Related story: School programs must charge fees
Second of a three-part series
REDLANDS - A two-year-old state law says it is illegal for schools to
charge students and parents mandatory fees for participation in
extracurricular activities, such as art, music, theater and sports.
The Redlands Unified School District may be violating that law,
depending on whom you ask. "This (no fees) has not changed at RUSD,
but the reduction of funding from the state has made providing these
activities much more difficult," said Brian Guggisberg, director of
fiscal services at Redlands Unified School District.
So schools are banking on parent donations and fundraisers to help
defray costs. From selling car-wash tickets to school cards, efforts
like that help, and many parents seem to willing to do that. "Yes,
there is a law that says you can't make fees mandatory, (but the)
problem is, without them, the programs wouldn't survive," a Redlands
East Valley High School parent said on Facebook.
This year, Redlands East Valley's band charged only for actual costs,
but not general band fees, she said.
That meant REV booster or parent-led groups paid for more of the costs.
"I pay the fees without complaint. I pay for whatever fundraising I
can. And I know most of our parents do, too. Without this, our kids
wouldn't have a program," said a parent. Attorney Bryan Reid has a
child in the school district. While he is not an expert on the state
law, he is somewhat familiar with it. "The concept (of this) law is
that it establishes that education in California is mandated and
should be free for all children. And that's a wonderful thing. I don't
disagree with that. "The problem is that the interpretation is going
too far and is having a crushing effect on the extracurricular
activities that are available for kids," he said.
He cited music and athletic programs, adding that the "pendulum is
swinging a bit too far."
"Obviously every kid should have the opportunity to participate in
extracurricular activities, (and) if they can't afford their tuba or
track shoes, I think there should be ways in which the kids can earn
the money for that," he said. "But these programs can't exist without
parent support. "The bottom line is, extracurricular activities are
just that - extracurricular."
The law is the result of a lawsuit students filed in Los Angeles
Superior Court in 2010 alleging that public schools in California were
illegally charging students mandatory fees to participate in
educational activities.
In the lawsuit, Doe v. State of California, the students claimed that
the Los Angeles Unified School District charges "violated their
constitutional duty to provide free and equal education by failing to
ensure that California public school districts do not charge fees for
activities."
Former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger sent a letter to urging the district
to examine into its policies to ensure this was not occurring.
Redlands High School Principal Christina Rivera said despite the law
and budget cuts, programs at her school have not been affected. That
may be temporary, however. The district has been working to realign
expenditures and find other funding resources to maintain the same
activities for students, said Guggisberg.
"Parents and guardians are still very generous when it comes to
providing for their children," he said. "The reduced funding from the
state has caused many our schools to place a greater reliance of
financial support from parent organizations and the community.
"This applies to many campus activities."
Locking student accounts
Some parents who have students at Redlands East Valley High claim that
when a fee is not paid on time, a student's account is frozen and more
fees are added.
Principal John Maloney said the only time accounts are locked is when
a student doesn't return unsold fundraising tickets or cards, or if
uniforms are not returned on time.
He said accounts are unlocked when those issues are resolved, and if a
student has a problem, administrators help rectify the situation.
"Parents aren't always aware that their kids have taken these tickets
out," Maloney said.
REV coaches are required to teach athletes that their uniforms must be
returned or their accounts will be locked, he said.
Sometimes, kids can forget this requirement, he said.
Maloney said that money needed for trips to places such as Hawaii or
Europe are strictly activities the district does not pay.
Those are the responsibility of the clubs and organizations that rely
on parents to pay the way for their children and fundraisers to help
cover costs.
If clubs and organization can't do that, there is no trip, he said.
"Some of our kids are so talented that they need to showcase (that
talent on a national or international stage). No question. Our parents
get it that there has to be support from families for these kids to
continue doing these things," he said.
"These are enriching programs - which are good for our kids - but they
cost money," he said. "We want kids to go to high school and have
these full range of experiences. And if we can provide (them) with
like a quality marching band program, and we can get parents who are
willing to support (it), then that's great."
Parent wants to help
Redlands High School parent Mary Anne Forrest has been paying fees for
her daughter's extracurricular activities since elementary school.
They include transportation, materials, music and uniform costs.
In the past, she said, it had been requested that parents pay for
music and other fees.
"The music department at RHS is having a more difficult time
collecting fees from the parents, because they can't ask for them
outright and fundraising has become more difficult because of the poor
economy," she said. "Maybe I'm getting tired of all the fundraisers,
but at the same time I want to support the programs. Without it, some
of these programs won't be able to exist."
Reid agreed, adding that it truly does take community support to keep
the programs going.
"I don't know specifically how the law is being applied, so I don't
know if it is illegal to charge a parent fees for an extracurricular,
transportation or supplies. I don't know the answer to the actual
interpretation of the law, but I think that parents ought to pay them
if they want their kids to be part of them.
"Parents should make a good faith effort to support their kids in that
and fund it or find an alternative solution to (do so)," he said.
"If we can't have these programs because one child can't afford to
participate, then we won't have any extracurricular, but I strongly
think that these programs can be a huge part of a child's experience
in school," he said.
"I would hate to have one child denied an opportunity to participate,
but I don't think the law should mandate that the program can't happen
because (they) couldn't afford it."
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