Economics

Oakland School Board Demands Full Disclosure of Budget Shortfall

Published

7 years ago

January 20, 2017

Demanding budget transparency, the Oakland Board of Education voted this week to postpone making $14 million in cuts that staff was recommending for next school year, saying they wanted administrators to answer questions about how the district got into its current financial mess and to explain the real impact of vaguely worded cuts on departments, schools and services.

The Oakland Unified School District (OUSD) board voted 5-2 at a special budget meeting Wednesday night to postpone the decision to move ahead on the cuts.

All the board members said they recognized that cuts would have to be made in order to maintain the district’s solvency to avoid a repeat of the state takeover of 2003- 2009.

Outgoing Supt. Antwan Wilson was not at the meeting. Interim Supt. Devin Dillon sat in Wilson’s seat.

Voting against approving the resolution without further discussion and information were Boardmembers Jody London, Shanthi Gonzales, Roseann Torres, Nina Senn and Aimee Eng.

Those who voted to accept the staff recommended cuts immediately were Jumoke Hinton Hodge and Board President James Harris.

The postponed resolution called for staff to prepare $14 million in budget cuts in next year’s budget, including $8.5 million in poorly explained cuts from central office budgets.

According to the administration, the $14 million in reductions will pay for the impacts of a loss of enrollment of 1,000 students this year.

In addition, state revenue will be flat, though the district will have to pay for increased pension costs, rising utility bills and growth in costs of services.

At last week’s school board meeting, staff had recommended cuts at school sites, including the merging of a number of small schools that are physically located near each other.

However, by Wednesday night’s meeting, staff had canceled those recommendations.

By consensus, the board supported a proposal by Boardmember Eng telling staff to not come back with any school site cuts in next year’s budget.

The proposed merging or consolidation of schools was postponed until the 2018-2019 school year.

Eliminated were proposals to raise the bar on how many students would have to attend a school before it could qualify for an assistant principal or hire classified staff. Also eliminated was a proposal to eliminate some custodian positions.

In addition to the cuts next year, staff has already unilaterally ordered a soft freeze on the budget for this year, which means that schools and programs cannot use their unspent resources to hire additional staff, purchase materials or contract for services without central office approval.

The administration is hoping to save between $8.5 and $11 million this year to pay for Special Education cost overruns, increase the district’s financial reserves that have been depleted over the past few years and purchase new financial software to replace the inadequate system that is currently in place.

Over the next 18 months, administrators say the district must reduce expenses in the general fund expenses between $22.5 million and $25 million.

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Business

Black Business Summit Focuses on Equity, Access and Data

The California African American Chamber of Commerce hosted its second annual “State of the California African American Economy Summit,” with the aim of bolstering Black economic influence through education and fellowship. Held Jan. 24 to Jan. 25 at the Westin Los Angeles Airport Hotel, the convention brought together some of the most influential Black business leaders, policy makers and economic thinkers in the state. The discussions focused on a wide range of economic topics pertinent to California’s African American business community, including policy, government contracts, and equity, and more.

Published

4 days ago

April 20, 2024

Oakland Post

Toks Omishakin, Secretary of the California State Transportation Agency (CALSTA), answers questions from concerned entrepreneurs frustrated with a lack of follow-up from the state. January 24, 2024 at the Westin Los Angeles Airport Hotel, Lost Angeles, Calif. Photo by Solomon O. Smith

By Solomon O. Smith, California Black Media

The California African American Chamber of Commerce hosted its second annual “State of the California African American Economy Summit,” with the aim of bolstering Black economic influence through education and fellowship.

Held Jan. 24 to Jan. 25 at the Westin Los Angeles Airport Hotel, the convention brought together some of the most influential Black business leaders, policy makers and economic thinkers in the state. The discussions focused on a wide range of economic topics pertinent to California’s African American business community, including policy, government contracts, and equity, and more.

Toks Omishakin, Secretary of the California State Transportation Agency (CALSTA) was a guest at the event. He told attendees about his department’s efforts to increase access for Black business owners.

“One thing I’m taking away from this for sure is we’re going to have to do a better job of connecting through your chambers of all these opportunities of billions of dollars that are coming down the pike. I’m honestly disappointed that people don’t know, so we’ll do better,” said Omishakin.

Lueathel Seawood, the president of the African American Chamber of Commerce of San Joaquin County, expressed frustration with obtaining federal contracts for small businesses, and completing the process. She observed that once a small business was certified as DBE, a Disadvantaged Business Enterprises, there was little help getting to the next step.

Omishakin admitted there is more work to be done to help them complete the process and include them in upcoming projects. However, the high-speed rail system expansion by the California High-Speed Rail Authority has set a goal of 30% participation from small businesses — only 10 percent is set aside for DBE.

The importance of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) in economics was reinforced during the “State of the California Economy” talk led by author and economist Julianne Malveaux, and Anthony Asadullah Samad, Executive Director of the Mervyn Dymally African American Political and Economic Institute (MDAAPEI) at California State University, Dominguez Hills.

Assaults on DEI disproportionately affect women of color and Black women, according to Malveaux. When asked what role the loss of DEI might serve in economics, she suggested a more sinister purpose.

“The genesis of all this is anti-blackness. So, your question about how this fits into the economy is economic exclusion, that essentially has been promoted as public policy,” said Malveaux.

The most anticipated speaker at the event was Janice Bryant Howroyd known affectionately to her peers as “JBH.” She is one of the first Black women to run and own a multi-billion-dollar company. Her company ActOne Group, is one of the largest, and most recognized, hiring, staffing and human resources firms in the world. She is the author of “Acting Up” and has a profile on Forbes.

Chairman of the board of directors of the California African American Chamber of Commerce, Timothy Alan Simon, a lawyer and the first Black Appointments Secretary in the Office of the Governor of California, moderated. They discussed the state of Black entrepreneurship in the country and Howroyd gave advice to other business owners.

“We look to inspire and educate,” said Howroyd. “Inspiration is great but when I’ve got people’s attention, I want to teach them something.”