LAUSD UPDATE for 3/4/08

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LAUSD Over-Paid Teachers $53 Mil...Now Please Just Trust Them (Even Thought They Are Not Sure They Are Accurate) And Pay Them Back Before Christmas!

excerpt from latimes.com:

L.A. Unified tells teachers to refund over-payments (LMFAO!)

The district paid about $53 million too much to 36,000 workers. They are given until Dec. 10 to decide whether to pay or fight.

In the latest fallout from a badly flawed payroll system that has plagued the Los Angeles public school system for nearly a year, officials have taken steps to recoup $53 million they calculate has been overpaid to about 36,000 school district employees.

Teachers and other staff in the Los Angeles Unified School District must either trust the district's claim that they were overpaid and repay the money -- or dispute the calculations and face further chaos come tax season.

For Genie Penn, a veteran second-grade teacher at Overland Elementary on the Westside, the choice is clear.

"All of a sudden they've decided I owe them $9,000?" asked an exasperated Penn, who has a graduate degree in business. "I know I owe them some money, but it is not that much. Until they can show me some proof of how much I owe them, I am not paying a dime. It's just absurd. It's mind boggling! But I guess when you work for LAUSD, nothing should surprise you."

Affected employees -- the vast majority are teachers -- have until Dec. 10 to choose whether to repay the district the entire amount they received, request a repayment plan, repay only the amount they believe they were overpaid or refuse to pay anything.

Any employee who disagrees with the district's overpayment calculation and refuses to pay some or all of the money will have to wait for L.A. Unified and union officials to work out a process for how such disputes will be resolved. Zeronian and David Holmquist, interim chief operating officer, said they expect those plans to be finalized early next year.

[OH GOOD...GLAD TO SEE EVERYTHING WILL BE OFF TO A SMOOTH, PRODUCTIVE, EFFICIENT AND NON-COMBATIVE START NEXT YEAR!]

After months of mounting confusion and frustration, many are dubious of the computer system's ability to accurately calculate over-payments. Several teachers pointed to an earlier attempt by the district to determine over-payments and under-payments that was marred by widespread inaccuracies.

Penn, for example, is flummoxed because the district claimed during the summer that she owed a couple of hundred dollars and now says she owes nearly $9,000. As far as she can tell, the new figure is impossibly high because she is paid only about $4,000 each month and, as far as she can tell, the only overpayment she received was a month's pay while she was on leave.

"These numbers just don't make any sense," echoed Stephen McDonough, a sixth-grade music teacher at Reed Middle School in North Hollywood, who was told he owes $1,900. "Nobody is clear on how they came up with them. They are asking me to take their word for it and pay them a third of my salary right before the holidays. I can't do it."

[AND NOW BRACE YOURSELF FOR SOME OF THE "STUPIDIST" PR COMMENTS EVER UTTERED...]

Holmquist urged employees to trust the district. But he could offer only a tenuous reason to do so, saying that the relative success of this month's payday indicates that repairs made so far to the payroll system appear to be working. Some technical glitches remain unresolved, however, and 3,000 employees are estimated to have had paycheck problems this month.

Are the calculations "100% guaranteed? No," Holmquist said. "But it's highly probable. We have a higher degree of confidence than ever before that we are accurate."

[OH GOOD! I'm sure people are bending over backwards to trust you and pay whatever you ask, as soon as possible, now that you have a "higher degree of confidence" in the accuracy.]

Challenging the district over the repayment totals, however, comes with considerable risk. In the letters to employees, Zeronian warned that once the December deadline passes, employees will be responsible for the total amount of the alleged overpayments, including the amount the district withheld for taxes.

[OH GOOD...NOW THE DISTRICT IS THREATENING TEACHERS WHEN THEY ARE NOT EVEN SURE THEY ARE ACCURATE!?!?!]

If Penn, the elementary school teacher, for example, refuses to pay and it is ultimately determined the district calculations are right, she will have to repay the district $8,983 -- the $6,068 the district overpaid her and the $2,915 it took out for taxes. It would then fall to Penn to try to get the excess tax money back from state and federal agencies. If the district tally for Penn is wrong, L.A. Unified will have to issue her a revised income tax form.

"It is going to be a tax nightmare for people to try to unravel," said Patty O'Connell, a partner at the accounting firm Holthouse, Carlin & Van Trigt in Los Angeles.

"These are their mistakes," he said. "If they think they put too much money in my pocket and they want to discuss it, they can come out to me at school, prove it, and then we can work something out."

[Guess what LAUSD...you blew it...not you're gonna have to eat the loss. Are you crazy??? You think you are gonna sort this out, and disrupt these teachers lives and turn their financial world upside-down? YOU'RE GONNA BE EATING MOST OF THAT $53 million you big f*cking dummies! (AND WE ALL KNOW WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS SYSTEM AND WHY IT WAS SELECTED! Just ask Monica Garcia...she should be able to tell you! Cause when your cronies have a payroll system to sell...you just GOTTA use that one!)

full article

IS THERE A PARENT IN THE CITY LEFT THAT WOULD TRUST THESE LAUSD BUFFOONS WITH THEIR KIDS? STUPID AND CORRUPT...IT'S A TRAGIC COMBINATION.

zumadogg@gmail.com

LAUSD School Board To "Shift" $1 Billion Voter Approved Bond Dollars For Other Purposes (But Remember...It's For The Kids!)

from latimes.com:

L.A. board may shift $1 billion to school construction [Don't worry...they will!]

The Measure Y bond money was approved by voters in 2005 for modernizing existing campuses. [But VillarGarcia LAUSD School Board Wants To Use It For Something Else. So THEY will make that decision for you!!!]

HEY MARK "MR. K" GERMAIN: Remember all those calls MC Zuma Dogg made to you over the past year and a half about LAUSD's $20 billion school construction budget -- and how you have a corrupt mayor who was sent to heist as much of the money for his political backers so they will promote him to governor? (Well those days may be gone...but he still has to pay 'em back for making him mayor.)

LOOKS LIKE THE HEIST IS ABOUT TO BEGIN!!! TODAY! AT THE LAUSD SCHOOL BOARD MEETING. THEY ARE GOING TO MAKE THE DECISION FOR YOU THAT THEY WANT TO "BORROW" SOME OF THE BOND MONEY FOR SOMETHING ELSE...THEN CAN ASK FOR ANOTHER BOND LATER, IF NEEDED. (Then maybe they can ask for another one, after that...INFINITY!)

By Howard Blume, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
October 23, 2007

Los Angeles school district officials want to close most of a staggering deficit in the school-construction program by using more than $1 billion in bond money that was meant for other purposes. The Los Angeles Board of Education is scheduled to vote on the shift today. [Let me take a guess...they'll APPROVE to shift this money?]

The proposal, expected to pass, would use -- for new schools -- money that would have repaired and modernized existing schools, improved Internet access and other technology on campuses, and built and repaired preschool centers. Instead, the funds will backfill the plan to build 145 schools in an effort to provide all students with a neighborhood campus that operates on a traditional two-semester schedule. [Because you can't hijack that much of the budget with little old repairs and modernization -- you have to build entire new construction projects to heist that much money efficiently and with no transparancy or accountability.]

"Our hope here is that this is just a borrowing, if you will, of those funds" and the original programs "will be finished sometime in the future with other funds, whether they be from future bond measures or from other sources," said Edwin Van Ginkel, senior development manager for the Los Angeles Unified School District. [Borrow now...people will forget it's a loan, then pass a bond measure in the future if you need more money. And how dare you vote, "No"...IT'S FOR THE KIDS, REMEMBER!?!?]

Van Ginkel added that the bond's wording allows for such a transfer. [It's called "loopholes" and they are intentional. To these people if it DOESN'T say they can't...to them it means they CAN. Ethics/Spirit of Intent vs What they can get away with, those shady f*cks...they should all be locked up in jail for what this new LAUSD school board is pulling!]

But the fine print of ballot resolutions is not enough, said Jamie Court, president of the Santa Monica-based Foundation for Taxpayer & Consumer Rights.

"Politicians will try to use whatever money is on hand to fill any hole they have," Court said. "And in those cases they're often very flexible with 'the voter's intent' when the voter's intent wasn't that elastic. Politicians can't lawfully seize on the fine print to use money where that use was not made explicitly clear." (Words suitable for framing.)

[Infomercial Announcer: BUT WAIT...There's more!] Even after all the planned construction, tens of thousands of students will still attend classes in portables.

Justifications aside, a promise to voters is a promise, said Jon Coupal, president of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Assn. "There was a factual determination that over a billion dollars was needed to renovate schools where students are going right now. To take money away from that seems a fundamental violation of public trust."

The point is not lost on Scott Folsom, vice-chair of the district's bond oversight committee.

Even after the new schools are built, he said, 80% to 90% of students will be attending schools that exist today.

Still, the oversight committee approved the transfer last week. Its decision is not binding on the school board, which rarely goes against such recommendations. [NO WONDER MONICA GARCIA PULLED THE PLUG ON THE AUDIT COMMITTEE THAT INCLUDED THE INSPECTOR GENERAL'S INVOLVEMENT!!! And Laura Chick appointed (endless non-action report-writer) Connie Rice to the "School Construction Bond Citizens' Oversight Committee" (LMFAO!)]

Folsom foresees another difficult juncture approaching: "We are going to need to go to the voters at some point in the future -- not that far away -- to ask for more money." [AND WITH THAT FINAL SENTENCE...ALL OF ZUMA DOGG'S PREDICTIONS HAVE NOW COME TRUE.]

more of the article

ZumaTimes.com

New Video and Emails Regarding LAUSD (Mt. Gleason)

LAUSD Parents Contact ZD Over Stonewall Tactics and Safety Issues:

ZD Video Recap of LAUSD Parental Input (To ZD)


ZD's INBOX: Hey, Zuma, You might want to check out the foothills forum index. It is a web site for our community and then some. There are some interesting threads on the schools around here. My oldest child told me there were 5 fights today and one planned for after school. She witnessed one of the fights. She said two girls were b**ch slapping each other. Where is all the supervision the school keeps saying they have?

ZD' s INBOX: Hello, Yes the stuff that is happening in the tujunga area is true. Kids are afraid to go to class in fear that they are going to be poked with or should I say stabbed with mechanical pencils and the administration is playing dumb. There is minimal supervision at this middle school because the Principal wants everyone to think that things are under control. There are an average of three fights a week in or around this school and parents are starting to get concerned, me in particular. The Principal claims to be too busy to be involved in parent meeting that concern the safety of their children. I demanded that the principal be involved in a meeting between myself and the father of another boy who was assaulting my son on a regular basis, and she acted like we as parents were wasting her time......Big Big problems at this school..

ZD's INBOX: You know, ZD, the way my friend talks about you reminds me of a guy I went to High School with. His name was (Joe Smith). He used to sit next to me in 9th grade. He would get up early every morning to go to the beach to surf and then get back in time for school. He was a really nice guy. I was very shy when I was young and he was just about the only guy who ever talked to me as though I was just like everyone else. I have a very soft spot in my heart for surfers because of him. He was a very smart and I often wonder what became of him. Hope you have a great weekend. Keep me informed when you can.

ZD's INBOX: Dear Zuma Dogg, My name is [LAUSD parent] and I am a parent of two children at the school my friends told you about. I understand her fear in not wanting to tell you specifics, but for me, well, I want to see them pay for what they are doing to my kids. The school is Mt. Gleason Middle School and the Principal is Ms. Debora Acosta.

My oldest daughter is the student body Vice President this year. As the VP she and the other student body reps are supposed to organize school functions like dances, fund-raisers and such. This year they wanted to put on a Haunted House that would be held after school and the community would be invited. The principal is not allowing it.

So far this year, the student body reps. are being prevented from doing any of the things they are supposed to be doing. So what exactly are these kids doing during their Leadership Class? Trying to come up with something that would be acceptable to the Principal!

Our test scores went down last year. My honors student's State test scores went down as well. I asked her about it, my kids talk to me about everything as I don't believe in punishing them for bad grades as long as they did their best. She said that a lot of the stuff on the test was not covered in class or was gone over too quickly for the kids to grasp. I don't blame the teachers as they were doing a great job the year before. I blame the new changes that were forced on everyone last year by the "new kid on the block". The kids for the most part can't stand her. Okay, so it's not a popularity contest. My kids used to love school! Now they ask why they have to go.

ZD's INBOX: The Parents thank you for your help. Just the attention you have given it, is more than most of them get from the administration.

ZD's INBOX: Zuma, I appreciate all that you do. I am a LAUSD Parent of 2 Students. I am an Advocate/Activist fighting for our local schools in Sunland-Tujunga. I have a school in my Community that represents everything you are saying about LAUSD.

I need to discuss this with you as it will help what you are doing. I am a "No Home Depot supporter and saw you at City Hall. I took my daughter and neice, with me to the Hearing (9th grader and 6th grader), so that they could see Government in action.

I feel that kids are a major missing piece of the Puzzle, there are so many of them and their rights are being ignored, the City and School Board should tell these children to their faces, why they are making bad decisions for them.

I started every sentence with "I" since it "is " all about me , Maybe I should run for City Council? All kidding aside, Please contact me, as I have contact with Many parents and local Community Members. We may be able to help each other.

Sunland Parent

ZD's INBOX: "I would appreciate if you could forward this info to the parent from Mt. Gleason: There's no reason that they shouldn't be able to have an after-school haunted house for their student body as well as their community. None that I can even imagine. I take that back, if they don't have a parent association there, e.g. Booster Club and/or PTA, there might be insurance issues. Not to mention that the Risk Management Dept. of LAUSD makes it virtually impossible to have something on campus that you could find at any community event, like a Street Fair or Farmers Market. We couldn't even have a stupid giant inflatable slide. Forget face painting or dunk tanks, rock climbing walls or bands. So, yeah, now that I think about it, I can imagine Risk Management saying "Uh ... sorry, no", like I've heard from them dozens and dozens of times. And ... LAUSD now CHARGES schools for using LAUSD facilities for events like that. Next spring, I'm gearing up for a real fight because at our yearly "carnival" (just a few homemade game stands, a bounce house, food, REAL simple stuff, no rides or anything crazy) we may have to pay some crazy fee to have it when we've never ever ever had to before.

So yeah, make your PTAs pay a fee to you while we're trying to raise money for shit that you're (LAUSD) supposed to be paying for. Does that make any sense?? I'd call that biting the hand that's trying to help feed you. Not only that, now our Brownie troop is being told we may have to pony up $500 (payable to LAUSD) in order to have our after-school meetings on school grounds. Nice. That basically wipes out our account with no money left for trips or craft supplies or anything. I'm so pissed off, I can't even tell you. Stealing money from Girl Scouts. Lovely."

MORE TO COME...

zumadogg@gmail.com
zumatimes.com

Villaraigosa Backed LAUSD School Board Is Exactly The Nightmare We Were Afraid Of: Parents Contact Zuma Dogg In Outrage!

LAUSD: An LAUSD parent came across one of my threads, and they contacted me -- then they passed my info on to another parent...and it all kinda snowballed from there. Let's just say there is extreme parental dissatisfaction in the Valley regarding what is happening this year under the new school board. And some safety issues that didn't just pop-up over night -- but is escalating, and the parents who have contacted me feel like they are being stone-walled this year when it comes to parental input and scholastic reaction. (I'll basically be taking all the emails and faxes and compiling them into a thread for this weekend, if I can keep my A.D.D. in check...so stand by for that, for all who spent time on the phone filling me in and taking time to type up waaaaaaaay too many detailed and extensive emails.

MORE ON "LAUSD PARENTS SPEAK OUT"

Meet LAUSD's All City Band Lead Trumpet Player PLUS "All City Marching Band" VIDEO

Zuma Dogg and LAUSD's All City Band Lead Trumpet Player Address School Board

Thanks to Pedro from LAUSD's Fairfax High School who stopped by ZD's "state-of-the-art" studios in Hollywood, CA to speak about the new season and to talk about their 20 year old uniforms that say "CHS" instead of "FHS". Plus, ZD yields time to Pedro to address Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, LAUSD Board President Monica Garcia and LAUSD Superintendent David Brewer to tell them what is needed for the upcoming school year. He says, "More ciricular programs" (after school programs). PLUS: A performance by YOUR LAUSD "All City" Marching Band!!!

Zuma and Pedro of LAUSD All City Band


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