LVUSD to offer early retirement program
By Stephanie Bertholdo
bertholdo@theacorn.com

For the third time in the history of Las Virgenes Unified School District (LVUSD), a Supplemental Early Retirement Program (SERP) will be offered to veteran teachers. The last SERP ended this year.

At a recent school board meeting, staff reported that as part of the budget process, they’ve been investigating ways to save money.

According to LVUSD Dep. Superintendent Donald Zimring, the decision to offer an early retirement program was based on dealing "with one of the most difficult fiscal years in the district’s history."

The program provides a bonus for employees to retire early, which saves money by replacing higher-paid older teachers with younger ones who earn less. According to the report, the bonus is an "annuity-based incentive tied either to a lump sum ($40,000) or a percentage of an employee’s salary which would average to a district cost of $40,000 per employee."

The district expects to save about $450,000 to $475,000 next year with the implementation of SERP. "It could be a crucial element in meeting our budget," Zimring said.

While 10 to 12 teachers typically retire each year, a minimum of 40 will need to retire early for the program to be financially viable. Although about 150 teachers would qualify, staff narrowed the field to teachers with 30 years or more service as the most likely to take advantage of the program.

District staff and members of the LVUSD Board of Education grappled with the decision.

Zimring said that the savings would be short-term. He added that significant problems could arise with the personnel department, which would be required to fill the empty slots with qualified, yet less expensive, teachers. It’s compounded by the fact that neighboring school districts may be looking at early retirement programs, "creating a great deal of competition for hard-to-place positions in areas such as math, science and special education," Zimring said in the staff report.

LVUSD Assistant Superintendent of Personnel Stephen Hanke said, "This is certainly a calculated risk we must be willing to take." He added that all neighboring school districts are considering implementing similar programs, which will create teacher shortages.

Zimring said that LVUSD would like to implement the program sooner rather than later to mitigate the personnel problem.

District Superintendent John Fitzpatrick said, "The younger (the teachers) are and the more inexperienced they are, the more money will be saved."

Board member Terilyn Finders pointed out the downside. "This makes my heart race. It’s not nice looking at experienced teachers being replaced by brand spanking new teachers," Finders said. Enhanced recruiting efforts, she said, might attract the better candidates.

The district’s goal, Hanke said, is to attract the most qualified beginning teachers.

Ginny Jannotto, a representative of the California Teachers Association and a vice principal at Agoura High School, addressed the board with concerns that the program may appear discriminatory. Teachers who choose SERP must retire and cannot get hired in another district.