With Coronado schools facing significant budget shortfalls until 2027-28, a quartet of candidates vying to serve on the Unified School District Board are sorting out what cuts should be made – or where additional funds can be found.
As the district transitions from a state funding system to reliance on property taxes, revenue shortages already have forced employee layoffs and program cuts.
Deputy Superintendent Donnie Salamanca predicted in September that CUSD will qualify for the enhanced funding system, known as basic aid, in 2027-28. At that point, local schools will see $8-12 million in additional ongoing revenues. But before this year ends, the district has to present how it plans to chop $2.4 million from the budget to meet a required 3% minimum in reserves for the next two years.
The election on Nov. 5 will result in two of the four school board candidates being selected to four-year seats – and tasked with oversight of budget decisions. The candidates are Shawnee Barton Merriman, Renee Cavanaugh, Fitzhugh Lee and Bill Sandke.
In Q&A responses to The Coronado News, they offer views on how the district should cope.
The questions: If elected to the school board, how would you approach the budget shortfall? What programs would you cut or keep?
Responses, edited for brevity and clarity, include additional information from a follow-up conversation.
‘Exhausting every avenue of possibility’
Barton Merriman, a mom of four Coronado Unified students and a part-time art faculty member at California State University, Long Beach, said the district has options and she is confident there are ways to support local kids and teachers financially.
Barton Merriman believes the responsibility to chase down ideas doesn’t stop with board members and until CUSD moves to the locally funded basic aid model, her spending priorities would aim to keep the student experience as unaffected as possible.
“I would focus on finding new revenue sources as a CUSD board member in order to avoid additional budget cuts,” wrote Barton Merriman in an email. “My kids have already felt the pain of the board’s last budget chops.”
Barton Merriman suggested two potential sources for additional money: the Coronado Schools Foundation (CSF) and finding a way to renegotiate, buy out, or terminate leases of district real estate near Tidelands, she said.
“The wonderful Coronado Schools Foundation could be an option,” wrote Merriman. “I hope they’d especially be willing to help our students a bit more now since we could likely decrease the support we need after basic aid arrives.”
This year, the non-profit organization announced $833,300 in funding for the STEM and Arts programs at CUSD, according to its website.
Barton Merriman said the district’s property near Tidelands is “tied up in shockingly unfavorable 100-year leases. … I am interested in having a financial advisor weigh in on the cost/benefit of holding on to the handcuffed property,” she added.
In a follow up conversation, Barton Merriman said her ideas stem from conversations she’s had with district officials and a former board trustee.
“It makes me feel good that we’re on the plan that we thought we would be and that we’re $400,000 ahead of where we thought we would be,” Barton Merriman said. “I’m not a ‘chicken little, sky is falling,’ … to that level of concern, which I know that some other candidates are, because that’s not the conclusion I come to when I look at the numbers and talk to the district leaders.”
“I have kids in this district,” added Barton Merriman. “When cuts are made they’re going to feel them and I’m not willing to let that happen without totally exhausting every avenue of possibility.”
The district budget, ‘a moving target’
Cavanaugh, a retired CUSD teacher and current trustee who has served on the school board for the past two years, said the district is on path to maintain fiscal solvency and show a positive projection for the year prior to achieving the new funding status.
As the only incumbent seeking reelection, Cavanaugh said the district continues to find additional revenue sources and identify expenditure reductions.
“As a school board trustee, I am one of five people tasked with providing oversight and accountability in our district,” wrote Cavanaugh. “Being fiscally responsible with public funds is a critical function of board members.”
Like Barton Merriman, Cavanaugh referenced the improved shortfall projections presented in this year’s budget.
She said the district lost over $1 million due to student absenteeism last year, but administration has been working to increase revenue by encouraging student attendance.
Cavanaugh said budgets are developed using the best available information at the time including enrollment and attendance, state adopted budgets, agreements with local collective bargaining units, and new grants awarded to the district.
“In the event our district does face a budget shortfall, I will look to the district’s long range plan which directs the board to minimize impact to student programs while prioritizing student achievement, retaining highly qualified staff and maintaining enrichment and intervention programs,” added Cavanaugh.
In a follow up conversation, Cavanaugh said she doesn’t consider CUSD’s current budget issue to be “a new one or a pants-on-fire issue.”
“There’s always issues with the budget. … It’s always a moving target,” said Cavanaugh. “That third year out, that’s where the shortfall is occurring. So, it’s not right now. It’s not in January. It’s going to be in the 2026-2027 school year when that anticipated shortfall might happen. And there’s lots of things that can happen in between now and then.”
Cavanaugh said the district’s long range plan establishes a clear direction and priorities, but attendance shortfalls and declining enrollment have been challenging.
Cavanaugh noted that recouping attendance means upwards of $100,000 annually for every attendance percentage point increase.
“I trust that our administration is really working hard to bridge this shortfall and, as we get more information, I really feel confident that we’ll be able to do that with the least impact to students and families and teachers that we can,” added Cavanaugh.
Hard, ‘data driven’ and collaborative decisions
Lee, a retired naval aviator and CUSD parent, believes the budget shortfall is especially urgent because of the task of “identifying approximately $2 million in ‘savings’ proposals by December of this year.”
“Any candidate who says this is down the road,” said Lee, “this is the kind of thinking that got us here to begin with. … That is not good governance. That’s not good thinking.”
Lee suggests two possible options to help CUSD navigate the budget shortfall without resorting to deep cuts: maximizing attendance rates and strategically leveraging grant funding.
“If elected to the school board, my approach to addressing the budget shortfall will be collaborative, methodical, thorough, and data-driven, with a focus on ensuring that we never lose sight of the fact that there are real people — students, teachers, and staff — behind every number we analyze,” wrote Lee in an email.
Lee said he has been critically examining teachers and staff salaries because conducting a full analysis is crucial in his approach.
“The best decisions come from understanding the full landscape, including the financial impact of programs, their contributions to student outcomes, and their role within the community,” he added.
Increasing the district’s average daily attendance (ADA) is one way to increase revenues, Lee said.
“Our ADA stands at 95.4%,” he noted. ”If we were able to increase this by just 1%, it could generate nearly $300,000 in savings annually. This is no small feat, and it’s achievable.”
Lee said CUSD could seek grants that allow it to capitalize on specific teacher specialties.
“Most grants are typically earmarked and don’t contribute directly to offsetting a deficit …These grants could effectively fund certain teacher positions by covering their compensation while they fulfill grant requirements,” he added. “This not only keeps teachers employed but also enhances our educational offerings without straining the general fund.”
Lee said he cannot yet determine specific programs to cut or keep, but pledged his commitment to the best solutions without resorting to deep cuts.
In a follow up interview, Lee said he believes the option of strategically leveraging grant funding is an idea unique to his candidacy.
“The county is not coming in to do anything,” Lee said. “They’re asking us to do it. We have to provide them an answer and it’s got to be realistic and it’s due in December.”
For this reason, Lee said, new state requirements for independent study programs could help increase ADA which he said 1% annually could generate $900,000 over three years right before basic aid.
“The biggest thing that I would do to try to foster that is make sure we have those programs that we’re talking about in place,” said Lee. “Let’s go to the limit on what’s in the realm of possible for making up attendance. The state has an appetite for doing that right now. Let’s run with it.”
Lee also criticized a recent 2.5% salary increase for the district superintendent and deputy superintendent given the district’s current financial projections.
“If I were on the board I would probably look into rescinding that, if I could,” added Lee.
“I’m not afraid to make hard decisions and stand behind them when they’re data driven, collaborative and go, ‘we looked under every rock,’” Lee said.
Considerations that are ‘several years down the line’
Sandke, a former CUSD parent and past Coronado City Council member, does not consider the financial status of the district something that “we’re threatened with at this point.”
“For the next two years, CUSD will have adequate resources to maintain the high level of core as well as enrichment programs offered by the district,” wrote Sandke in an email. “The difficulty will be that without some innovative approaches to adding to our revenue stream, cuts will be necessary in some programs or positions.”
Sandke believes CUSD could find monies through grants or other means to keep entire educational offerings available for students as well as building on the existing partnership with the City of Coronado to assist with funding needs.
“I would work to expand our relationship with Safe Harbor and perhaps other county resources to be sure state and federal reporting requirements are met and that ancillary services like academic counseling and socio-emotional care remain available in our district,” Sandke wrote. “I would seek additional legal opportunities for city support.”
Sandke suggested support from booster groups in the community to supplement enrichment areas of district programs that may experience shortfalls in funding.
“Should inevitable cuts become a necessity, I would take a position at the board level that initially preserves and prioritizes core academic activities,” added Sandke. “Following that, I would be sure that … a level of service is maintained such that vulnerable students and those needing specific help do not fall through any possible cracks in our system. We cannot completely abandon our mission of ‘Every Child, Every Day.’”
In a follow up conversation, Sandke described the budget concern as an issue that is “several years down the line.”
“The urgency of creating a viable plan for the county on a three-year basis exists for that December deadline,” added Sandke. “It’s important to recognize what the December deadline is and what it isn’t. It’s not (that in) December we have to tell everybody we’ve run out of money. In December we have to come up with a legitimate plan that the county can buy off on.”
Sandke emphasized collaboration with county education officials who monitor the district’s budget.
“The folks who review our finances are our partners and so they’re required by state law to help us,” said Sandke. “If we find that we’re at a point where some of the county resources would be able to supplant some resources that our school district can’t provide … it’s in their legal obligation to help us with that.”
The district announced a Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) sponsored School Board Candidate Forum taking place in the District Office, at 201 6th Street, from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 1.
