Montebello : Schools Cut $7.3 Million
The Montebello Unified School District has made $7.3 million in cuts before approving a budget that anticipates spending $109.9 million during the 1987-88 school year.
The district started the year with a balance of $9.9 million and expects to receive $102.1 million in revenue for the year, said Stephen Phillips, district business manager. The budget has a projected ending balance of $2.1 million.
Last year, the district spent $105.2 million, and it would have had to spend $116 million this year to maintain the same level of service with the increased cost of salaries, insurance and other expenses. For example, it will cost the district an estimated $4.8 million this year to pay for employee raises ranging from 4.5% to 6%, Phillips said.
Some of the more controversial cuts involved increasing the district’s pupil-teacher ratio in fifth- through eighth-grade classrooms from 31 students per teacher to about 32:1, and eliminating after-school recreation programs.
District Supt. John P. Cook has said the increase in the pupil-teacher ratio will have little or no effect on learning.
The district has 27 elementary, intermediate and high schools with an enrollment of about 30,800.
More to Read
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.