True Accounting Urged for Orange Schools

Re “Report Charges Orange Schools Sitting on Cash,” Oct. 17:

The Sorenson report supported why the Orange recall of June was successful. It is now common knowledge why over 1,000 educators resigned from Orange Unified School District from 1997 to the present to take jobs in neighboring districts, and why there was so much labor unrest. Three of the culprits on the board were recalled in June. Two more trustees are up for reelection in November. Several high-ranking administrators are equally guilty. Their legacy will be of the damage they have done to our children. Let’s hope for the sake of our children that come Nov. 6 the electorate is more enlightened than in the past.

Karl Baysinger

Orange

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At the last Orange Unified board meeting, Olav Sorenson, doctor of sociology, presented a report criticizing the district’s recent budgets. As a professor at the Anderson Graduate School of Management at UCLA, he found disfavor with consistently underestimated revenues and overestimated expenses by 1% or 2%. Sorenson concluded that Orange Unified must have surplus funds, because the budget numbers have been historically conservative. The recommendation was to spend more taxpayer funds.

How about an audit of the books first? This report was presented directly to the board, bypassing staff comments or recommendations. Why? Politics. Teacher union-backed candidates elected in June, running for reelection in November, desperately seek support of the party line that the district is hiding money. All audits done in the last decade prove otherwise. The district spent $32,000 for this report simply for political purposes. The report did not include a financial audit nor recommend one by an independent firm.

I approve of conservative budgets and will vote for school board candidates who make financial decisions based on reports compiled by certified public accountants, not sociologists.

Russell Patterson

Villa Park