The school district is without a dedicated grant writer and
public information officer due to budget cuts.
Gilroy – The school district is without a dedicated grant writer and public information officer due to budget cuts.
Staff and trustees of the Gilroy Unified School District eliminated the position, formerly held by Teri Freedman, at a regular meeting in June. The move will save the district about $103,000.
“We were trying to looking for some big ticket items in the budget,” trustee Pat Midtgaard said. “We had lengthy discussion about how many grant opportunities had actually come through and what would be the impact if we did eliminate that (position) and the decision was made.”
Freedman, a Gilroy teacher and administrator of more than 20 years, was hired by former superintendent Edwin Diaz and the board of trustees in July 2006 to increase communication between the public and district and to bring in new funds for the district.
“We feel like we need to market what we offer more widely and aggressively,” Diaz said at the time of the hire.
The position was sold to trustees as paying for itself, Midtgaard said. Trustees and staff expected Freedman to apply for and win enough grants to increase the district’s funds by at least the amount she was paid. In addition, they expected her to compile a list of recurring grants to streamline the district’s grant application process.
These were unrealistic expectations because grant monies usually stipulate that none of the funds can be used to pay for the grant writer’s salary, Freedman said.
“I brought in more grant money than my salary last year, but it went to pay other people’s salaries,” she said.
Freedman said the reason they cut her position was because they needed to make last minute cuts to balance the budget before the end of the financial year on June 30. She could be dismissed with short notice whereas other employees, such as teachers, must be notified months beforehand. However, trustees said they had been considering cutting the position for months. Yet, this does not mean they were trying to get rid of Freedman, trustees said.
“It’s not necessarily about Teri, it’s about our budget,” trustee Javier Aguirre said.
Overworked trustees and staff thwarted some of her efforts to win grants due to their unwillingness to post matching funds or put in the labor required to compile research, Midtgaard said. In addition, Freedman was hampered by her role as a public information officer, which took more time than was expected when the district was forced to hire a new superintendent, she added.
Freedman said her role as public information officer increased her ability to author and win grants because it allowed her to network with members of community organizations. The last grant she submitted before leaving her post was a collaboration of more than a dozen agencies.
If funded, the grant could provide money specifically for a grant writer position, meaning funds could become available in October to reinstate the job, Freedman said.
Trustees expressed a desire to revive the position if funds become available. However, Aguirre expected the option would not be available until at least the start of the next financial year in July 2008.
When and if the position is reinstated, trustees will have to take a close look at what the new hire is expected to do, Midtgaard said.
“Perhaps the job description in the future should be tighter so it’s just focused on grant writing,” she said.
