Candidates debate merits of districtwide fund raising Candidates debate merits of districtwide fund raising (October 17, 2001)

Agreement that rules need to change; the question is how

by Jennifer Deitz Berry

School Parent-Teacher Associations in Palo Alto have been applauded for stepping into the fray with money whenever the district has faced program cuts. But over the years, the disparity between schools that have had huge success raising money and those that have not has widened.

This year, it got to the point where the outgoing superintendent, Don Phillips, made the issue one of his most important priorities.

The four school board candidates agree fund-raising rules need to change. What divides them are their proposed solutions. At recent candidates' forums and in interviews, they have revealed a variety of proposals.

"Parents must realize that we are one community," said challenger Ivan Kolozsvari. If elected, he would pool all money raised by parents and divide it equitably among schools.

Incumbents John Barton and Cathy Kroymann both want to see school site fund raising replaced with districtwide efforts. Kroymann said PTA fund raising should be limited to small "perks" like classroom supplies for teachers or grounds maintenance, but not major projects that affect the "core" program, like class-size reduction and teacher's aides.

Barton also supports limits on school-site fund raising. He said one way of looking at the problem is to think of the school district as a family. "My wife makes more than I do, but she doesn't eat steak while I eat chicken," he said.

Still, there are some fears among school officials that turning to a districtwide fund-raising model will mean less money for schools. According to previous years' data, schools raise between $100 to nearly $500 per student, bringing in an estimated $2 million districtwide.

School board president John Tuomy, who is not up for election this year, is among the skeptics of a districtwide fund-raising approach: "I don't have as much confidence in this community coming up with joint fund-raising efforts that would equal what they are putting into their own schools. I think the community is a little more self-oriented than that. So we've got to be careful when we just assume the best."

But both Barton and Kroymann are confident that if Palo Alto shifted gradually over to a districtwide model, revenue levels will stay the same or even grow.

"It is a cultural shift," Kroymann said. "People are used to supporting their child and we're talking about supporting our child and our schools, and that isn't going to happen overnight."

Barton pointed out that only 18 percent to 20 percent of households have children in school. He and Kroymann both believe that business leaders and Palo Alto residents who don't have children will be more likely to donate to district projects than to an individual school.

"If we've got clear goals about what we're fund raising for we can go out to the community . . . and engage more people," Barton said.

Write-in candidate Barb Mitchell offers a different solution. She said the reason school-site fund raising has become such a contentious issue is that parents are still being expected to fund core programs.

"The whole cause of where we are now is based on protecting programs that have had a long history of existing in schools," she said. "That's why people are so frustrated and demoralized and protective."

Mitchell explained that Parent-Teacher Associations ramped up fund raising in the mid-1990s when the district was facing program cuts. But even after revenues increased and parcel tax money was added, the district never took responsibility for funding core programs and services now supported by school site dollars, she said.

To remedy that situation, Mitchell believes the district should allocate an additional $200 per student to fund core programs. But she also does not want to restrict school sites' abilities to raise additional funds. She said the most effective fund-raising models always have clear goals in mind.

"There is not a passion amongst parents to just go out and raise a bunch of money and spend it," Mitchell said. "Parents want the ability to take care of good programs that are not implemented districtwide."

While districtwide fund raising might work if there is a clear goal, such as raising money for new laptops for teachers, Mitchell doubts donors would give to a "general fund" for flexible use by school sites. And, if schools are also prevented from raising funds for their own programs, she fears they will lose a chance to fund "experimental" or site-specific projects, like the farm at Ohlone Elementary School or the Jordan Middle School laptop pilot program.

Mitchell said she is confident that as long as funds for core programs are leveled up, parents and teachers won't mind letting schools raise varying amounts of additional funds for other programs or services that will benefit their site.

E-mail Jennifer Berry at jberry@paweekly.com.