Posted by Retired Teacher, Parent, Grad, Taxpayer
a resident of Portola Valley: Ladera
on Oct 30, 2023 at 8:55 am
Retired Teacher, Parent, Grad, Taxpayer is a registered user.

I would love it if the Almanac would dig into how the Sequoia Union High School District has managed to increase its reserves to well beyond 20% when their charter calls for 8%, and yet can't manage to keep a recent Stanford graduate as an employee. Granted they can’t pay money they don’t receive. Why are they saving more money than they "need" and still hiring extra administrative personnel?

How is it they convinced their staff to change their health benefits to save from 6% for the highest salaries up to 11% for their new teachers, and yet only gave their teachers 2% back on top of a meager 2.5% raise last year with inflation above 5% Putting those savings into the pay scale would helped level it a bit.

Raises go into the teachers' pockets, not the "UNION's", and then that vast amount of money gets spent monthly. A lot of that money disappears as rent to the fine residents of San Mateo county or to property owners much further away.

The Sequoia Union District will lose many teachers who simply can't afford to make a life here. Having a three year turnaround for their teachers will erode the District’s excellent services rapidly while the Board sits on 40 million dollars, and dreams up ways to spend that money far from the actual classrooms we have paid good bond money to build.

Many of us used to be able to manage to live here, thanks to our parents or other resources. Most teachers and staff I have known over 35 years, no 55 years, send their kids to OUR SCHOOLS. Many young teachers live in co-op situations not suitable to starting families. We can't afford $30K a year to abandon Public Education. Don't diminish what Public Education has managed to do in the district for decades.

Thanks to Prop 19, my kids will have to pay far more in property tax on all but a million of the appraised value for this house. What is the district doing with all its EXTRA Prop 19 monies?

Why are the School Foundations needed if the DISTRICT is holding on to millions?!