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Measure D goes down – what’s next?

By Ben Enos
Wednesday, May 20th, 2009 at 10:12 am in Uncategorized.

I spent a good portion of last night monitoring election results, waiting to see if voters in the Mt. Diablo Unified School District would approve Measure D, a $99 per parcel tax aimed at restoring programs like music, after-school sports and teaching positions that the district had cut.

Well, it didn’t happen.

So, now the question is what happens next? Will high school sports for the MDUSD’s schools – Clayton Valley, College Park, Concord, Mt. Diablo, Northgate and Ygnacio Valley – in fact cease to exist next year? That’s the question that has everyone on edge today. Feel free to chime in with what you think the next step is going to be.

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  • MURDOC

    THAT ENTIRE AREA DROPPED THE BALL. HORRIBLE. NOT ATHLETE FRIENDLY NOR IS IT ACADEMIC FRIENDLY. THE DISTRICT’S COMMUNITY SUCKS. GREEDY RICH FOLKS WHO DONT GIVE A DAMN. SUPPOSEDLY MT. DIABLO HIGH HAS THE MOST MINORITIES RIGHT? AS HISTORY HAS IT, THEY WILL BE THE 1ST SCHOOL TO GO. EQUAL RIGHTS AND OPPORTUNITY WILL BE DISMISSED RIGHT BEFORE OUR EYES. HELLUVA ERA.

  • KillerD

    We have been told to NOT plan on having jobs this fall, and that as of right now, there is NO money for football.

    The administrators, or most of them still have jobs, but the kids don’t have football, girls soccer, volleyball?

    Hope they are wrong, but as of right now, we are DOA.

  • JWags60

    Measure D didn’t pass because plenty of money is already there. It’s just being wasted on over-paid and unnecessary “upper level” administration. And there’s less federal monies due to low achievement scores because of union’s Byzantine retention of the poorer performing teachers.
    Eliminating even two MDUSD upper level Administrator’s salaries (equaling $500,000+) would save enough to pay for at least one of the programs for all the schools. Somehow the district was able to provide (actually require) all of these courses in the past… until the 80′s, when layer upon layer of administration were added, and then those salaries ballooned out of control in the 90′s. We were able to provide those courses for 100 years before, we can do it again.
    Federal monies are also available based on school performance. “Better pay to attract better teachers” sounded right, until the union made it virtually impossible to replace those lesser teachers. Even the NEA has to admit substandard results can be partly laid at the doorstep of sub performing teachers who are earning just as much as the best of the best. Don’t get me started on tenure!

    It’s actually embarrassing the number of fund raisers we’re cajoled into imposing on our friends, family and co-workers. Across this MDUSD there must be at least $500,000 raised to pay for… the administrators who arrange for them! Who’d a’ thunk it?

  • junior

    if only the vote was to cut 50% of the administrators and spend the money on sports! that would have my vote ANY day. ive been around three downsizes that cut management severely, and guess what, productivity was not negatively effected and we never missed them.

    american education is way too top heavy

  • educators kid

    Okay,
    I like sports more then most but the Mt. Diablo district has bigger problems such as classroom crowding, lack of AP class and lack of qualified teachers in many subjects. The district does not just serve “rich” people but serves a very broad economic base. Many of these people are just trying to get by or live on fixxed incomes. If only it were so simple. But be real, the focus in that district and all districts belongs on education and if administrators are cut then teachers should be hired. How many of these kids will support themselves based upon sports versus the education they receive, that’s the focus. I hope they can find a way to fund sports but mostly I hope my neighbors children have the right classes to get into college and beyond.

  • MinuteMan

    By mid-June 6 AD’s will be out of a job, 6 schools will not have boys or girls sports and several thousand kids will be S.O.L.

    Luckily however, a thick lineup of high level brass will still have their jobs, even if trimming a half dozen of them out of the picture would have saved sports when the Mt. Diablo school district went belly up.

    Minuteman

  • Dfal_Sb

    We want our kids to be well-rounded, future leaders. Yes, we expect them to put their education first but sports, for many student athletes, is an important part of nurturing them. I would even go as far to say that sports helps motivate some to be better students, there are students that have to work hard just to be sports eligible. Any idea what will happen when you take that away from them?

    My kid is a scholar athlete, good grades. Even though we aren’t in the MD district, she said that she wouldn’t want to go to a school that didn’t have sports. How many student athletes in the MD district feel this way too? My guess – it’s a sentiment that is shared by many. By taking sports away, there will be some student athletes that are so committed to sports that their family will move into a new district where they can play.

    School & sports belong together, something needs to be done to let the kids play. I don’t know what the answer is but maybe this will get the attention of some organization(s) that can help sponsor after school sports activities? Perhaps the costs of running the program can be offset by “pay to play”?

  • MURDOC

    I cant wait to see where these kids end up. like i said before, who wants to go to a school that doesnt have a team. Its not rocket science. Simply, less students = less money = less teachers = school closures. So educators kids, looks like you or your child will be home schooled like the rest of the nerds.

  • lancesims

    HAALschools are doin a fantastic job with thr athletic budgets….maybe some of the kids could go down in those districts and play

  • ClaytonFamily

    This situation is totally without precedent!

    We will do whatever it takes to let our son play football and two daughters do track and soccer.

    Goodbye Clayton Valley, and we are applying for CIF hardship waiver that will allow our kids to transfer immediately to a new school, what a shame to see the mess the Mt. Diable district has crafted.

    Eagle Family

  • poser

    that really sucks for them. How can they let this happen. Patrone Woods and the rest of the best better transfer encinal so he can compete for championships.

  • Ken

    If you want your programs to survive you will have to implement a ‘participation fee”.Acalanes school district has been doing it for years and are raising it to $250 for next year.It is voluntary as you must
    alow kids to play.The world has changed and you need to change with it.
    Kenneth Barley
    Boosters President
    Las Lomas HS

  • THE CAMP

    Okay Ken,
    “Your stupid homie”…
    Rich kids go to Las Lomas and play for the “Good ol Boys click”. Non rich kids play in the HAAL or BSAL. Thats cool too. Way to keep the wheels turning Boosters President. Im sure other teams would welcome Patrone Woods and other student athletes with open hands.

  • Ken

    Listen,if you want to take personal shots at me fine.In the long run,it does NO ONE any good to have sports disappear from neighboring schools so we can pick up a few “stars”.I have many friends & clients with kids in the MD school district programs.What’s happening is horrible.I was just telling you how it’s done here.We have been paying a fee for years.Next year it doubles.Beleive me,many families here are feeling the economy too.We are not all “rich kids”.The world has changed & you need to change with it.Sports are essential for all kids.I hope you can figure it out.BTW,we allow a waiver for families that can’t pay.Everyone plays regardless of income.
    Usually 5-8% receive waivers.

  • GrizzliesBB

    The EBAL has had a “participation” fee to play sports for as long as I can remember. I have 3 kids who have gone through the sports programs at Cal High. Not everyone pays the fee and we always have Athletic budget issues. The fees do help keep the programs alive and it is not easy coming up with the money every summer and spring as I have a football/baseball participant. We are always trying to come up with “Corporate” and “Community” fundraisers to support High School Athletics. It is a trying time for everyone in all communities.

  • SuicideSqueeze

    Hey Camp

    I have no idea why you would want to take a shot at a Boosters President who volunteers his time to help out the local high school. I find it ironic that you try to insult his intelligence with a very simple statement “your stupid” when it should be “you’re stupid” or “you are stupid”. Stop playing the victim role and work on your grammar.

  • THE CAMP

    Ken, Suicide,

    If ya’ll would have made this much noise at your meeting then the change in time would not have costed $200-$300 to play a sport that is supposed to be a privalege. Now your program becomes a big buisness. The money will make all the decisions in your programs not the coaches. Is this the evolution ya’ll agree on. Classic “Good Ol Boys”. And come on that wasn’t meant to be a shot just a little humor (Alton real world). How can one make decisions if one doesnt even know whats going on in the world and in peoples lives. We are all in this together but everybody is quick to charge a brotha damn.

  • http://www.ibabuzz.com/prepcorner/2009/02/04/chris-martin-to-notre-dame/ bbfan2

    all extracurricular activities are important and people should just “get over it”. if you want your kid to particpate, you just might have to come up with some money. it’s too late in the game to point fingers. i don’t have alot of money either, so when there are fundraising opportunities, i jump on it. the way my grandmother kept her four boys out of trouble was to enroll them in sports and she said she somehow, someway came up with the money, even if it was recycling cans(things were much cheaper then), but she did what she had to do, and that is a philosophy i go by. i don’t blame the MD parents for being angry, who wouldn’t be, but it is what it is. trust me, when I gotta reach in my pocket for yet another activity, i gripe a little, but then I look at the “bigger picture”, keeping my sons busy so other things don’t grab their attention.

  • THE CAMP

    Spend money on sports and just dont pay your electric bill or eat lunch or dinner. No gas for the car either I suppose.

  • THE CAMP

    BBFan2,
    Great idea. How about no lights on at the house to do homework so go to your teachers house. Meet their families and date their kids too.

  • MURDOC

    Hey Ken,

    How about rob a bank in order to come up with the loot. Come on we got to get creative here.

    In Mt. Diablo’s district and in others too don’t get me wrong, all I see is another form of organized discrimination and racisim.

  • http://www.ibabuzz.com/prepcorner/2009/02/04/chris-martin-to-notre-dame/ bbfan2

    Camp,
    I would never go so far as to not pay a bill or not eat, but I might not buy that new shirt or shoes, not saying anyone else is doing that, just speaking for myself and I did mention that if it gets bad, I do whatever fundraising is available. I am just as broke or even more so as the next guy, but sometimes I get it figured out. I am pissed that some districts have lost their sports programs or on the verge of losing them, too. Hey, my kids school could be next. When I said “get over it”, I simply meant, this is the situation, let’s try and figure out how to keep something that is vital and really important to some of our kids.

  • Ken

    Everyone is frustrated not just with government but the economy as well.I have seen tough times like this before.We all need to work harder and do more fund raising.We all have one shot to raise our kids right.I strongly urge everyone in the MD school district to get together with your Boosters,Principals & AD’s and come up with a plan.
    Nobody likes to pay for things that they didn’t have to before.But like I said,the world has fundamentally changed.Do what you have to do.The $250 I spend to keep my daughter in softball is worth every penny.

  • http://www.ibabuzz.com/prepcorner/2009/02/04/chris-martin-to-notre-dame/ bbfan2

    Ken, I agree with you. It was irritating when my son’s school district required us to supply some of their school supplies, but again, I griped and got over it. I couldn’t always afford the requirement but there was always a parent who could do a little extra and when I could do a little extra, I did. Everything looks bleak, but it will be even bleaker if everyone doesn’t try to do their part. Okay, so the district screwed up, now let’s figure out a way to not make our kids suffer any more than they have to.

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