First published in the Aug. 18 print issue of the Outlook Valley Sun.
With a record $308 billion state budget signed June 30, Gov. Gavin Newsom promised to invest more than ever in education, and La Cañada Unified School District’s updated budget indicates that he delivered.
Melissa Greenwood, assistant superintendent of administrative services, went before the Governing Board Aug. 12 and presented a revision to the budget that included $4,609,793 in revenue increases.
LCUSD previously adopted a budget in late June that projected more than $54 million in revenue, but the final and more generous budget approved by the Legislature and signed by Newsom significantly increased the cost-of-living adjustment, or COLA, to provide districts with more base funding.
The district gained an additional $1.26 million from the local control funding formula (LCFF), which determines how educational agencies are funded and is based on average daily attendance.
“This is ongoing funds, so this is good news for the district,” Greenwood told the board. “All of this is additional funding that we’ll be receiving.”
Most of the funds, however, are one-time monies through grants. With many economists predicting a recession in the future, California’s budget provided districts more one-time funding rather than committing to ongoing, unrestricted money that would allow districts to spend on core programs and services.
A large chunk of the one-time funds LCUSD collected were through the Arts, Music and Instructional Materials Discretionary Block Grant. The district received $2.53 million that are unrestricted and must be spent within the next four years.
“Even though it says arts, music and materials, it can be used on essentially anything,” Greenwood said.
LCUSD staff is hoping to use some of that money to offset the costs of deferred maintenance after the board approved emergency resolutions to repair damaged hydronic lines and a broken water line at La Cañada High School.
Greenwood said she is working with her colleagues on a plan to determine how to spend the remainder of the grant money and will present a plan to the board at a future meeting. The assistant superintendent also hopes to use some of the funds to pay some of the rising pension costs, as well.
The district also received $648,375 through the Learning Recovery Emergency Block Grant that funds educational agencies as they recover from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. The money can be used to close learning gaps and establish support systems for students.
Another bump in funding came from the Expanded Learning Opportunities Program grant, which provided the district with $266,971 — up from $101,558 — to invest in after-school and summer school programs.
Dan Jeffries, school board president, said he wants to be cautious with how the money is spent, especially after observing how other districts spent their coronavirus funds.
“Our district has always been fiscally conservative, and we always look out for that three-year and greater outlook,” he said. “I’ve seen a lot of districts, especially lately, taking their one-time COVID funds and spending on things they can’t possibly sustain, which can be very frightening when those funds dry up.”
