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Education on edge Editor's note: Final in a three-part series taking a look at the impacts of Measure 28's passage or failure on the Jan. 28 mail-in ballot. By Amber Fossen and Sean Wolfe Ashland Daily Tidings Reduced programs, worn books, bigger class sizes and fewer teachers have been a nightmare for Oregon educators this biennium, and it could get worse. With the outcome of Measure 28 looming, many state schools are finding few ways to streamline budget expenditures save for a reduction to the academic calendar. As local administrators and faculty work toward preserving quality education despite one cut after another, many fear the impact of the measure's failure on the immediate future of education. According to Leeanne Wallace, president of the Ashland Education Association, a memorandum of understanding - outlining a reduction in days - has been drafted as a potential way to address the Ashland School District's $540,000 in losses should Measure 28 - a three-year income tax hike to pay for state programs - fail on Jan. 28. "We are looking at an additional eight days to be closed. We've already taken two days off this year's calendar. The additional days have not been determined and the memorandum of understanding does not mention any specific days," Wallace said. The district saves an approximate $73,000 in salary and benefit costs for each reduced academic day. "If this happens, if Measure 28 goes down, we will all be losing 10 percent off of each paycheck," Wallace said. The first reduction will commence with the February pay period. However, if Measure 28 passes, the district will reinstate the calendar days. The memorandum will be presented to the Ashland School Board for a vote Monday night. The Southern Oregon Bargaining Council and the Oregon Schools Employees Association Chapter 42 also will be asked for their approval. According to the Oregon Education Association, 7.8 percent of the total employment in Southern Oregon is directly or indirectly affected by school funding. Regionally, more than 14,000 jobs and about $490 million in personal income are supported by school spending. School districts throughout Oregon are dealing with similar budget woes. Statewide, K-12 funding is slated to take $95 million in cuts should Measure 28 fail. That would be in addition to a $2.1 million reduction to Oregon's pre-kindergarten programs, a $3.1 million reduction to early intervention and early childhood special education programs, a $14 million cut to community colleges and a $23 million cut to higher education, bringing the sum total to $137 million. These cuts come after a series of blows to state education funding that total about $526 million for the 2001-2003 budget biennium. To date, ASD has reduced classified and certified staff, reduced maintenance and staffing hours in addition to reducing three administrative positions and several programs in an attempt to meet budget cuts. The Phoenix-Talent School District tale is similar, according to Interim Superintendent Ben Bergreen. "In the last two years we've lost enough staff to operate a 400- to 450-kid elementary school," Bergreen said. PTSD school board members have voted to reduce one administrative position, 16 teaching positions and five classified positions this biennium. However, Bergreen said that the district has yet to commit to reducing the academic calendar. "Decisions haven't been made - we're still discussing things. We're not there (at reducing days) yet," he said. As K-12 schools grapple with fluctuating accounts, Rogue Community College and Southern Oregon University have increased tuition surcharges among other strategies for dealing with losses in state funding. According to Ron Bolstad, SOU's vice president of administration and finance, students have had to deal with tuition increases, a cut in student wages and services while faculty members have dealt with wage freezes, layoffs and - by the end of the year -department restructuring. RCC won't feel the effect of Measure 28 as much as other area institutions, according to Margaret Bradford, RCC's director of college communications. "Our budget is basically in balance whether it (Measure 28) passes or not. We just didn't include that in our budget," Bradford said, noting that tuition surcharges have helped offset RCC's $800,000 decline in state funding. In the meantime, political pundits expect the measure to fail at the polls, despite massive support for the measure throughout the state from a variety of interests, including groups representing education, health care, law enforcement, small business and the environment. Currently, the only organized opposition to the measure is coming from the state Libertarian party, which launched a televised ad campaign against the measure this past week. They are supplemented by opposition from the Constitution party, and a cadre of GOP conservatives. In Ashland, Sarah Sameh, executive director of Alternatives to Growth Oregon, said her group's reason for opposing the measure is related to tax breaks given in the past to corporations. "Subsidies that go toward corporations in the form of benefits and tax incentives take money away from the rest of the state. We're not saying that corporations shouldn't move here, or get certain benefits, but they do owe the state costs relating to infrastructure in local communities. We're also trying to say that local communities should have the power to determine their level of development, and that's something they don't have right now," Sameh said. While state-supported institutions continue to do more with less, a local "Get Out The Vote" campaign in support of Measure 28 has formed to educate Jackson County voters of the potential impact the measure's failure will have on local schools. According to Amy Amrhein, a Get Out The Vote campaigner, the city of Ashland will be blanketed with leaflets explaining what the measure means to the state of Oregon. Volunteers planned to canvass nearly 6,000 Ashland homes Saturday while another group of Measure 28 supporters covers the Medford area. "We're going door-to-door handing out information on why people should vote yes," Amrhein said. As local efforts to gain support for Measure 28 organize, a statewide rally is also in the works. According to Jim Bond, a consultant with OEA UniServe - a coalition of school associations, health and human service workers, and concerned citizens - are planning to rally on the Capitol steps in Salem on Monday, Jan. 20. "Anyone who has a concern for the future of our state is welcome. It is a statewide effort involving virtually every school district in the state. It hasn't been done before," Bond said. "Our goal is to somehow prevail on our Legislature to provide stable and adequate funding for education as well as all the other state supported services." The OEA has contracted with Laidlaw to bus local citizens to the rally for free. For more information contact Bond at 779-7865. The numbers: Ashland School District: 3,128 students Previous cuts: $1.9 million December revenue loss to ASD: $260,000 ($70 per student -across the state cut) Potential cut if Measure 28 fails: $540,000 loss ($145 per student per ADM) Phoenix-Talent School District: 2,800 students Previous cuts: $1.2 million amount of revenue lost December revenue loss: $234,000 (also based on $70 per student) Measure 28 potential cut: $485,750 (also on $145 per student based on ADM) Southern Oregon University: 5,465 students (based on fall term enrollment, current enrollment figures will be unavailable until the fourth week of winter term) Previous cuts: $4 million or 10 percent of the budget December revenue loss: $460,106 Measure 28 potential cut: $460,157 LINKS: DAILY TIDINGS: Main | News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Opinion | Columnists | AP News | Subscribe | Archives | Weather | Classifieds | Contact Us | Privacy REVELS: Main | Calendar | Dining | Movies | T.V. 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