School district approves layoff list

Workforce reductions could come as officials face $2M budget hole and costly sex abuse settlement

After declining to tentatively layoff employees in January, the Moreno Valley school board has agreed to cut the equivalent of 69.5 positions.

Though it’s routine for districts to approve possible layoffs before California’s March 15 deadline to notify affected employees and to later rescind some, the Moreno Valley Unified School District is also trying to cut costs after declaring that it’s facing “undue financial hardship” at a special meeting last month.

That resolution cites a projected 2023-24 general fund deficit of about $2 million, and the need to pay legal fees and settlements, including $121.5 million awarded to two former students who were molested by a teacher in the 1990s. District spokesperson Anahi Velasco said in October that the insurance policy the district had at the time will cover about 11% of it, leaving the district to pay about $108 million. Weeks before, the district also agreed to a $27 million settlement for the 2019 death of Landmark Middle School student Diego Stolz, 13, who was beaten by two school bullies and died of his injuries nine days later.

In January, employees and board members took issue with the 80 positions originally selected by administrators to be potentially cut. Board members asked officials to look for other ways to cut spending, and to consider reducing more district office positions in order to keep more employees who work at schools.

“This is sad, but we have to make a decision tonight,” Ruth Self-Williams said Feb. 13.

Self-Williams, the board’s vice president, asked what would happen if the district failed to come up with a plan.

The outcome, Riverside County Office of Education Chief Business Official Scott Price told the board, is that if the district “gets to a point

where you’re going to run out of cash,” the district would begin the process of getting a state loan, which he described as a “board takeover” in which an appointed administrator would oversee the district.

“You do have a plan before you that has reductions necessary to get you through this year and to move forward as you reorganize,” he said.

Ultimately five resolutions, which together listed 69.5 fulltime-equivalent positions, were approved.

Management:

Six elementary assistant principals

Three assistant administrator of instructional improvement and academic coaching

One each of the following: Executive director, technology, innovation and assessment; director III, educational services; and coordinator of technology, innovation and assessment

One each: administrative assistant of human resources; director III, communications and community engagement; executive director, maintenance and operations; executive director, transportation; facilities planner; human resources technician Non-management positions:

• Twelve professional development specialists

• Six school counselors

• Three bus drivers

• Six clerk III positions

• 71/2 custodian I positions

• One secretary III and one warehouse driver II position

• 15 paraprofessionals No management employees, the tentative layoffs of which were approved unanimously, are expected to lose employment, officials said. They may be reassigned to other jobs or receive pay cuts.

Four school counselors could lose their jobs. Two of the professional development specialist positions are vacant. The remaining 10 would be offered other positions. The resolution regarding these employees passed 3-2, with board Clerk Susan Smith and board President Brandy Clark voting no.

Smith asked whether the plan was developed with input from the unions.

Some audience members said “no,” but Barney said officials had “met substantially with both union groups” since the last meeting.

In terms of how positions were identified, Interim Superintendent Robert Verdi said that staff tried to find ways to reduce the number of employees being cut.

“88% of our total general fund budget is personnel,” he said, adding that this is typical for a school district. “People are important.”

In light of requests from the previous meeting, Verdi said managers, which comprise 8% of that budget, represent 36.4% of the positions the resolutions would cut.

Meanwhile, non-teaching employees take up 25% of the personnel budget, and represent 20.7% of the reductions, he said. Positions represented by the Moreno Valley Educators Association are 55% of the budget, and 42% of the cuts.

“We tried to be as equitable as possible, maybe with the exception of managers,” Verdi said.

The resolution to tentatively lay off non-teaching employees passed 4-1, with Smith voting no. The secretary and warehouse driver positions are vacant, and no employees are “anticipated” to lose their employment entirely, Interim Chief Human Resources Officer Jason Barney said, though some may see reduced pay or hours.

Smith asked California School Employees Association local chapter President Joshua Caban what he thought of the resolution.

“We are OK so long as that there’s no bodies at home,” he said, which the resolution supports, and “we can live with a reduction in hours of 30 minutes or an hour to consolidate.”

The resolution to tentatively let go the equivalent of 15 paraprofessionals, came about because of exhausted grant funds, Barney said. Those employees would all be offered reassignments, which may come with reduced hours or pay. It was approved unanimously.

Board members asked that district officials continue looking for ways to keep funding more employees, and discussed how else to move forward.

“At every single board meeting, we are going to speak on the budget,” Clark said. “It will no longer be once every purple moon.”