The past couple of years have been marked by our challenge to do more with less. We have continued to provide the highest level of academic experiences to our students and we have done it in a harsh economic climate. However, now the paradigm has shifted – we have, and are continuing to “Excel in Tough Times….”
I would like to take this opportunity to reflect on a few of the challenges and some of the triumphs of the past year. We began the year knowing the economic crisis that has plagued our state, was going to get worse before it got better. In March we had to decrease our budget by another $27 million dollars – laying off more teachers and classified employees, increasing class size further at every grade level, and eliminating even more services. The budgetary projections in the May Revision, though not worse, are definitely not better.
Nevertheless, the TUSD community – teachers, administrators, classified staff – continue to provide our students with the educational foundation and opportunities to become “Cool Kids” (abc7 news), congressional art winners, and academic decathlon champions. This month, high school seniors will wear their caps and gowns, they will throw up their hats in exuberance, and they will begin a new chapter in their educational careers. These students will head to schools like USC and UCLA, they will walk the halls of Ivy League campuses, and some will choose a vocation. Whatever path they travel down, each graduating student will take with them the advantage of a TUSD education, the foundation to succeed.
Every year, over 24,000 students are educated in our District. These students are ethnically diverse, speak different languages, and learn in different ways. Our goal for them, however, is the same – to educate them and prepare them to be a successful part of the global society.
I would like to wish everyone a safe, relaxing, and fun summer break!