California to Cut 6 Weeks Off School Year?

School Closed (by Chris Heaton

State treasurer Bill Lockyer said that if Gov. Brown and the Legislature don’t pass a budget by their self-imposed deadlines (i.e., in 60 days), the state will face “very substantial shortfalls.” To pay for the shortfalls, Lockyear has presented a doomsday scenario of cutting everything, including education. He specifically mentioned cutting six weeks off the public school calendar.

For teachers, that would amount to a 15-20% pay cut. For parents, that would mean a lot of babysitting or time off work to care for younger kids who would otherwise be in school. And for students, it guarantees they won't have enough class time to meet the state standards, thus ensuring massive increases in NCLB failures.