| Greetings! |
Happy June 15, 2010:
I hope your summer is going well. It's been a great year for our District, culminating with two wonderful graduation ceremonies at Valley and Crafton Hills. It was heart-warming to see the pride and enthusiasm on the faces of our graduates as they came to the stage to accept their diplomas. As so many faculty and staff said, "This is what it's all about!"
I will provide an update on the state budget situation below but I am very proud of the fact that we are very close to a balanced budget based on the most conservative configuration of the Governor's budget for 2010-2011. Of course, a great many details can change between now and the final budget. However, unlike many other districts and educational systems, we have avoided layoffs and other salary reductions for contract employees. In addition, we were able to work with our bargaining unit colleagues to provide continued strong coverage for health insurance during these turbulent times. I am very proud to say that in spite of having to reduce our course offerings by over 400 sections this past year, we have maintained our commitment to the community and educated more than 2,200 full-time equivalent students (up to 6,000 headcount) above the number of students funded by the state!
I want to thank you for your continued good work in support of our students. Everything you do for our students adds up...one student at a time.
Bruce Baron
Interim Chancellor
382-4090 |
|
Status of the Chancellor's Position | |
At the June 10, 2010 Board meeting, the Trustees voted unanimously to name Bruce Baron the Interim Chancellor effective July 1st. Bruce was previously serving as Acting Chancellor. As required by Title V, Section 53021, recruitment for the permanent Chancellor will be considered by the Board of Trustees in the fall.
|
|
State Budget Update | |
Here is the latest information on the state budget process.
- The legislators in Sacramento are working to develop a budget plan to meet the June 30th constitutional deadline to enact a state budget.
- Both the Assembly and the Senate have rejected the proposed budget cuts in the Governor's budget.
- The Legislative Analyst's Office has been strongly recommending an increase in fees for the California Community Colleges.
- There is a strong belief that Proposition 98 will be suspended because the state cannot afford to provide the level of funding legally mandated.
- A ten-member Conference Committee has been meeting since June 4th to develop a budget recommendation. It is expected that the Community College budget will be discussed sometime this week. The issues that will be before the Conference Committee are: enrollment growth funding, categorical funding, Basic Skills Budget Bill language, Mandates and Financial Aid Budget Bill Language.
On the District level, the Board of Trustees approved a tentative budget on June 10th. The general fund budget, unrestricted and unrestricted, totaled $90,844,563. The Tentative Budget accomplished the following goals:
- Fully funds the SERP retiree costs for 2010-2011.
- Covers the costs of the categorical program contract staff at 2009-2010 levels.
- Covers the increased cost of health insurance as negotiated with the bargaining units.
- Covers the cost of step and column increases for all contract staff.
- Covers the highest Program Review needs.
- Incorporates the new budget model which allocates all unrestricted general fund income to the campuses based on their full-time equivalent students and then "assesses" the cost of the District Office operations. The budget presentation to the Board of Trustees as well as the budget model is available for your review in the "Quick Links" section to the right.
I will keep you posted as new information becomes available.
|
|
 |
|
Chancellor's Chat