$25 million in cuts won't be easy or painless

Maybe we've gotten so used to big figures — usually billions, sometimes trillions — that it doesn't register what $25 million in cuts will mean for the Modesto City Schools.

No matter how you slice it, though, it's going to mean plenty of pain for just about everyone, from students to employees to the community itself.

The decisions that will fall to the seven school board members in early 2010 won't be choices between cutting this program or that program. More likely, they will involve cutting this and that and much, much more.

A district budget advisory committee has come to that realization. At this week's meeting, its long list of suggestions added up to only slightly more than $11 million, or less than half of what will be necessary.

Having an advisory committee can be useful — to solicit ideas and to help people better understand a problem. Because this committee was dominated by district administrators and union representatives, it didn't do much to collect ideas from the community, including parents.

There were three community representatives, two retired school administrators from other agencies and one businessman. No parents of current Modesto students were included.

Not only that, but the budget committee didn't even invite the public. Only after The Bee pressed the matter, pointing out that the state meeting law requires that budget committee meetings be public, was Tuesday's session open.

Some committee members feared having their names attached to controversial suggestions; we can understand that. But there need to be some dramatic proposals on the table, because the district won't be able to snip its way to $25 million — or to hold enough rummage and bake sales to make a dent.

Salaries comprise 87 percent of the district's budget, so it's inevitable that there will be layoffs, pay reductions and/or more furloughs. These could be achieved by reducing the school year and increasing class sizes.

Modesto Teachers Association leaders are visiting schools to explain the seriousness of the budget problem to teachers and other certificated staff. Classified union officers will be doing the same for their members. But the public, including parents, are probably the least aware of the magnitude of Modesto's budget troubles.

The bottom line is this: Cutting $25 million means that Modesto schools will not operate in 2010-11 as they are in the current school year.