This summer the Acalanes Adult Education program had personnel changes due to the retirement of Laura Canciamilla.  Frank Acojido is the new director, a position he has held previously in our District.  Dennis Regalado is the new Director of the Del Valle Education Center and will be working with Mr. Acojido, overseeing the various educational programs located on the Del Valle campus.  Although we face  challenging economic times, we look forward to working with our excellent staff to continue providing a quality program which will benefit our community.

The current fiscal environment for education in the State of California creates economic challenges especially for adult education programs throughout the state.  In the past, adult education has been funded primarily based on student attendance.  For the next several  years, the State will not be requesting attendance data.  Rather funding for the school year 2009-10, and through at least 2112-2113, will be based on our 2007-2008 attendance less a reduction of approximately 20%.  This will create a shortfall in the Acalanes Adult Ed operating budget of approximately $350,000 and does not allow for any cost of living increases for the foreseeable future.  We are very fortunate that the Acalanes School Board and District administration are very supportive of the adult education program and its goal of providing life-long learning opportunities.  

In order to continue to operate with the current budget, we have had to make difficult decisions regarding which classes to offer and the fee structure for the classes scheduled.  It is essential that the instructional expenses be fully covered by the fee structure whenever possible.  Unfortunately, this means higher fees in some cases to continue to offer the class.  We are working hard to keep fees affordable so that our community will continue to have access to our classes. We have also tightened our belt by reducing our school calendar from 36 weeks to 30 weeks with a six week summer program.  We believe with these changes, we can continue to offer a quality adult education program for the community.

The good news is that our Measure E plans for a new facility is still funded and the remodeling plans are in the design stage with our architects.  We are looking forward to having a plan in place that we can share with you in the not too distant future.

We would like to thank you and our staff for your continued support and your patience as we work through difficult times.  We look forward to a successful 2009-10 school year.

Sincerely,