It was no secret that deep cuts were likely coming when California Gov. Gavin Newsom released his revised state budget last week, and when they did, it was the state’s education system that was on the chopping block to the tune of $6.5 billion (a 10 percent decrease) in cuts to the state’s K-12 funding formula in an effort to help cover the $54.3 billion shortfall in the overall budget.
A number of districts across the state, including Los Angeles Unified, have said the budget cuts could set back the reopening of schools for in-classroom instruction in the fall. The LAUSD Board met on Tuesday afternoon for the first time since the budget’s release, and among the agenda items was a planned update on the state budget and what it means for LAUSD’s bottom line over the next year. In an address on Monday, Superintendent Austin Beutner said in a video address that specifics on that would be coming in the days and weeks to follow, but warned of the potential harm to students if state and federal governments didn’t step in and help fill funding gaps before the final budget is passed.
Today on AirTalk, Superintendent Beutner joins us to talk in more detail about how the proposed budget cuts at the state level could affect students, teachers and school staff at the district level and what it could mean for the district’s efforts to reopen schools in the fall.
For more on the impact of the state budget cuts to LAUSD from KPCC/LAist education reporter Kyle Stokes, click here.
Guest:
Austin Beutner, superintendent of Los Angeles Unified School District; he tweets