CONEJO VALLEY : School Officials Cut 22 Teaching Jobs

Conejo Valley school officials were discussing ways Thursday to cut $3.6 million from the district’s upcoming budget, resulting in layoffs and program reductions.

The board voted 3 to 2--after comments by several of the 125 parents, students and teachers who turned out for the meeting--to reduce the number of teaching positions by 22.

Still under consideration was a proposal to lay off at least 58 janitors, clerks and other non-teaching employees as a result of reducing the $70.7-million budget. In addition, the bonus pay for 15 coaches would be eliminated. The Conejo Valley Unified School District would have been forced to make more cuts had it not carried over $2.8 million in reserves. The district has 712 teachers and about 650 classified workers.

After a meeting last month attended by 400 parents and students, Supt. William Seaver recommended that the board use extra lottery money to ease some of the cuts.

As a result, a $12,300 band camp subsidy, $5,635 for vocational education, $1,000 for vocational education laser technology and $39,700 for health clerks at the four intermediate schools will not be cut from the budget. Instead of reducing the health clerks’ schedule to 3 1/2-hour days, they will each work 5 1/2 hours a day. Seaver also recommended that the golf program at the three high schools be continued if outside sources pledge $8,180 to cover costs and if starting times are changed to reduce the amount of class time missed by players.

The district will consider restoring other teams--including freshman/sophomore boys’ soccer, freshman boys’ and freshman girls’ basketball and freshman girls’ volleyball--if outside funding is secured.

The budget assumes that the district will receive no cost-of-living increase from the state, that lottery funds will remain low and that fees the county has levied on the school district for property tax collection will continue.