Member Calls the Simi Valley School Board ‘Dysfunctional’ : Education: Doug Crosse criticizes colleagues for poor fiscal decisions and political squabbling. Others on panel respond angrily.

Simi Valley school board member Doug Crosse on Monday blasted his colleagues for what he called poor budget decisions and political squabbling that have left the board unable to take action “on anything but the most rote and mundane of matters.”

In a news conference at the Simi Valley Unified School District headquarters, Crosse said the board has increased spending during the last four years by adding new staff members and programs, knowing that they would have to make cuts later.

“It seems surprising to me the entire board isn’t facing a recall as a result of the fiscal irresponsibility,” Crosse said.

He said that a recall attempt against three members and a proposal to add birth-control information to the curriculum have exacerbated the problems. He called the board “dysfunctional.”

“There’s no give and take,” he said.

Board members Carla Kurachi and Debbie Sandland, who are targets of the recall along with Diane Collins, responded angrily to the accusations.

“If he feels the board is no longer a functional board, then he better resign, because I don’t see that,” Sandland said.

Kurachi, who was elected at the same time as Crosse three years ago, said she was surprised that Crosse issued the statements because the board has been following an established timeline for studying the budget and deciding on cuts by March.

“I, for one, want as much information as possible before we start cutting things,” Kurachi said.

Crosse blamed himself in part for the budget decisions. He acknowledged that he voted for many of the new programs, saying he did not support them all but went along only because it was clear the measures would pass.

To pare down the expected 1994-95 deficit of $2.5 million, Crosse suggested freezing automatic pay increases for teachers based on seniority and eliminating 24 teaching positions for special programs over and above staffing levels mandated in contract agreements.

Crosse said the board has not made any progress so far toward deciding what cuts to make in next year’s budget, although district officials said the board is on schedule to be finished by March as planned.

Since August, three budget informational meetings have been held to review finances for the next fiscal year, said Assistant Supt. Ralph Wilson. Staff recommendations are expected to be forwarded to the board in February, Wilson said.

Without cuts, the district will nearly have depleted its reserves by the end of the 1994-95 school year, Wilson said. The state mandates that districts keep 3% of their budget in savings, which is about $2.5 million in the case of Simi Valley.

Many of the cuts to the district’s $78-million spending plan proposed by Crosse were included in a list of options circulated by Wilson at one of the informational meetings.

But Sandland said she could not support at least one of Crosse’s proposals to freeze pay increases for teachers as they add more years of experience. Any pay cuts should be shared by administrators and managers, Sandland said.

Sandland said Crosse was challenged at the last budget study session two weeks ago to propose some solutions, but he brought none forward. Crosse responded that he released his ideas to the board and the press at the same time on Monday.

“If he feels there’s no give and take on this board,” Sandland said, “then he’s responsible for it.”