our school district.” John Deasy *Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on February 16, 2004.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/021604.pdf?ref=smdp.com)