Monday, December 14, 2009

Community Meeting Tonight 7pm: Making the Best of a Tough Situation

Remember the Local Community Meeting tonight.

7pm at the Willow Creek Center at 1026 Mohr Lane in Concord.



You'll view a presentation (also available HERE), and hear why a new funding measure will help protect academic programs in the Mt. Diablo School District. You'll also hear, as part of the presentation, the recent poll results related to the possibility of a new funding measure. There will also be an opportunity for break out sessions with your local high school feeder patterns.



This really is an important meeting. Voice your concerns, join your neighbors. What are we going to do to protect basic education in our district? It seems we are past restoring anything that was cut, we are fighting for the survival of very basic core academics. Every district near us has a parcel tax. The district needs to restore trust and perhaps, our new Superintendent will do just that. These issues are statewide. This is not our current board's fault. It is an impossible situation for them. It's not how to make cuts that won't hurt, at this point, we're already looking at cuts at the core of what is best for our students. How will our district survive this next round?

I hope that we can all be adults. Stop the blame and finger pointing and let's get down to how we're going to keep this district providing a quality education for our children? People get bogged down in the blame, the past and their own priorities that we seem to sometimes forget the big picture - that is that our children deserve the best education possible. How are we going to get there? How are we going to keep this district solvent? If there is an idea you have other than a parcel tax - get involved, and voice it! The same old arguments (cut at dent, cut admin, blame the board, blame the superintendent, cut the teachers, etc etc) don't cut it. We need real solutions. This is a statewide issue, that will require a local "roll up your sleeves" solution. The question is, what's the answer?

Here's a new Fact Sheet Flyer, also available at this LINK:




19 comments:

  1. Very well said! Enough of the blame game.

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  2. Well, I'm all ready to donate. Just to cut out the middleman, which administrator do I make the check out to this time? Is the attorney up for another raise already? Let me know where to send the check.

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  3. It's really a shame UMDAF created a bit of a frenzy by apparantly insinuating that this meeting was specific about funding for sports. Or at least that was what was implied. Did they purposely mislead their supporters?

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  4. This is ridiculous. How do we go about starting a recall petition for the board?

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  5. GOod grief 8:46. What are you talking about? What are the grounds for a recall? And PLEASE provide specific examples. You sound like someone who's very out of touch with what is going on. Is the board to blame for the statewide budget crisis? Is the board to blame for our comparatively low funding per student in this district? What exactly did they do to upset you so? Hmmm????

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  6. Anon 9:44,

    How can we be sure the board won't redirect our funds to one of their administrator croonies like they did last time with that attorney guy.

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  7. the board provided a plan last year for savings including cuts at admin and some restructuring. Condensing more jobs into one person's responsibility. Anyway... please get involved in the effort as they are working on the language of the ballot measure now, and are forming a citizen /community oversight committee. If enough people get involved it could be that they put a provision in that it can't be used for admin salaries. Period. So, let's all stop complaining, and blaming and get involved. Our kids need us now . The 7 million that this may bring in is unfortunately, just a drop in the bucket, but it's a start. And it's money Sacramento can't take away.

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  8. Can we write a resolution that if Gary, Paul and Sherri resign then the parcel tax will pass?

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  9. Hey, any guesses on what that attorney's wife is getting for a X-mas present? I bet its nice with the $40,000 of our money the board recently gave him.

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  10. Anon 9:01 and 5:51 please stop. What good are you doing for the children and community? Your posts are numerous and unworthy and not substantiated by facts. What would help is if you were involved in the district and community. Have you run a large business or Corporation? What education and experience can you bring to the table? Are you voluntering to be on the oversight committee for the next parcel tax? Are you helping write the language that will be in the parcel tax? Are you aware that the last Bond Measure that passed had excellant oversight and the MDUSD stuck to its plans? Did you attend any of those meetings when the schools were planning their facilities improvements?

    I have a feeling the answer is No to almost everything. Please stop the negativity and start becoming a production member of the MDUSD community. Our chilren deserve an equal education like our neighboring communities.

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  11. Any word on the recall petition. I'm ready to sign. Lets throw the bums out.

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  12. How can a board that was supposed to represent us have gone so wrong so fast?

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  13. Has the recall petition become official yet?

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  14. Must admit that this is lame about a recall. You want to spend over $250,000 for a recall vote. Yet if you would bother to read the Grand Jury report and issues from it you would see that they new board majority has saved our district's butt. You forget so fast that this was the board that had McHenry removed and hired people into the position decrease payroll errors and reduce IRS penalites from over $300,000 to $325.

    If you don't like it run in 2010. There are 3 positions available then.

    Until then work with the board, send them email, or just shut up.

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  15. anon 3:37,

    Kiss my ass. I will start a recall if I damn well please.

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  16. Here's to hoping that 2010 brings us the badly needed recall of the three headed beast that runs our district.

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  17. For those (or the one person) who keeps posting about a recall. You are the problem and I bet you complain about EVERYTHING. Run for the BOE when some members terms are up. Let us know what you will do and what your plan is as a member of the BOE. Oh, don't count on the money, it is not there.
    Sorry, I don't kiss wide asses.

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  18. anon 1:11,

    Please don't feed the troll/s on this site. It only encourages this stuff.

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  19. I too am very concerned about the raise given to the General Council. From my ongoing experiences with the District I have not seen any appreciable improvement in the way they conduct their business. Millions of dollars have been spent on unnecessary and avoidable litigation. These millions could have been better spent on the education of the students by funding valuable programs and appropriately compensating the teachers. Why reward the individuals who control these expenses? Who is even aware of how much money is being spent that is not being reported, except in closed secession? Is the raise a clear indication that there has been no beneficial change in the management of the district?

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