My responses to a questionnaire from The Ferndale Enterprise

By Kristina Radelfinger

I am running because I feel that I can make a positive contribution to the FUSD board with thoughtful, educated, and experienced opinions and suggestions. I am running because I want my children to have the best education and school experience possible to prepare them to be successful in their ventures beyond high school.

(FERNDALE ENTERPRISE)WHAT ARE THE MAJOR ISSUES, IN YOUR VIEW, FACING THE FERNDALE UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT?

In my opinion, the biggest issue facing the FUSD is the budget. Many services and positions have been cut over the last couple of years. In addition to cuts, many things have been put off, such as improvements and/or maintenance to buildings and infrastructure.

(FERNDALE ENTERPRISE)WHAT IS YOUR OPINION ABOUT THE FUSD ATTEMPTING TO PASS ANOTHER BOND TO FINANCE MODERNIZATION IMPROVEMENTS AT BOTH SCHOOL SITES? IT'S BEEN 12 YEARS SINCE THE COMMUNITY LAST PASSED A BOND, WHICH IT IS STILL PAYING FOR. DO YOU THINK THE DISTRICT SHOULD ATTEMPT PASSING ANOTHER BOND?

I am unsure about whether the district should attempt passing another bond. I attended the last board meeting where Mr. Isom presented information about the possibility of floating another bond. In order to form a more definitive opinion, I would need a lot more information. It would be very important to conduct a survey to feel out voters and see what their opinions about another bond would be. I think in these tough economic times, it might be unrealistic to ask voters to be assessed any more than they already are.

(FERNDALE ENTERPRISE)WITH STATE TAX REVENUE PROJECTIONS FALLING SHORT OF PREDICTIONS, MID-YEAR CUTS TO PUBLIC EDUCATION ARE AN INCREASING REALITY. THE STATE'S BUDGET BILLS PROHIBIT ADDITIONAL LAYOFFS THIS SCHOOL YEAR, BUT PERMIT SCHOOL DISTRICTS TO END THEIR YEAR SEVEN DAYS EARLY, OR ASKING TEACHERS TO TAKE PAY CUTS OR LAYING OFF NON-TEACHING STAFF. WHAT DO YOU THINK IS THE BEST SCENARIO AND MOST REALISTIC FOR FUSD, IN REGARDS TO ITS BUDGET, IF TAX REVENUE DOES NOT MEET STATE PROJECTIONS? WHERE SHOULD CUTS/SAVINGS BE MADE?

If tax revenue does not meet state projections and mid-year cuts to public education have to be made, I think the best and most realistic scenario for FUSD would be a combination of things, depending on the amount of funds needed. Ending the school year seven days early would be a huge cost savings for the district (approximately $14,645 per day, $102,515 for 7 days) and could be done with minimal impact. I have suggested in the past that teachers take a small cut in pay. My suggestion was met with a lot of resistance but, if each teacher agreed to sacrifice 1% of their salary, it would generate approximately $20,000 in funds. A 1% cut in pay would equate to a loss of $0.27/hr (at minimum) to $0.47/hr (at most) per teacher, depending on their current pay schedule. Don't be confused, I am very pro-teacher. I volunteer in both my kids' classrooms and I see what they do and how hard they work. I have a great deal of respect for them and I think they deserve every penny they make and then some. And I also realize that most of them put in many more than their contracted 7.25 hours per day. But, I also know that the entire working population in this nation has sacrificed and suffered over the last two years with this poor economy. I don't think there is a person out there who would say that they haven't had to make financial sacrifices over the last two years. I feel that a 1-5% cut in salary is a small and reasonable sacrifice that our teachers can make, if necessary. In my opinion, laying off non-teaching staff is not an option. We are already operating with the bare minimum with regard to staff and to cut any more employees would be detrimental.