Earlier Classes, Staff and Bus Service Cuts Proposed for Schools

Some students would face a 7:15 a.m. school bell next year, and all juniors would be required to take physical education classes if the Long Beach school board approves budget cuts proposed this week.

Officials suggested that the start of school be moved up at least 35 minutes to 7:15 a.m. for some students to cut down on the number of school buses needed to take children to school.

Officials also estimated that they would save as much as $400,000 by requiring juniors to take physical education classes, which can accommodate larger numbers of students. “By the very nature of a P.E. class, it’s twice the size of a normal class,” said district Controller Tomio Nishimura. “That’s one less class we have to conduct for 11th grade.” Physical education is mandatory for 9th and 10th graders.

The school board is considering these and other proposed cuts to balance the district’s budget, estimated at $350 million, for the 1990-91 school year.

School officials have submitted a package of cuts totaling $16.5 million. The board would have to eliminate $11.5 million to balance the budget, officials said.

Several management and clerical positions also would be eliminated, the overall maintenance budget would be cut 5%, and new equipment purchases would be frozen. About 75 custodial workers would be laid off.

School bus service would be eliminated for 641 students, and the average class size would be increased by one student to 31 at all schools.

The plan includes a proposal to eliminate a music program in the elementary schools, but several board members said last week that they don’t expect to touch any music programs.

One of the biggest changes for students and teachers would have those in secondary schools setting their alarm clocks earlier, while those in elementary schools would start their day 40 minutes later. The changes would allow school buses to make three runs, instead of two, saving the district $800,000, according to transportation director Richard Cassman.

Other transportation changes include eliminating bus service for 500 elementary students and 141 Jordan High School students, which would save $250,000, Nishimura said. Those students were allowed to ride the bus because of special circumstances, he said, but many of those circumstances no longer exist.

At Kettering Elementary School, for example, 35 students get bus rides because officials were concerned about students’ walking across 7th Street. Students can now get around the busy street by walking on a bridge crossing at Studebaker Road, Nishimura said.

Elementary students generally are eligible for bus service if they live more than 1.5 miles from school. The distance increases to three miles for high school students, Nishimura said.

District officials say budget cuts are necessary because the Long Beach Unified School District has been dipping into its reserves for years, and can no longer afford to do so.

The district’s reserves have declined from $29.1 million in the 1986-87 school year to an estimated $12.8 million this year. “The district cannot continue this pattern of deficit spending,” Nishimura wrote in a report to the board.