School Board in Santa Monica Revisit Gifting Policy to Public Schools

 

The Santa Monica-Malibu School Board will continue discussing a controversial wealth redistribution policy Thursday night that would weaken the authority of Parent Teacher Associations to spend money.

The Districtwide Funding proposal could prohibit local PTAs from spending money on hiring or training new personnel for programs such as literacy initiatives and would transfer that authority to the Santa Monica-Malibu Education Foundation, a non-profit group.

“With PTA funds, people at different sites are purchasing staff, like nurses and teachers' aids,” School Board Member Oscar de la Torre told The Lookout Wednesday. He said that this has given an edge to schools in upscale neighborhoods with parents who can contribute more time and money.

According to a report presented to the board by Superintendent Sandra Lyon, some schools are spending an extra $2,100 per student while others can only afford to spend an extra $65 per student.

Creating a centralized policy has gained widespread support in Santa Monica in the wake of recent State budget cuts, De la Torre said.

“This community believes that it's no longer acceptable to have practices and policies that perpetuate extreme inequality,” he said.

Santa Monica for Renters' Rights, the City's powerful tenants group that helped elect six of the seven board members, recently released an official statement supporting the Districtwide Fundraising proposal “to achieve social and economic justice for all students.”

“They have to make sure that some children aren't receiving one kind of education and other children are receiving a different kind of education,” Hoffman said.

As a result, wealthy families will leave the public school system, further reducing state and federal funding to the district as a whole, according to Miller.

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Source: The Look Out News