San Mateo County, CA November 2, 1999 Election
Smart Voter

Position Statement of Waldo Hinshaw, Candidate for the Burlingame School Board

By Waldo Hinshaw

Candidate for Governing Board Member; Burlingame Elementary School District

This information is provided by the candidate
The Burlingame Schools have severe and increasing financial problems. We must work hard to secure more revenue. And we must run lean and cut programs until we meet our budget. But we must pay the teachers a competitive wage.
I love the Burlingame schools. I have been consistently impressed with the caliber and dedication of the teachers, employees, and volunteers that I have met during my volunteer work with the schools. My children are getting a good education.

The Burlingame schools are in trouble, more trouble than most of us realize. The School Board has cut programs in order to balance the budget for this year and the next. These cuts have decreased the quality of our schools. Without a significant increase in revenue, much bigger cuts are ahead.

The School District is in the midst of several important changes. The Board has begun the process of deciding what major additional spending cuts to make. A new Business Manager for the District is starting soon. We have begun recruiting a new Superintendent. Finally, and of particular interest to me, the voters will select two new Board members on November 2.

Platform

  • Hire an excellent Superintendent and an excellent Business Manager.

Selecting a new Superintendent is the first and most important decision facing the new Board members.

  • Improve communication between the Board and the community.

Whether programs are cut or taxes are raised, the Board has to have the understanding and support of the community. The community has to have confidence that the Board is making wise and fiscally sound decisions. The Board must listen to the community. The following changes will help:

Format the budget and budget decisions in clear and graphical ways that are intuitively clear.

Board meeting agendas as well as summaries of Board actions and issues should be posted on the Internet, included with school newsletters, and published in local newspapers.

Shorten the Board meetings.

  • Increase teachers' salaries.

The starting salaries and maximum salaries for Burlingame teachers are at the bottom compared to those in other San Mateo County School Districts. My experience in business is that, to succeed, you have to attract and retain the best and brightest employees. If you don't pay a competitive wage, your business will inevitably decay. No matter what else happens, we must continue to have excellent teachers for our children.

  • Raise more revenue.

In addition to my volunteer work with the Burlingame Community for Education Foundation, I am involved in community efforts to find significant additional sources of revenue for the District. The financial help of the BCE is essential but much more is necessary. Burlingame citizens must work with the Board to explore every source of revenue including Federal, State, County, and City. Here are some issues that require concerted citizen action. (1) The State of California gave IOUs to the schools a few years ago during a budget shortfall. The State should repay the schools from the current surplus. (2) California gives some school districts more money than others. For example, the State gives the Los Lomitas school district of San Mateo County about 30% more money per student than it gives Burlingame. (3) We have to pass another and larger parcel tax that includes an automatic cost-of-living adjustment.

  • Manage the money.

The Board must ensure that day-to-day operations are efficient and well managed. This requires a good and easily understood accounting and reporting system. Not only must the money be well managed, it must be clear to the community that it is well managed.

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ca/sm Created from information supplied by the candidate: October 19, 1999 19:00
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