Getting to the CORE of Support

Uncertain about the future, Kelly Peterson contemplated searching for another job and leaving her position as a library assistant for Fairlands Elementary School.

Peterson was told by the district earlier this year that only 10 hours per week would be designated for her position.

"I was looking for another job, I didn't know if this was going to happen or not," said Peterson. "This is where I want to be but you know, you also have to pay your bills."

For more than a dozen district employees, this summer marked a lengthy waiting game.

In a span of four months, Pleasanton school organizations and parents saved 12 technology specialist positions and extended work hours for school librarians by raising approximately half a million dollars.

For Tina Davis, a technology specialist at Fairlands Elementary School, anticipating the result of the community fundraiser was nerve-wracking.

"It was very difficult because we were really at the hands of the community," Davis said. "We really had nothing else we could do but see what the community could do."

It's the second time the Pleasanton community has raised a hefty chunk to save positions in response to drastic budget cuts. In the past two years, the district has faced a total of $13 million in budget gaps. Another shortfall of $8 million was anticipated for the 2010-2011 school year. 

Last year, the district and parents put together a district-wide I Love Pleasanton Schools campaign after the failure of a parcel tax measure. The campaign brought in $400,000 and saved some positions.

Spearheaded by the Pleasanton Partnerships in Education Foundation, this year's Community Outreach in Education fundraiser has brought in a total of $578,381 as of Aug. 25. The ultimate goal for the campaign was about $900,000.

The overall total translates into $354,675 for elementary schools, $109,539 for middle schools and $112,540 for high schools. Amador and Foothill High Schools were rewarded $45,000 and Village High School was given $10,000.

As a result, each elementary school is guaranteed to have at least four hours of technology support and library hours were extended to five hours a day and six hours a day at the elementary and middle schools, respectively, said District Spokesperson Myla Grasso.

Parent-teacher groups are continuing to increase hours of technology support at individual elementary schools through site-based fundraising, Grasso added.

"We're really pleased with the results," Grasso said. "Community support has really made a big difference. "

The monies raised at the high schools will be used for technology, but how those funds will be used will be a site-based decision, said Grasso. An additional $1,628 was raised but is undesignated as of yet.

This year's campaign marks the first time the district asked parents to give a $150 per child donation.

While more than $110,000 came from Drop and Donate events, more than $450,000 was brought in solely through individual donations, according to Debi Covello, executive director of the Pleasanton Partnerships in Education Foundation.

The profits of coupon books, which were sold for $10 throughout the summer, brought in about $3,500.

"I'm very proud of all the school sites and the community," Covello said. "Everybody stepped forward and did their piece that they could."

Fundraising efforts may continue on into the current school year and how that will occur is under discussion, Grasso said.

Covello added the continuation of fundraising is very likely.

"It's just the kind of the state of the state," Covello said. "The budget crisis is what it is, and we're anticipating to certainly having the shortfalls that we experienced this year."

Education foundations in Pleasanton not only worked to save technology specialists and library assistants. The Pleasanton Schools Educational Enrichment Foundation worked to raise $90,000 for music programs at the elementary schools.

Jason Borris is a Pleasanton's elementary school band teacher who also has to wait each year to see if he'll have a job. This summer, Borris was more hopeful about this year's return of the band program than he was last year.

"In 2009, we didn't know what we needed to do, or what was going to happen. We were waiting for the June election to occur," he said. "But this year, we knew what we needed to do back in February."

Going forward, however, Borris has higher hopes for future years. The current elementary band program, he noted, is modified to 50 percent of the program he taught from 2000 to 2008.

Both Davis and Peterson said while uncertainty about their positions looms each year, the work that they do is worth it. 

Davis has been at Fairlands Elementary School for 10 years, first as a parent volunteer and later as a hired employee helping the school run and maintain about 200 computers. 

"For me, I've invested 10 years into this school, this is like a child I've watched grow," she said.

Marnette Federis and Cameron Sullivan contributed to this report.