Redwood City schools facing funding shift

For her part, board President Janet Lawson expressed enthusiasm over the opportunity to afford more programs for district students through the new funding system.

“It is exciting to think about additional services we could possibly provide to our students that may not have been possible in years past,” she said in an email.

She balanced that perspective though by noting the need for the district to remain vigilant, as community-funded districts face greater exposure to market fluctuations than those reliant on state financing.

“At the same time, it is important that we remain conservative and build the healthy reserve needed by basic aid districts in the event that the California economy takes a hit,” she said.

Basic aid school districts are those funded primarily by local property tax revenue, while those financed through the Local Control Funding Formula fill budgets with payments from the state. A switch between the two systems occurs when the revenue generated by a community’s local tax contribution is greater than the payment it would receive from Sacramento, said a district report.

Significant uptick in local property values and decreased enrollment are key drivers in the district’s expected change, according to a district report which begins examining local policies needing subsequent amendments.

“Based on the preliminary property tax information received by Redwood City School District from the San Mateo County Office of Education in December of 2019, RCSD will become a basic aid school district,” said the report from Superintendent John Baker.

Traditionally, the district has paid great attention to daily attendance, because the state pays systems according to enrollment levels. But with the expected move to community funding, officials must consider issues such as student transfer policy.

“Because basic aid districts receive a set amount of funding regardless of the number of students enrolled, which is completely different from how we are used to operating in RCSD, the Board of Trustees will need to discuss if and how to change the current interdistrict transfers process,” said the report.

At the meeting, officials weighed a transfer policy with an eye to the interests of existing transfer students and their siblings as well as the enrollment patterns for the district’s specialized schools such as immersion programs or those accommodating high-performing students.

Lawson said, under direction at the most recent meeting, existing transfers will be grandfathered in to enrolling. District staffers who live elsewhere can enroll their children in Redwood City schools as well.

But preschoolers with special needs who live outside the district will not be allowed to enroll, said Lawson, who added more budget and associated transfer issues will be hammered out in March.

As it stands, there are 242 students who have transferred to Redwood City from other communities. North Star Academy accepted 88 district transfers and the district’s Mandarin immersion program received 25 - the two most popular transfer targets in the district.

In all, the district’s enrollment reached 7,188 students. The district has been experiencing significant declining enrollment over recent years, as the cost of living has displaced local families.

Previously funded according to average daily attendance, a dwindling student population has been blamed previously by officials for the significant financial hardship facing the district.

The issue grew so dire in recent years, officials were forced to shutter campuses and consolidate schools to shrink the budget. Since then, lease agreements have been reached with organizations wanting to occupy the vacated campuses, with deals projected to generate millions for the district budget.

As the district prepares for additional shifts in the economic landscape, Lawson said officials must assure the needs of all students are served.

“Every child deserves a high-quality education and we are proud to be able to provide that. At this point, we need to have a conversation around the financial impact that future interdistrict transfers would have on the district and explore the different options we have,” she said.

austin@smdailyjournal.com

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