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ORANGE Unified Schools INSIDE
a news service of Orange Net News /O/N/N/
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OUSD to oppose Rocking Horse Ridge II effort
Orange Unified Trustees at their February 16, 2012 meeting directed staff to draft a resolution to oppose the Rocking Horse Ridge II neighborhood effort to leave OUSD and join Tustin Unified. That resolution appears on the March 8, 2012 OUSD Agenda.

The Rocking Horse Ridge II neighborhood has 35 students who currently attend OUSD schools. If efforts to annex the neighborhood to Tustin Unified are successful, those students would have to immediately leave OUSD. Any of those students wishing to continue in OUSD would have to apply for a district transfer. Schools that some of those 35 students currently attended are closed to transfers from outside OUSD. The loss of state funds from the 35 students would cost OUSD over $170,000.

In addition if successful, all residents of the Rocking Horse Ridge II neighborhood would see a property tax increase to pay for two school bonds previously passed in Tustin Unified. Those bond assessments are $64 per $100,000 assessed value (a $1,000,000 home would be assessed an additional $640 in school bonds per year).

The obscure Orange County Committee on School District Organization will hold two hearings on the change on March 14th, 2012, one in Orange Unified at 6:00 pm, and a second meeting in Tustin Unified at 8:00 pm. If the OUSD Board votes to oppose the proposed transfer, it could force a vote on the item by the voters in the proposed transfer area.

For more information on Rocking Horse Ridge CLICK ON: RHRII

Split vote approves new OUSD law firm for surplus propertyThe OUSD Board voted 5-2 at their February 16 meeting to support a proposal by OUSD President Tim Surridge to direct staff to procure legal services from a new legal firm of Atkinson, Andelson, Loya, Rudd and Romo for services related to surplus properties in OUSD.

The proposal was vehemently opposed by Trustees Kathy Moffat and Diane Singer. The two noted that the OUSD Board had voted to reject the same law firm last year when then OUSD President Rick Ledesma tried to use the firm to replace long time OUSD legal firm Parker & Covert. The two also additionally objected to naming a firm for a contract without following a protocol of soliciting bids in an open process. Surridge and Ledesma where joined by Trustee Mark Wayland in dismissing the objections, and where then joined by Trustees John Ortega and Dr. Alexia Deligianni in voting to approve a contract for the firm.

INSIDE the March 8th OUSD Board Meeting

Item 12 A: Public Hearing on the new fee increases for school districts allowed on new construction in a January vote by the little known State Allocation Board. Those fees can be only be changed in even years, but with no inflationary increase in 2010 the fees of $2.97 residential and $.47 commercial have remained the same for four years. The new allowable fees are $3.20 and $.51. School districts must take action locally to implement the allowable increases (for more on SAB information CLICK ON: SAB ).

Agenda Item 12 C: Second Interim Financial Report

Former Superintendent Godley’s Retirement Bonus
Running total (beginning 8/2008)
$51, 857.00*

* The Godley Retirement Bonus presented here is an estimate of the amount in “bonus retirement” accrued since the Superintendent’s retirement on 6/30/08 using a 6% lifetime formula calculated here at $1210 a month since 8/08. The actual retirement plan the former OUSD Superintendent opted to take is not public information and the figures presented are only as an estimate of the taxpayer costs after the OUSD trustees voted against an amendment to exclude Godley from the retirement program. The on-going estimated figure is presented as a reminder to the community of the high cost in educational tax dollars the OUSD Board vote to allow the former Superintendent to participate in the 6% retirement incentive cost the OUSD education community in tax dollars. Godley retired from OUSD on June 30, 2008 after he worked for the school district for a little over five years.

NEXT BOARD MEETING March 8, 2012
Next OUSD Board Meeting Thursday February 16, 2012 -OUSD BOARD ROOM
CLOSED SESSION- 6:30 pm
OUSD Regular Session: 7:00 pm
For AGENDA-CLICK ON: BOARD

For more information call the OUSD Superintendent’s office at 714-628-4040
For budgeting questions call Business Services at 714-628-4015

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