By Brittany Hanson/Garden Grove Journal
As a hedge against a possible worsening of California’s financial woes, the Garden Grove Unified School District Board of Education Tuesday night voted to approve a provision to allow a reduction of pay and benefits for all employees if needed.
As a result of the ongoing state budget crisis, the school board chose to adopt this just in case.
“I think it is important to note that no one is proposing [that this happen now],” said board President Bob Harden, “ [this is] in order to have it as an option in the future, if we have to take this action.”
The action allows for, if implemented, a reduction in pay and benefits retroactive to July 1 of the preceding year.
In order for there to be a reduction implemented, the school board would have to settle the action in negotiated agreements with employee groups.
This item is only effective in the case of the 2010-2011 school year. Where there to be a need for this kind of action in school years after, there would have to be a similar vote taken to implement it.
Among items on the agenda for the night were inter-district attendance agreements to allow students to transfer out of district.
One agreement was for regular education student, which applied to those who wished to go to school elsewhere. Board members said this was most often a case of wanting to be with friends in the next district over.
There was another inter-district attendance provision made for physically and/or severely handicapped students in the case that these students had needs that could not be effectively met within the GGUSD.
Related to that provision, the use of out-of-district and out-of-state non-public schools and agencies for handicapped students was approved.
One that was specifically addressed was a facility in Florida that provides for specific medical needs that a student within the district has.
It is very common for such agencies and facilities to be approved through the school district.
