It is true that in California all schools get the same amount of money per student from the state. However, the distribution of Federal funds by the District varies widely from school to school. Low performing schools or schools with a high proportion of economically disadvantaged students can receive hundreds of thousands of dollars each year in addition to the state funds we all receive. The goal of distributing money this way is admirable: to give extra funds to schools that need to catch up but whose parents have limited financial ability to pay for extra programming. However, schools like Torrey Pines receive limited amounts of federal money. That means that we have to raise money privately through our Foundation just to have as much money as many other schools do. All children deserve a quality education. Federal funds are there to support schools in disadvantaged neighborhoods. Foundations like ours support schools that receive limited federal funds.
Why are school budgets what they are and what is the relationship between budgets and educational programming?
These are great questions. The California public school system, once the envy of the nation, has seen its leadership role in education decline steadily over the last three decades. Class sizes have increased, the curriculum has changed to eliminate all but the “core courses” from elementary schools, and basic support staff for schools has been scaled back. School budgets have been put under additional pressure the last few years as California’s fiscal crisis has intensified. Sacramento has tried to save money by cutting funds for education. These cuts have lead to additional increases in class size and even fewer dollars available per student. As I described above, some schools receive additional federal money that helps to counter the effects of decreasing state funding, but schools like Torrey Pines do not qualify for these funds. This puts us in the position of either accepting “just the basics” provided by the state and district, or taking it upon ourselves to fund programs we believe to be important to our children’s education. That’s where foundation fundraising comes in.
You may ask yourself, “Why aren’t my taxes enough?”
This is a totally reasonable question and the short answer is they are only enough to cover what the state and district agree are the basics. The longer answer is more complicated but here are three big factors. First, there is little consistency in funding from year to year-our school’s budget has varied considerably since 2001. Second, the funds that we receive often come with restrictions or “strings attached”. There are more than 130 elementary schools in our district, and our tax dollars are pooled along with everyone else’s and apportioned to all schools. The greatest support goes to the schools with the greatest needs. High performing schools like TPES tend to receive less funding. Ironically, the better our test scores, the less funding we receive. The existence of our Foundation ensures continuity and maintains local control over the programs that make Torrey Pines a unique learning environment.
How much money do we need?
A lot. In fact, this year we are trying to raise a record amount. Our fundraising goal for the 2009-2010 school year is $259,000, and Renee’s article below illustrates how we intend to achieve this lofty goal. This is the amount of money we will need to meet our objectives next year. The dramatic increase in our budget over the past couple of years reflects increased Foundation funding of salaries for both class size reduction and the literacy support teachers. In the past, we contributed a smaller percentage towards these salaries. Because the school budget keeps getting cut, Mr. Solo is no longer able to fund class size reduction. Keeping our 4th and 5th grade classes at 26-29 students rather than the state average of 36-38 students is a key part of the Foundation’s mission. As outlined below, we also support a lot of other programming, and it all adds up to a pretty big number. However, please keep in mind that the cost of providing these benefits to your child works out to about $609 per student per year or about $16 per week. I realize that this sounds like a lot, especially because it has gone up so much over the last couple of years. But when you compare that to what you might pay throughout the year for extracurricular activities like after school sports, scouting, music lessons, and camps, it’s easy to see the value of supporting our programs at TPES.
How do we raise the money?
The Foundation selects specific fundraisers to help families contribute to the school over the course of the year. You contribute to our fundraising goals every time you buy pizza on Wednesday, participate in a restaurant night, register and use your grocery store card, support the LJ Arts and Wine Festival, sponsor your student at the Walk-A-Thon, and attend our Spring Gala. And of course, when you write a check to our general fund. Your support is vital!
Where does the money go?
The vast majority of money we raise is used in the classrooms. We pay salaries for additional teachers so that 4th and 5th grade class sizes are under 30 students, and so that there is additional literacy instruction in all grades. We pay the salaries of the Art, Choral Music, and P.E. teachers.
What do students get for the money
(or what is the value to our children)?
They get smaller classes, extra instruction in literacy, a new “Exploring Imagery” art program, and the opportunity to sing along to their favorite Disney movie tune or perform a Russian choral piece - in Russian. And they get Coach Sergio - ‘nuff said. All of these programs exist here because of your support; if we don’t pay for them, we won't have them. They are considered “extras”. The State of California and San Diego Unified do not have money to pay for “extras”; they can only afford the “basics”. The same is true for our assemblies and grade-level enhancements like the grade 4 and grade 5 field trips, Star of India, and Sea Lab. We believe strongly that all of these are important, so we fund them.
We as parents need to understand that the Public School of our childhood has changed.
Public School is still public, but it is no longer “free”. If we want our children to have all of the same things we had during our elementary school days we need to raise funds for the programs that are important to us. I realize many of you think all the Foundation does is raise money, and I understand that perception; just please don’t run the other way when you see me walking toward you. I won’t take your checkbook, I might just want to say hi. BUT without raising money there is no way to pay for all of the programs that are so important to our families and children. So we do our best to spread out our fundraising and offer many levels of participation.
I want to encourage a commitment from each and every family at Torrey Pines. Please, participate in our fundraisers. Come to the La Jolla Art and Wine Festival, buy a t-shirt, join us for pizza on Wednesdays, donate money when the request for funds letter comes to your home, get pledges for the Walk-A-Thon, come to a Rubio’s night, or decorate a tile. It takes all of these events to raise our budget, and it also takes participation at some level from every family at Torrey Pines.
It’s about more than money;
it’s about volunteering, too.
Parent participation really means time and money. We know that some can and do donate more than their children’s portion of our budget, and we thank you. We also understand that for some, $609 really is a lot of money and we thank you for giving what you can. Keep in mind that our school depends on volunteers for so many of the extra activities that make TPES great. So it’s really about donating a little more of whatever you can. If you have more time than money, please volunteer a few extra hours. If you have more money than time, please give extra dollars. If you have a lot of both, please give me a call. I have some ideas I’d like to run by you…
Thank you, and I hope you and your children have a great year!
—John May, TPES Foundation President 2009-2010
