Message from Superintendent McLaughlin on California’s May Budget Revision

May 14, 2020

Dear SLUSD Community,

As you may be aware, Governor Newsom released the May Revision to the current California budget today. Alongside every school superintendent in Alameda County, and across California, we have been preparing to translate what a stark financial forecast means for our children. We know that California already ranks among the lowest in educational funding. With the budget reductions shared today, schools are being asked to accomplish an increasingly daunting task, but these numbers are an essential step in reopening our schools.

The school board and I, with support from district leadership, will drill down to determine what this budget means for San Leandro Unified. Through our contingency planning for next year, we already knew that the social distancing and safety criteria outlined for reopening schools would require substantial additional funding. Coupled with significant budget reductions, I can already tell you that the fall of 2020 will look very different than previous years.

We plan to host a school board workshop to discuss our proposals to reopen our schools and how this budget will affect those proposals. We will be asking for your input through a variety of formats as we move closer to finalizing our next steps. Our best collective thinking to create the right solution for our community will be critical in the coming weeks.

In SLUSD, I have no doubt that the team we have in place are the right people to do this work. The fundamental question for us all continues to be how will we effectively support student learning and ensure everyone’s safety while staying aligned with the scientific facts regarding COVID-19. As we have since the closure began, we will keep you informed and involved through each step of the process.

Sincerely,

Dr. Mike McLaughlin

SLUSD Superintendent