The son of a former tennis partner of mine called and left a frantic message on my phone last week. I called him back the next morning to find out what he wanted. Like so many others before him he was trying to get my relatively informed advice about where to put his child in school. He recently moved into the San Jose Unified District.

Of course, I understood the urgency in his voice. This is one of the most important decisions a parent can make. Most times the decision is made due to geographic boundaries solely, and the parents have little voice. He asked if I knew any tricks of the trade to get his son into a school that’s not in his immediate area.

The City of San Jose closed a $84 million dollar budget shortfall for the 2009-2010 fiscal year, which resulted in 13 city employees being laid off. However, these 13 former employees are first in line for job openings at the City should they become available. Also as a result of the balanced budget, 250 city employees moved into different departments and/or positions based on their seniority. For those 250 people involved in the “bumping,” it is a intricate process that is all about years or months of service that I will attempt to explain. Bumping is governed by the Civil Service Rules.

Guest column by Jack Wimberly
Neighborhood associations typically come with a uniqueness all their own but most share a common thread of yards and single-family dwellings, with a dash of charm.  Downtown San Jose, an area playing host to many domiciles, lacks that thread on a sizeable scale.  Her neighborhoods consist of busy thoroughfares, mass transportation, and transients—transient workers, transient travelers and transient residents.

Was Cesar Chavez a racist?  No, I don’t think so.  But today, people of every political stripe and ethnicity are labeled “racists” for espousing some of the same attitudes towards immigration and immigration law as Cesar Chavez did.

Figures just released by the Sacramento Bee calculate how much local counties, cities, and redevelopment agencies across the state will be forced to pay to cover the $3.7 billion that the state needs to balance its own budget. In Santa Clara County, that sum comes to $185,253,807.

The word equity comes from the Latin root aequus, meaning fair. Equity and fairness should be the foremost constructs when it comes to students and public schools. Lately, I have been pondering whether there is a real or perceived Machiavellian plot to create a rulebook for Charter schools that is inequitable toward public schools and their districts. What is good for Charters should also be good for district schools and vice versa. I am getting increasingly suspicious and concerned.

The first council meeting of the new fiscal year will result in discussing the new budgets cuts that must be made due to Sacramento’s raid of cities’ property tax money. Since San Jose does not want to look at delivering services differently, as Chicago and other cities do, then that leaves us with only one option: cut services to San Jose residents.

These last days of July and the first few weeks in August continually prey on my mind. As an educator I always want what is best for all students: great teachers, rigorous, engaging lessons, and high expectations for learning. As an administrator, one has the charge to provide these during the 180-day school year. But what about the 65-70 days of summertime?

Do you remember the commercial for Ginsu Knives from the late ‘70s?  It would show a sharp knife on TV cutting through everything from tomatoes to tin cans. The announcer would repeatedly say: “But wait! There’s more!”

Well, just when you thought we had a balanced budget for the City of San Jose, the state of California has said “But wait! There’s more!”

It’s a special summer Friday edition of SJI’s open forum, where visitors to the site—including hard-core regulars and newbies—set the topics of discussion. What’s on your mind? 

Are we witnessing today the disintegration of California before our very eyes? The budget decisions the “Gang of Five” have agreed to might be the beginning of the end for California’s world leadership. America has been known to act boldly when we are threatened by global competition. Remember Sputnik in 1957? Can we find the same spirit in 2009 to confront the $26 billion California budget deficit?

I was recently downloading classic songs on my iTunes from the late ‘70s, two of which were Bob Welch’s “Ebony Eyes,” and Player’s “Baby Come Back.” iTunes is great because I can choose the specific songs I like rather than having to purchase the entire album. While downloading my songs, I was thinking about how we choose our politicians. Unfortunately, we don’t get to pick politicians the way we do music, although I bet most of us would like to. It would be great to choose the top characteristics of the best candidates in a race and then take those skill sets and create our own politician.

San Jose Inside’s open forum for ideas and opinions on any topic is open for business. What’s on your mind?

I reported for jury duty last week to the Santa Clara County Superior Courthouse on Hedding Street in San Jose. Once I checked in I was asked to report to Department 38. As I walked into the courtroom, I was brought back to a time when my job included monitoring a middle school dress code.

I sat there rather surprised by some of the attire worn to court by fellow prospective jurors. I felt similarly many times as a principal, when I had to reprimand students for inappropriate attire and ask them to change into something appropriate for class.

Do you ever wonder what it takes to move a bus stop?  Especially those that are located at busy intersections or located right in front of retail establishments? Well, if you have, you are not alone. My council office gets requests to move bus stops on occasion. Sometimes the request is moving a bus stop that has been in the same location for 30 years, after a the new adjacent homeowner wants it moved. Other times, the request involves genuine safety concerns with bus stops being to close to the intersection. 

For example, at the corner of Willow/Meridian, a bus will make a turn onto Willow and then stop, which backs up traffic into the intersection creating gridlock, or causes cars to swerve around the bus blindly.

SJI’s Rants & Raves has an open-door policy, especially in summertime: All opinions on any topic are welcome.