The crisis is real. One can pick up any newspaper in California to read that every public school in every school district is being dramatically impacted by the State’s unprecedented budget deficit. Part of the solution needs to come from Sacramento, but part of the solution – the only one that gives us local control over the quality of our own schools – must come from us.
Malibu’s schools are currently among the best in the State, but our children will join the hardest-hit victims of this budget crisis if we don’t pass Measure S, the school funding measure on the June 3 ballot. Our school district will lose 91 excellent teachers, who have already been given their notice. Class sizes will increase by up to 50 percent. Many music, art and AP classes will be eliminated. We will lose school nurses, librarians and custodians.
We local voters have the ability to prevent this catastrophe. By voting Yes on S, we will direct to our children’s education funding that cannot be diverted by outside entities. Measure S, which must receive two-thirds of votes to pass, requires strict taxpayer accountability, within a district that already stands out for its unblemished accounting record. For all of these reasons, a large, bi-partisan coalition of parents, teachers, business and labor, homeowners and renters is supporting Measure S. Take control, and vote Yes on S to save our own schools!
Colleen O’Beirne Brydon