Los Angeles Unified officials are expected to approve a mass mailing of nearly 4,700 layoff notices for teachers, administrators, counselors and nurses today as they work to close a crippling $640 million budget deficit.
Recommended by district financial staff in a report to be reviewed today by the school board, the move would virtually eliminate school nurses and librarians, increase all class sizes, including a high of up to 44 students in middle school, and boost counselor loads to 1,000 students each.
Layoff notices would also go out to nearly 1,000 janitors and maintenance workers and 520 school office workers, if the board approves the recommendations.
While the school district often rescinds layoff notices after they are sent on March 15, usually because it manages to find money or the unions make concessions, the sheer number of layoffs proposed for the second straight year points to the district's harsh financial reality.
No matter how much money the district can scrape together over coming months, Los Angeles schools Superintendent Ramon Cortines said some layoffs are inevitable, as are cuts to services.
"This is disruptive and doesn't provide stability for our schools, students or parents," Cortines said.
"But I have looked at every area in this district ... We are already down to the essentials."
District officials said the latest plan could be avoided if employee unions approve other cost-cutting plans like implementing furloughs or reducing the school year by a week.