IRVINE
City Council members, who have offered to fund a chief financial officer for Irvine’s cash-strapped schools, are waiting anxiously to see if they’ll be snubbed or thanked.
“I’d be very disappointed if [the Irvine Unified School District] didn’t take us up on it,” said Councilman Mike Ward of the offer.
The district is trying to dig itself out of a $4-million hole caused largely by the state’s disproportionate funding of school districts, which gives Irvine nearly $100 less per student than other districts because of its 1970s-era agricultural designation.
In a last-ditch effort to save teachers, reduced class sizes and art, music and science programs, the district is hoping voters will pass a flat $95 parcel tax April 11.
Santa Ana-based consultant Daniel T. Miller recommended an administrative restructuring, including hiring an independent chief financial officer.
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