Deep Budget Cuts Finally Hit Irvine Schools Hard

For years families have moved to Irvine for its planned communities with their new homes, nearby parks and tranquil streets.

They also came for some of the best public schools in the state.

Now the local school district is projecting a budget shortfall of more than $5 million next year, with resulting cuts in such vaunted programs as science and arts, the closure of a neighborhood school and class sizes that will grow by 50% in some grades.

Some families say the community is losing its luster.

“I think it might get me to move out of Irvine,” said Tracy Buck, whose twins attend Los Naranjos Elementary School. The campus is slated for closure this summer.

“We used to be a special district,” lamented teacher Susan Gross, who introduces elementary-school pupils to art at several district campuses. “Now, we are a mediocre district.”

A mass exodus from the district is unlikely, but Buck’s sentiment underscores how much Irvine’s schools have been a draw for young families.

“I’ve had homeowners who are concerned about it,” said Dale Cheema, an Irvine Realtor and district parent. “I don’t feel as comfortable with the school district as I used to.”

Many in the district wonder why Irvine schools seem to be suffering more than surrounding districts.

In some ways their question is on target; in other ways not.

Irvine schools start from a richer base than most. While the district stands to lose most of its science, music and art enrichment programs at elementary schools, many school districts eliminated such costly items years ago.

Other districts also feel the pinch. Neighboring Saddleback Valley Unified School District recently decided on more than $8 million in cuts, slashing arts and other specialized programs. The Capistrano Unified School District might also need to look at enlarging class sizes in at least one primary grade.

But so far, the pain runs especially deep for Irvine schools.

The district plans to eliminate 20-pupil classes in kindergarten, second and third grades, keeping the smaller classes only in first grade. At the same time, it is eliminating more than 80% of its specialized programs, such as science, music and fine arts at elementary schools.

The cuts are the result of a one-two financial punch, both caused by the economy. While the district’s costs have increased, the state is cutting education spending. The state forecasts a $12-billion shortfall next year. About $843 million in cuts will come from the education budget, Gov. Gray Davis announced last November.

At the same time, the private sources that have kept some of the extra programs going--long after many other districts eliminated them--are expected to provide less money this year.

In a way, the district is a victim of its own good fortune. For years, private money from its fund-raising arm and the Donald Bren Foundation kept in place programs few other districts could afford.

Being weaned from the private dollars will be hard, district officials say.

“You try to do as much as possible at the local level,” said Vernon Medeiros, the district’s financial officer, “but you get to the point you can’t do that anymore. My frustration is that we keep getting underfunded [at the government level].”

The classes were largely funded through the Irvine Public Schools Foundation, a group of parents who raised money for the programs.

The Irvine Co. through the Donald Bren Foundation has pledged to match contributions for the next five years, up to $700,000 a year.

Last year, the foundation donated $2.2 million to the district. For next year, district officials predict, the amount will dwindle to about $1 million.

“We are grateful for what we’ve had,” Medeiros said. “But [donors] are getting caught with the same economic difficulties we are caught on.”

The decrease in private donations represents about a fifth of the budget deficit forecast for the district.

But Irvine also must contend with state funding lower than what most districts receive. The district gets $4,574 for each of its 24,000 students for basic programs. That’s about $100 per student less than the state average.

The formula for per-student funding is based on how local property taxes were assessed before Proposition 13, the 1978 tax-cutting measure. The formula hurts districts like Irvine and others in South Orange County which have grown and seen property values rise mostly after Proposition 13.

Add to that rising health care costs and the growing list of mandated programs such as special education not fully funded by the state, and expenses quickly outstrip revenue, Medeiros said.

James A. Fleming, superintendent of nearby Capistrano Unified School District, another high-performing district, said similar woes forced his district to cut $4 million from this year’s budget. The district gets about $87 less per student than the state average and does not receive the private funding Irvine does.

The Legislature last year approved a bill providing more money next year to districts such as Irvine and Capistrano to make up some of the difference in funding. Davis suggested cutting the money, but a legislative subcommittee has proposed reinstating the funding of about $40 million.

Fleming and Medeiros complain that their districts are at a disadvantage because they are already funded at a lower level for even the basic programs.

“You’ve got very few places to go,” Fleming said. “You have to cut to the marrow.”

Many Irvine parents have said they also believe the district had no choice but to make the cuts.

“Everyone is just very sad for the loss,” said Jeff Herdman, principal of El Camino Real Elementary School. “They’re disappointed, but they understand.”