Sonoma County Grand Jury • 2007-2008

Each year the Sonoma County Civil Grand Jury has the authority to examine the operation of any agency within the

Published: June 27, 2008 8 pages
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Findings and Recommendations 18 findings

F1
The Sonoma County Office of Education (SCOE), under the leadership of the Superintendent of Schools, distributes funds from the State of California Office of Education to the individual school districts depending on the schools’ average daily attendance.
No recommendations for this finding
F2
The Sonoma County Superintendent of Schools, elected to a four-year term, has the primary responsibility of providing leadership, support, and fiscal and performance oversight to all the school districts in Sonoma County. In addition, he acts as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) to SCOE.
No recommendations for this finding
F3
Sonoma County has 40 individual school districts serving approximately 71,000 students K-12. Each of these school districts has its own superintendent, board of education, teachers, and office and support staff. Findings, continued
No recommendations for this finding
F4
As an elected official, the Superintendent is accountable only to the electorate. The County Board of Education approves his salary, but his job performance is not subject to Board review.
No recommendations for this finding
F5
The County Board of Education is composed of seven members who are elected from designated areas within Sonoma County, each area includes more than one school district. Their responsibilities are to approve the budget set by the Superintendent, to provide policy direction and oversight for Alternative Education and the Regional Occupational Program, to review and rule on appeals for student transfers between districts, and to serve as an appeal board for district-level student expulsion decisions.
Related Recommendations (1)
R3
The Sonoma County Board of Education should explore options to increase its effectiveness. The Board represents a wealth of knowledge and needs to seek ways to change the paradigm of its work and increase its influence. Required Responses to Recommendations SCOE Superintendent of Schools R1, R2 Sonoma County Board of Education R3 60
F6
The County Board of Education has influence over Alternative Education and ROP, but these programs represent a small part of the budget. BOE certifies learning materials used in the classroom, oversees quarterly reports of Williams Law compliance, manages lease-space requirements, approves the selling of capital equipment, and is responsible for the approval of charter schools designed to serve students throughout the county. (The Williams Law requires frequent monitoring of credentialed teachers assignments to ensure that schools with low performance scores on standardized tests have competent teachers and adequate materials).
No recommendations for this finding
F7
SCOE, under the direction of the Superintendent, is responsible for fiscal and educational performance and oversight of school districts. It is required to report this information quarterly to the State Office of Education.
No recommendations for this finding
F8
The State can assume control over local school districts, or SCOE can fund and assign a fiscal advisor with “stay and rescind” authority to assist the district to achieve fiscal stability.
No recommendations for this finding
F9
The districts of Sonoma Valley and Healdsburg are subject to corrective administrative status after continued difficulties with the Federal Government’s guidelines for the “No Child Left Behind Act.” SCOE has assisted the Healdsburg School District with student performance and fiscal issues, and the State is reviewing the Sonoma Valley’s curriculum, testing, and teacher quality issues.
No recommendations for this finding
F10
The Superintendent negotiates with several unions as their contracts come up for renewal. These unions represent teachers and ancillary staff. They are the California Federation of Teachers (CFT), Service Employees International Union (SEIU), Association of Sonoma County Office of Education (ASCOE), and Regional Occupation Program Teachers Association (ROPTA).
No recommendations for this finding
F11
The Superintendent has a management team of Assistant Superintendents, Directors, and others in leadership roles. They assist and advise the Superintendent in developing and achieving the goals of SCOE, providing oversight and reporting quarterly, as mandated by the State of California. Findings, continued
No recommendations for this finding
F12
Projected State budget cuts of 10 percent will decrease or cut art and music programs and reduce the number of teacher’s aides. Special Education teacher aides are mostly supported by federal funds and not likely to be affected by state budget cuts.
Related Recommendations (1)
R1
SCOE must ensure that school districts do not sacrifice important programs or decrease the number of teachers’ aides as a way to balance the budget.
F13
SCOE, under the direction of the Superintendent, is increasing its support to the districts with some of the following services: o Performs Live Scan fingerprinting through the Department of Justice (DOJ) as a clearinghouse for prospective teachers, support staff, and volunteers to protect the security of students. o Assists Human Resources at the district level with up-to-date information on new laws and union procedures. o Conducts job searches, if requested by the districts, for superintendents and administrators at less cost than outside recruiters. o Offers a Beginning Teachers Support and Assessment (BTSA), a two-year program for new teachers. o Offers an Aspiring Administrator’s Academy, in conjunction with Sonoma State University and Dominican College in San Rafael, for teachers interested in careers in administration. o Provides a website and phone-based automated calling system for requesting and assigning substitute teachers and assistants who have registered and been accepted by SCOE. o Offers a mentor program for new principals to orient and assist them with their new responsibilities. o Assists some of the smaller districts with purchasing supplies in bulk to minimize costs. o Assists districts with efforts to close the “learning gap” between native English speakers and English language learners through the Aiming High program. o Provides a district assistance intervention team, when requested, to help in “No Child Left Behind” program improvement to address issues and thereby avoid corrective action. o Promotes the K-16 Career Development Strategic Plan to assist students to prepare for and obtain meaningful careers with an efficient approach. Findings, continued
No recommendations for this finding
F14
School and College Legal Services (SCLS) is a Joint Powers Authority that contracts with schools and colleges throughout California. SCLS provides legal services to SCOE on a monthly retainer. It counsels on employer-employee issues, grievances, collective bargaining, and other aspects of school law. SCOE has a contract with SCLS through which SCOE provides payroll services for SCLS.
No recommendations for this finding
F15
SCOE may support, under appropriate circumstances, teacher’s use of Education Code Section 44922. At age 55 until age 70, certificated, full-time personnel may switch to part-time, receive a pro-rated salary, and are allowed health benefits the same as in their full-time position. To qualify, they must have at least 10 years of certificated employment, with the last five being full- time, without a break in service. This is informally referred to as the “Willie Brown” provision, named for its author, former Speaker of the House in the California Legislature.
No recommendations for this finding
F16
SCOE does not support the practice referred to as “spiking”, a process where teachers can enhance their retirement benefits by working extra hours in the year before retirement, i.e. summer teaching.
No recommendations for this finding
F17
The issue of elected vs. appointed superintendents has been studied, at the request of SCOE, under the direction of the Superintendent, by a professor at Sonoma State, and previously, by the League of Women Voters in Alameda County. Neither study reached definite conclusions as to what would be the best for the counties involved.
No recommendations for this finding
F18
Unification of Sonoma County’s 40 school districts would address the duplication of effort and salaries of forty superintendents, district administrators and support staff. Conclusions • SCOE is doing an efficient job overseeing its responsibilities. The Superintendent has a background in education that has been beneficial to the organization and operations within SCOE. • The Superintendent includes the next level of management in decision-making. Referred to as the Superintendent’s Cabinet, this group meets regularly to discuss issues of oversight and reporting as mandated by the State of California. • The Superintendent delegates to his staff and has an open door policy to encourage communication. He is always visible and strives to attract and retain the best employees. Conclusions, continued • SCOE has a cohesive team based on cross training. Due to deadlines, different departments are busy at different times, and they support one another when downtime occurs. • Staff morale has been an issue in the past, but with the exception of the recent projected budget cutback, under the current management structure, a more positive environment has been incorporated into the workplace. • It is the Grand Jury’s opinion that appointing a Superintendent would increase the authority of the Board. The Board at present has no authority to evaluate the performance of the Superintendent but sets his salary and performs pro-forma duties. • An elected superintendent must take valuable time from his office to run for re- election and if opposed, there is no guarantee that the best-qualified person for the job wins. With a job search, the County Board of Education—or a committee chosen for that purpose—researches, interviews, and approves the candidates, and it is not a political process. Additionally, running for election is costly. • Historically, the unification of school districts in Sonoma County is a controversial issue. This matter has been studied and commented on since 1916, when there were 147 school districts in Sonoma County. Deep-seated issues of local control make this an emotionally-charged topic. Declining enrollment, changes in demographics, and monetary concerns will eventually reduce the number of districts. Commendations • The Grand Jury commends the Superintendent of Schools for his goal-oriented philosophy of leadership, fiscal oversight, and hiring of quality employees. • The Grand Jury commends SCOE for its mission to educate all children in Sonoma County with quality occupational programs, special education, performance monitoring, and the desire to expand services in assisting the school districts • The Grand Jury commends the Director of Human Resources for initiating, under the direction of the Superintendent, the recommendations of the 2006-2007 Grand Jury regarding fingerprinting and background checks for volunteers and others who are in contact with students. • The Grand Jury commends the Assistant Superintendent of Business Services for her grasp of the issues and enthusiasm for her work. • The Grand Jury commends the President of the County Board of Education for his knowledge of and desire to improve education in Sonoma County. 59
No recommendations for this finding

Additional Recommendations 1

These recommendations are not explicitly linked to specific findings.

Conclusions 8

Commendations 5

No Responses Found 2

Government entities assigned to respond to this report. No response documents have been linked in our database.

Sonoma County County Superintendent of Schools Elected County Office
Sonoma County Office of Education Agency