Such income could be part of the gift policy proposal, which would mandate that 15 percent of all donations and gifts be put into a fund to be distributed throughout the district on a weighted scale.
By Jonathan Friedman/Staff Writer
The Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District Board of Education was presented with a detailed fundraising report at its March 25 meeting of how much money each district school is projected to raise this school year through grants and donations.
According to the document, which was prepared by district staff that collected information from the schools, Point Dume Elementary School would receive the most money, at $1,701 per student. The least amount of money per student projected to be raised is by John Adams Middle School in Santa Monica, at $277 per student. The board members did not make any comments on the information during the meeting, but they continued to discuss how the district’s new gift policy should be written.
The gift policy proposal, first made by Superintendent John Deasy in November, received unofficial support from a majority of the board in February. With the policy, 15 percent of all money donated to the district or one of its schools would be put into a fund. At the end of the school year, the money in the fund would be distributed to the district’s schools and the pre-kindergarten program on a weighted scale. Several things would be taken into consideration, including the socio-economic makeup of the student populations.
The proposal has angered a large number of Malibu parents, who said it would threaten programs at their children’s schools that require PTA funding to exist. However, many district parents have praised the policy as a method to bring equity to the district.
A committee is being created to go over some of the more controversial issues within the policy. This includes whether grants would be exempted from the policy and how money received from the cities of Malibu and Santa Monica would be treated. The committee will consist of representatives from all district schools, the Financial Oversight Committee, the Education Foundation and the Board of Education.
Although the committee, which has not yet met, will tackle the issue of grants, the board discussed the issue at Thursday’s meeting. Deasy made a proposal that, before being accepted, an assistant superintendent would analyze grants going to specific schools as to whether it would give a school an advantage. Board President Jose Escarce said he felt uncomfortable with having somebody make what could be an arbitrary decision.
“I must respectfully disagree,” Deasy said. “It is the district staff’s job to make those types of decisions.”
Board member Mike Jordan, who is not in favor of the policy, said the board must be careful with exemptions. He said if it is too loosely defined as to what kind of donation should be exempted, it could create a situation in which the only donations not exempted are those coming from the parents.
“The more exemptions that we give, the fewer people that will be in the pool who are giving,” Jordan said. “And I don’t know how it’s going to sit with those people. It might not sit very well. They may feel like they are carrying the burden.”
According to the fundraising report presented to the board, all Malibu schools and the higher-income-populated Santa Monica schools receive a majority of their fundraising from parent donations. In contrast, the lower-income-populated Santa Monica schools receive most of their money through grants, including Title I money, which is specifically designated for students in the low-income bracket. A majority of the board has already said they favor exempting Title I money from the gift policy.
Also at the board meeting, Deasy announced that the Education Foundation, the nonprofit organization that raises money for the district, would be placed in charge of the equity fund. In addition, the board approved the formation of a task force to study the possibility of having all students acquire Spanish proficiency starting at sixth grade. The board also approved a new district mission statement and set of goals.