Editorial: Early retirees save the school day

Glendale Unified School District officials this week approved early retirement for 115 employees, allowing up to 125 others whose jobs were on the line to breathe a collective sigh of relief.

Of the 115 individuals agreeing to leave the district, 61 of those are certified teachers whose positions will not be replaced. This is expected to save the GUSD $1.6 million in the first year, $4.7 million in three years and $7.9 million in five years, according to Maria Gandera, assistant superintendent of human resources.

There is an added bonus to the early retirements and attendant costs saved: Class sizes will not increase to 30 students per teacher, as had been feared. There will still likely be some increases in class size, but not to that level.

More than 900 district employees were offered the early retirement package, which was deemed to be the “most humane way” to avoid handing out pink slips and minimizing the impact on class sizes, officials said.

We applaud those who accepted the district’s offer, giving relief to their colleagues.